5AF Parenting Thread

[Morkle]

So while my wife is off of work, she handles the night feedings past 12 (I handle the feedings when I get home from work until midnight). She recently said this is bothering her and would like to change the routine. So how do you guys or did you guys do it? Set schedule? Was it a you take it, no I got it...situation?

[NTP66]

We would switch off every few days. I'd handle the late night/early morning feedings to allow her to get some sleep, and she'd eventually just take over again when she was better rested.

[count2infinity]

So while my wife is off of work, she handles the night feedings past 12 (I handle the feedings when I get home from work until midnight). She recently said this is bothering her and would like to change the routine. So how do you guys or did you guys do it? Set schedule? Was it a you take it, no I got it...situation?

While the little one was breast feeding, my wife did all the night time stuff. She rocked. Yes, she was on maternity leave, but still, that had to take it out of her getting up that often. When we went to bottles, we did a take turn system where one person would comfort the baby while the other ran down to make up a bottle, then the comforter would feed the baby and get her back down while bottle maker when back to bed. We flip flopped that role every wake up.

Now that she's at one (ish) wake up a night to eat, we take turns with getting out of bed. We have the refrigerator that my wife used at work for the milk she pumped during the day with bottles in it, and a bottle warmer. Toss the bottle into the warmer, rock/change the baby, feed, get her back down, back to bed. On a really good night, the process takes about 30 minutes and one person gets to stay in bed for the night. On nights like last night, it takes closer to an hour, hour and a half, and we have to tag out and let the other person try for a bit. Then after that, if there is another wake up, the person who stayed in bed goes and handles the situation as needed.

Needless to say, we can't wait until she's sleeping better. We're both zombies right now.

[meow]

I'm no help. mrs meow nursed so we/she didn't have much of a choice.

[shafnutz05]

So while my wife is off of work, she handles the night feedings past 12 (I handle the feedings when I get home from work until midnight). She recently said this is bothering her and would like to change the routine. So how do you guys or did you guys do it? Set schedule? Was it a you take it, no I got it...situation?

We usually alternated. That said, when my wife was on maternity leave, she tended to get the extra night feeding. Your system seems extremely fair considering you still have to go to work in the morning. Did she give any elaboration for why it's "bothering" her.

[NTP66]

I'm no help. mrs meow nursed so we/she didn't have much of a choice.

No pumping?

[meow]

I'm no help. mrs meow nursed so we/she didn't have much of a choice.

No pumping?

She pumped while at work for day care bottles. All other feedings are/were nursing.

[NTP66]

Gotcha. My wife pumped so that I could handle feedings at night if need be. When she doesn't get more than 4 hours of sleep, she gets nauseous and winds up throwing up, whereas I don't need any sleep to function normally, so I did as much as I could at night.

[meow]

mrs meow had a hard time nursing our first, so when our second was born and their nursing relationship got off to a very good start, she really enjoyed it and that time, so it has never been an issue. She still nurses the baby - who is 17 months old.

[Morkle]

So while my wife is off of work, she handles the night feedings past 12 (I handle the feedings when I get home from work until midnight). She recently said this is bothering her and would like to change the routine. So how do you guys or did you guys do it? Set schedule? Was it a you take it, no I got it...situation?

We usually alternated. That said, when my wife was on maternity leave, she tended to get the extra night feeding. Your system seems extremely fair considering you still have to go to work in the morning. Did she give any elaboration for why it's "bothering" her.

I think what's bothering her is that he's been a little fussier lately, so it's not as easy to get him to go back to bed. He's still on the every 2.5 - 3-hour clockwork cycle of feeding (2 months on Friday), so she basically has to get up at 1:30, then 3-4:30. But I know for sure she doesn't sleep much even up to midnight because I lumber around until then.

I think it's just a lack of sleep, I told her I'd talk to her about this when I got home, so I don't know until she actually tells me, but I have a feeling it's a stress/fussiness issue.

[Morkle]

Also major props to the breastfeeding moms out there. I saw how much that took a toll on my wife, and how much extra stress it caused. I'm thankful she decided to go full formula after a few weeks.

[NTP66]

My daughter was breast fed until just after her first birthday, and the only reason we stopped was because my wife couldn't produce enough by then. We'd have certainly gone longer if possible, given the benefits.

[mac5155]

So while my wife is off of work, she handles the night feedings past 12 (I handle the feedings when I get home from work until midnight). She recently said this is bothering her and would like to change the routine. So how do you guys or did you guys do it? Set schedule? Was it a you take it, no I got it...situation?

Just sleep through the feedings a few times, and she'll go back to handling them all

We got lucky - he slept all night until 6am almost consistently after 1 month. I get up on the weekends at 6am with him. She gets up at 6am for work and I usually feed him laying in bed while she gets ready

[mac5155]

Also major props to the breastfeeding moms out there. I saw how much that took a toll on my wife, and how much extra stress it caused. I'm thankful she decided to go full formula after a few weeks.

So glad that my wife is doing well with it. She has a hell of a supply built up. It's certainly helping a lot from a financial stand point.

[DigitalGypsy66]

My wife had latching issues and had to switch to formula after a few weeks as well. She was very upset about it, and felt like a failure. She still feels bad about it, and our youngest is 10.

[count2infinity]

The pressures on a woman to get breastfeeding right, both societal and internal (hormones n'at), are ridiculous. My wife's supply was relatively low... we were getting enough to get by, but not enough to build up any sort of bank of breast milk. Then she found a tick on herself and the doctor gave her antibiotics as a preemptive strike against lyme. That was the end of breast feeding. She debated for a few days as to whether she should take the antibiotics because then she couldn't breast feed the little one, and lyme can't pass from mother to child that way, and just all the stresses on top of the normal stress, her body just sort of shut down the milk making. She was devastated, but then relieved. Now she didn't have to pump, I could help with more feedings, she could take her allergy meds again. Once those hormones made their way through her system, she was in a much much better mental state once she stopped milk production.

I do not envy the woman through this whole pregnancy/first year of life thing. She's a damn super hero imo.

[grunthy]

The pressures on a woman to get breastfeeding right, both societal and internal (hormones n'at), are ridiculous. My wife's supply was relatively low... we were getting enough to get by, but not enough to build up any sort of bank of breast milk. Then she found a tick on herself and the doctor gave her antibiotics as a preemptive strike against lyme. That was the end of breast feeding. She debated for a few days as to whether she should take the antibiotics because then she couldn't breast feed the little one, and lyme can't pass from mother to child that way, and just all the stresses on top of the normal stress, her body just sort of shut down the milk making. She was devastated, but then relieved. Now she didn't have to pump, I could help with more feedings, she could take her allergy meds again. Once those hormones made their way through her system, she was in a much much better mental state once she stopped milk production.

I do not envy the woman through this whole pregnancy/first year of life thing. She's a damn super hero imo.

You can still breastfeed while taking antibiotics.

[count2infinity]

You can still breastfeed while taking antibiotics.

Can. Yes. There are side effects though.

Edit: not to mention that my wife is allergic to most antibiotics she she needs the nuclear bomb style ones.

[meow]

You can still breastfeed while doing a lot of things. Whether it is a good idea or not is another thing.

[mac5155]

Yeah honestly mrs mac has been a champ. doesn't whine much. she's afraid to take mucinex or anything with sudafed-like drugs to dry up the milk supply. hell, i can't even talk her into getting drunk and pump-and-dump once in a while

[grunthy]

You can still breastfeed while taking antibiotics.

Can. Yes. There are side effects though.

Edit: not to mention that my wife is allergic to most antibiotics she she needs the nuclear bomb style ones.

The side affects are basically a lesser version of what happens to adults since zero to trace amounts of the drugs pass through. It can be counteracted by probiotics for the baby. The only one they don’t prescribe usually to nursing mothers is quinolones. When a mother gets mastitis, sometimes the only way to get rid of it is antibiotics and nursing. Pumps aren’t always strong enough to unblock the duct.

[mac5155]

You can hop on there though and help her out

[tifosi77]

That moment when you thought you clicked on the Steelers thread...

[shafnutz05]

My wife had latching issues and had to switch to formula after a few weeks as well. She was very upset about it, and felt like a failure. She still feels bad about it, and our youngest is 10.

Yup. My wife had similar issues. To the point where our daughter was jaundiced because she wasn't getting enough and had to go back in the hospital for a night. She felt absolutely terrible and like a bad mom. It was a rough time.

[Morkle]

My wife had latching issues and had to switch to formula after a few weeks as well. She was very upset about it, and felt like a failure. She still feels bad about it, and our youngest is 10.

Yup. My wife had similar issues. To the point where our daughter was jaundiced because she wasn't getting enough and had to go back in the hospital for a night. She felt absolutely terrible and like a bad mom. It was a rough time.

Same, we got home from the hospital on a Sunday and had to go back on the Tuesday because he was latching for an hour and not peeing.