As a registered daycare provider, I've watched many breastfed babies.
However, I am a home daycare provider, as opposed to a center-based daycare.
24oz in the time that baby is at daycare does seem like way too much.
Starting with bottles of approx 3oz of expressed milk is a good start.
However, most infants will only take this every 2.5 to three hours.
If the daycare providers are saying that baby is crying all the time,
except when receiving a bottle, there could be many reasons.
Even on a slow-flow nipple, the hole in the nipple could be enlarging as
it's used and washed. Therefore, baby is taking in more milk, not
realizing he's full, so still seeming hungry. Baby may also be taking in
more air, and needing to be burped more.
Baby could also be reacting to the stress of the daycare provider. The
provider is obviously used to infants that take more at each feeding. So,
when baby cries for any reason, they automatically assume that there's no
way he could be full, since he only had three ounces. Consequently, they
aren't really giving other calming techniques an honest shot.
You already mentioned feeding baby sitting up, and keeping baby upright
after feeding to reduce spitup. Both very good suggestions.
I've had several infants in my daycare that reach a point of being so upset
that very little will calm them. I've solved that by putting them in a
sling, and allowed baby's arm to slide under my shirt, and feel the skin at
my waist. Calms them immediately, because it's so similar to what they
experience with their mother while nursing. I'm ok with the touching
because of my own nursling, who recently weaned, but I understand that some
daycare providers may not be ok with this technique.
I also have had a infant in my care who needed lots of pressure on his
tummy between feedings. His mother also had extremely large supply, and a
powerful letdown. He spit up A LOT, too. The tummy pressure made him feel
so much better, and helped release some gas. He spit up on me, but he was
going to spit up on me anyway, so why not spit up while he was happy
instead of while he was crying? I did lots of different holds to put
pressure on his tummy, including laying him across my lap, holding him so
the palm of my hand is against his stomach and his back is against my
tummy, and reclining in a rocking chair with him on my tummy, tummy to
tummy. Of course, I always covered myself with a towel to catch the
spitup!
This same child loved the baby swing, the type that's a cradle swing, so it
swings side-to-side.
This child absolutely hated laying flat on his back, even for diaper
changes. Blanket time on the floor worked if the blanket was interesting
to look at; he hated the gym-type blankets with mobile and toys hanging
over him.
He liked to sit in a bouncy seat or his car seat and watch the other kids
play around him, though.
Many providers also are not used to having a breastfed infant around.
These infants simply want to be held more than other infants in our culture
(in the USA, anyway), and often, providers aren't used to this. It's an
adjustment that providers don't even realize needs to happen, and until
it's pointed out, the mother may not realize this, either.
Finally, if despite lots of information sharing, and talking between the
mother and the provider, don't improve the situation, can the mother find
other childcare?
Please let me know if you or the mother have other questions, I'd be happy
to help.
Shannon Rittenhouse
Sterling,VA
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