newbie questions

I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Nursing is going well so far. She seems to have read the same books I did
b/c even the difficulties have been typical and solved readily by stuff I
learned here! Sore-ish nipples still, but I think it's just reg. "breaking
in" type stuff. One day of engorgement when my milk came in, but I forced
her to wake up and be my human breast pump every 1-2 hours and now my
breasts seem to be regulating themselves nicely.

Here are my questions:

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car seat?
She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but often rejects it
or sleeps poorly. The swing seat (we leave it off) seems to cradle her just
right and she sleeps 2-3 hrs at a time. I decided that her head dropping
down to her chest looked like it could cause breathing issues, so I put a
folded up cloth diaper under her neck and upper shoulders to keep her head
back. Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
the bassinet or crib?

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth (I'm
really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering what
I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change? She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

OK, I think that's enough questions for now! I'm sure I'll have more soon!

Amy & Madi, one week old today!

"V." wrote in message

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car
seat?
Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
the bassinet or crib?

Congratulations Amy. I didn't get to respond to your post that you had the
baby.

It's not a good idea for her to sleep in that position all day. I tried
varying where they slept and usually would put them down at least 2-3 times
in their bassinet in a quiet/dark room so they could get a really good sleep
throughout the day. Two of my children didn't like the swing, so I did not
use it. The child that liked the swing, she would fall asleep, but I had no
problems switching her to her bassinet. Like I said, if you vary where she
sleeps, it might not matter later. I used the little bouncy seat more often
than not for them sleeping during the day. I also laid them on the couch on
their tummies if I was going to be sitting by them (they loved that position
more than anything). Mostly, I just believe in varying the positions of the
baby. I don't to use anything for all day, like a sling, but used each tool
in moderation.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth
(I'm
really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering
what
I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

Don't worry, she's not allergic yet. She is still trying to get all the gunk
out of her lungs and nose. Try to get her head up higher when she nurses if
you can. Use the suctiony thing and if it is really bad, take her the
bathroom and turn on the hot water and nurse her in there. Talk to the
doctor though when you go to just make sure there is nothing going on.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change? She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

The white goo is hard to get off and I suspect that it is vernix from when
she was born. I used a diaper wipe to clean them off and when bathing the
girls they would be immersed in the water and it eventually got clean.
Personally, I didn't use wipes when they just peed and only used wipes when
they pooped.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and
she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to
keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

It sounds like the latter nursing is for comfort, even though she is still
getting some milk.
--
Sue (mom to three girls)

V. wrote:
I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Congratulations!!! Beautiful name!!

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car seat?

I have to confess that mine, at nearly 4 months old, takes all of her
naps in the swing, and it's on (she wakes up if we switch it off, or if
the batteries run down)!! She just will not sleep anywhere else.
She'll sleep in my bed if I'm there, and she'll sleep for 10 minutes if
I'm not, but then she'll start reaching out for me (I've watched her do
it) and if I'm not there she wakes up and screams. The swing seems to
hypnotize her enough that she doesn't reach out for me. I have to get
stuff done during the day, so this is what we do. It may be a problem
later, but I'll deal with that later. At least I know that she CAN
sleep flat, as long as I'm there. Maybe once she's old enough to
understand that I'm coming back, she'll sleep in her crib. So far,
she's logged a whopping hour in her crib. Hahaha...

We go through a LOT of D cell batteries.

As far as the position of her body, they recommend that babies with
reflux sleep in a more upright position, so I can't imagine that it
would hurt her. In fact, I've wondered if that isn't why mine sleeps
better in the swing - maybe she's hiding a case of reflux, and it
doesn't bother her as much in the swing.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby?

They're born with a lot of crud. Babies can't breathe through their
mouths, though, so she must be getting some air through there. The
hospital aspirator we took home was crap. Look for the "Little Noses"
brand - it comes with saline and an aspirator that's got a much better
shape for a tiny nose. Squirt a few drops of saline up there (she will
not like this part), then suck it out. The saline helps loosen all the
crud. It helps a lot to do this in an upright position - in a bouncy
seat or the car seat, or with her head and shoulders propped up on a
towel - otherwise all the saline runs down the back of her throat and
makes her gag.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change?

I've heard both opinions - that you should never, ever clean there, and
that you should clean there. The white stuff is vaginal mucus, so it's
important stuff that's supposed to be there. I've compromised and
decided that if she has feces in there, which happens occasionally,
I'll clean it out. But if she's just wet, I leave it alone (actually,
I rarely use wipes for wet diapers). I don't try to clean the mucus
off, just the poo that's on top of it. I figure that she's better off
without poo there, from a contamination/infection standpoint.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel.

I call this "noodling." Mine LOVES to noodle. She's basically using
you as a pacifier.

Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

Yep. Since I had supply issues, I basically let mine do this all the
time, hoping that any stimulation at all would help build my supply up.
She still noodles herself to sleep, and if she's in an unusual
environment (like if I take her to the office) she wants to noodle.
She basically does it whenever a pacifier-taking baby would want a
pacifier (which is all the time, some days!). It's up to you, how much
of it you want to tolerate. If I'm in a hurry, I tell mine to "finish
eating," give the breast a squeeze (compression helps empty the ducts),
and then pop her off when she's swallowed that last bit. Sometimes she
fusses, but usually she's ok with it.

With mine, noodling cures hiccups. If she's had hiccups for a long
time, you might try letting her fiddle.

OK, I think that's enough questions for now! I'm sure I'll have more soon!

Wow, it feels weird to be the one answering questions, instead of
asking them.

So happy for you!
Amy

V. wrote:
I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Congratulations!

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car seat?

The only place mine would sleep other than on me was in the car seat
*with the engine running* -- he snapped awake if you turned it off. We
went for a lot of touristy drives. (For some reason the swing was
unacceptable.) I figured he'd been all tucked up inside me, so that
although it looked uncomfortable it probably wasn't so bad...

As for setting you up for future problems, I don't know. If I moved
after DS had fallen asleep on me, he startled awake and screamed bloody
murder, and if I snuck away woke up in 20 minutes looking for the
missing mama, so I'm not one to ask. Some babies will sleep anywhere
including in a swing or car seat, but I'm well convinced that for mine,
it was an indicator that I had a light sleeper, rather than a *cause*
of a future light sleeper.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth (I'm
really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering what
I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

That won't happen, I don't think -- infants breathe through their
noses. Things should clear out soon IIRC.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change? She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

Baths ought to take care of that, I think.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel.

That's comfort sucking, good for building supply.

--
C, mama to three year old nursling

V. wrote:
I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Congrats again :-)

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car
seat? She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but
often rejects it or sleeps poorly.

I would encourage the bassinet but wouldn't worry about a bit of swing/car
seat sleeping. I just wouldn't do it all the time.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since
birth (I'm really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we
keep the humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times
when she just wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then.
I'm wondering what I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I
can't get her nose clear.

I think that will go away as she gets a bit older. A steamy bathroom gets
things moving as well.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper
change?

No idea - I'm a boy mom :-0

4. Is it normal for the later part of the nursing
session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just tickling my
nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

Yes it is normal. I would go with the flow at this age. It is good for her
and a good way to build your supply. I decided to try to unlatch Luke from
doing that at around 4 weeks of age as the comfort sucking isn't my favorite
thing I discovered. Hunter did it his whole first year so it doesn't hurt
anything.

--
Nikki
Hunter 4/99
Luke 4/01
EDD 4/06

"V." wrote:

I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Nursing is going well so far. She seems to have read the same books I did
b/c even the difficulties have been typical and solved readily by stuff I
learned here! Sore-ish nipples still, but I think it's just reg.
"breaking
in" type stuff. One day of engorgement when my milk came in, but I forced
her to wake up and be my human breast pump every 1-2 hours and now my
breasts seem to be regulating themselves nicely.

Sounds good.

Here are my questions:

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car
seat?
She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but often rejects
it
or sleeps poorly. The swing seat (we leave it off) seems to cradle her
just
right and she sleeps 2-3 hrs at a time. I decided that her head dropping
down to her chest looked like it could cause breathing issues, so I put a
folded up cloth diaper under her neck and upper shoulders to keep her head
back. Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
the bassinet or crib?

I didn't use the swing right away but I was so happy when I started to and
found that Alexander would sleep soundly in it while he wouldn't anywhere
else unless I was holding him. I held him a lot when he slept (just let him
sleep in my lap while I did stuff on the computer or put him in the carrier
on my back and let him sleep there while I did housework) or I put him in
the swing. Now he's 6 months and he doesn't like the swing much unless he's
in a "WHEE" mood, so he outgrew needing it for naps.

I don't think it's a danger thing unless you leave them in it all the time.
I think variation is good.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth
(I'm
really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering
what
I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

The saline stuff is supposed to be good. I haven't used it since we haven't
really had stuffed up problems (until this week when Alexander caught the
cold that's going around) but from what I've read, you squirt some of that
in their nose & then suction it out.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change?
She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

No idea.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and
she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to
keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

That's good for your supply. Alexander is a big comfort sucker & I'm not
going the pacifier route, so I've just let him nurse anytime he wants to.

OK, I think that's enough questions for now! I'm sure I'll have more
soon!

Amy & Madi, one week old today!



rj

Hi Amy!

V. writes:

: 1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car seat?
: She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but often rejects it
: or sleeps poorly. The swing seat (we leave it off) seems to cradle her just
: right and she sleeps 2-3 hrs at a time. I decided that her head dropping
: down to her chest looked like it could cause breathing issues, so I put a
: folded up cloth diaper under her neck and upper shoulders to keep her head
: back. Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
: the bassinet or crib?

We often let ours fall asleep in the car seat. I would have the same
concern as you about the swing, but it sounds like you have found a
solution. Where does she sleep at night? Are you nursing her to sleep?
I don't think there is anything wrong with her sleeping in the car seat,
but I think she should be lying on a flat surface some of the time, and
the easiest way to do that would be to lie down on the bed with her and
nurse he to sleep.

: 2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth (I'm
: really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
: humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
: wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering what
: I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

EBM is an excellent decongestant. Just squirt a few drops in her nose.

: 3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change? She
: has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
: stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
: Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
: natural protection in place.

If she has a blow out poop and it gets in there, you could wash it with a
peri bottle. Other than that, I would do nothing.

: 4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
: keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
: swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and she
: may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
: change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to keep
: her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
: own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
: the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
: enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
: the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
: tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

This sounds like typical newborn behavior.

: OK, I think that's enough questions for now! I'm sure I'll have more soon!

: Amy & Madi, one week old today!

Congrats,
Larry

Grace slept in her swing for the first couple of months. I couldn't get
her to sleep otherwise, unless in the Amby bed. Around 4-6 mos she
started sleeping only in her crib, and we've had no problems with that.

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car seat?
She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but often rejects it
or sleeps poorly. The swing seat (we leave it off) seems to cradle her just
right and she sleeps 2-3 hrs at a time. I decided that her head dropping
down to her chest looked like it could cause breathing issues, so I put a
folded up cloth diaper under her neck and upper shoulders to keep her head
back. Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
the bassinet or crib?

I don't clean it unless there is poop there.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change? She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

I think what you are doing seems like the right thing. I worried about
the same thing with DS (1st child), but he grew fine. I just tried to
wake him by changing him, etc. and nursed often. Soon, Madi will become
much more alert and it will get easier.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

Way to go, Momma! Sounds like you're doing very well!

"V." wrote in message
...
I had my baby! Madeline Gale (Madi) was born 11/29, 6lbs14oz!

Nursing is going well so far. She seems to have read the same books I did
b/c even the difficulties have been typical and solved readily by stuff I
learned here! Sore-ish nipples still, but I think it's just reg.
"breaking
in" type stuff. One day of engorgement when my milk came in, but I forced
her to wake up and be my human breast pump every 1-2 hours and now my
breasts seem to be regulating themselves nicely.

That's great :-)

Here are my questions:

1. Is it safe (or a good idea) to let her sleep in her swing or car
seat?
She will sleep a little in the bassinet when swaddled, but often rejects
it
or sleeps poorly. The swing seat (we leave it off) seems to cradle her
just
right and she sleeps 2-3 hrs at a time. I decided that her head dropping
down to her chest looked like it could cause breathing issues, so I put a
folded up cloth diaper under her neck and upper shoulders to keep her head
back. Am I setting us up for probs later when she needs to transition to
the bassinet or crib?

I think all babies are going to fall asleep in a swing or car seat from time
to time. I wouldn't encourage it or use it as a default for long periods,
but I don't think you need to be paranoid about it. DD went through a phase
where only rocking her vigorously in her car seat would put her to sleep for
her day time nap, but at night and for most of the time she has always been
in her crib.

2. How do you nurse a stuffed up baby? She's been stuffy since birth
(I'm
really hoping it's not also allergies to our pets), but we keep the
humidifier going and I've suctioned her nose a couple times when she just
wouldn't latch on and that solved the problem for then. I'm wondering
what
I do though when/if she is so stuffed up that I can't get her nose clear.

That's where the car seat could come in handy ;-) Put her in her seat in the
bathroom while you take a shower. I also used a weak saline solution and put
a drop in each of DD's nostrils with an eyedropper, and it loosened it up
prior to nursing.

3. Should we be cleaning between her labia when we do a diaper change?
She
has that white discharge stuff there now and I'm not too concerned about
stool getting in there (she poops so loud we know about it right away!)
Just not sure how much we should get in there to clean vs. leaving her
natural protection in place.

Vernix will stay in skin folds for ages. It doesn't do any harm, and
vigorous attempts to clean it off could cause irritation. Just bath as usual
and wipe gently from front to back during nappy changes, between the folds
if there is fecal matter there. It will disappear eventually.

4. After about 5 min of vigorous nursing she pretty much falls asleep but
keeps nursing in a mild, "tickly" way that I can barely feel. Still
swallows, but it's obviously less of a swallow than the first 5 min and
she
may not be actually swallowing anything. When she wakes up, I do a diaper
change to wake her up more thoroughly and remove her sleeping "bag" to
keep
her cooler. We nurse one side for about 15 min (I let her pop off on her
own), but only 5 min of that is active sucking. I then let her sleep off
the milk drunk for a few minutes and get her redressed, which wakes her up
enough to do side #2 in the same way. Is it normal for the later part of
the nursing session to only feel like a slight tickle like she's just
tickling my nipple with her tongue instead of sucking?

That sounds like comfort suckling, which they do a lot at that age. It helps
to build your supply. It's not unusual for a baby that age to only take one
side at a feed, in fact I suspect that's the norm. I assume you're hearing
lots of swallowing sounds as she's feeding, and that she's producing plenty
of wet nappies. Newborns feed little and often. She sounds just fine! And
where are the photos?


--
Amy
Mum to Carlos born sleeping 20/11/02,
& Ana born screaming 30/06/04
http://www.freewebs.com/carlos2002/
http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/a/ana%5Fj%5F2004/
My blog: http://spaces.msn.com/members/querer-hijo-querer-hija/

And
where are the photos?




Well, since you asked

http://users.adelphia.net/~voisine