Things seem better.

Thursday night me and my husband had a little chat about the breastfeeding, and he agreed that calling the lactation consultant would be a good idea. I figured it would take a few days to get an appointment, but surprisingly she agreed to meet me Friday.

After missing her appointment and rescheduling for later that night, the consultant finally showed up at about 6:45 pm Friday night. She was really nice and very helpful, and she taught me a lot more than I'd anticipated- not about latches or technique, but about intuition and common sense. I had been going about the breastfeeding thing all wrong, and I didn't even realize it.

First of all, the reason the gnome wasn't getting all that much milk when I first breastfed her (or, I guess when I "last" breastfed her) was because I was watching the clock and stopping her because I was impatient and so sure she must have gotten her fill. That was wrong of me, but I honestly thought it should take her the same amount of time to nurse as it does to drink from the bottle, and every doctor I'd spoken to told me that babies should nurse from 20-30 minutes each time. So after 20-30 minutes I was sure she was done and would stop her. Of course she wasn't getting enough milk! She doesn't always drink the whole time, so that number is inaccurate or at best unclear.

I also learned that modern (western) medicine is too restricting on mothers at times. Not every baby will fit within some standard chart guidelines that all babies are supposed to measure up to. Since the consultant left on Friday I have nursed exclusively. Most feedings take nearly an hour- others take over an hour. I have not rushed her- I know to give her plenty of time, and just let her eat at her own pace.

In terms of her weight, just because she's not gaining at the same rate as other babies, doesn't mean she isn't healthy. Every baby is different, and as long as she's eating at her own pace and is satisfied, then her weight gain shouldn't matter. Also, my supply will be fine if I let her eat for as long as she wants. It's all so simple, yet it was a revelation to me at the time.

So far the nursing has been going pretty good. A little bit of discomfort, but mostly it's perfectly fine. And i even figured out how to nurse her lying in bed, which really helps at night when I'm too tired to get up. Of course, after "the incident", I only nurse her on the inside of the bed, so I can only do it half the time. Also, the consultant showed me how to use the nursing pillow to my advantage sitting on the couch, and positioning her has been SO MUCH EASIER, which makes long feedings 100 times more comfortable because I'm not straining my back anymore.

Lets hope I can keep it up. Theres a nursing support group every Tuesday that I was invited to attend, but its during the day and I do work from home, so I'm not sure if I'll go... We'll see. Overall, it was a great investment, and i'm feeling pretty confident.