Has anyone had success breastfeeding without doing so right after birth?

Question

I'm getting my info from books, which all are telling me that it's easiest to get to nursing just after birth. This isn't an option for me - I won't be able to spend much time with the newborn for several hours, except for what sounds like a meet and greet.

Are there any nursing moms who started the next day without problems?

Thanks for any input.

Answer 1

I didn't nurse my first son but I did pump but I didn't even do that until about 3 days after he was born because I had decided to go with formula thinking i wouldn't get in milk (the woman in my family don't) but I got in a lot of milk so I changed my mind.  It was ok, he loved the breastmilk and took it better than the formula.  With my second son I tried to nurse him a few hours after he was born but he wasn't latching on right away so he really didn't start to nurse until day 3 then he did fine.  

Answer 2

Absolutely you can start the following day - immediately after delivery is ideal, but there are even cases of women who started to bottle feed but then changed their minds a week later, and they were able to increase their milk supply and happily nurse their babies.

Don't worry, your milk doesn't come in for a few days any way.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

even though better for the nursing relationship, and also better for the babys gut to get the colostrum as early as possible, no, you shouldnt have a problem getting started a day later.  if its delayed any more,  use a pump and a syringe or one of those little medical feeder cup things to feed the baby the colostrum.  it helps their gut a lot and is the right stuff until the whole milk comes in.  good luck!

Answer 4

I don't think one day should matter. A week might make a difference, but not really a day. Your milk probably won't come in until day 3 anyway.  

Answer 5

You're right that it's easiest if  you can nurse right after birth, but it is definitely possible to nurse even if you can't start right away.  It is important to start pumping as quickly as possible though.  The hospital should supply you with a hospital-grade breastpump and you need to pump every 2-3 hours including overnight.  The hormone prolactin is very important in breastfeeding and it is produced at its highest levels overnight so don't skip over that nighttime pumping session.  You can take the pumped milk over to the nursery (or NICU as it sounds like that may be involved here) and they should have a refrigerator or freezer to store the milk.  Any extra you have stored when you go home you can just take with you.

My daughter had medical problems when she was born (we knew prenatally).  She had surgery about 12 hours after birth and was not allowed to nurse until after that first surgery.  We had some problems at first because she had to stay in a certain position that was difficult for breastfeeding.  We finally had a great nurse at around 4 days who really helped us get going.  Then my daughter had to have a second surgery after which she was too tired and it seemed to hurt her to  nurse so she got bottles of breastmilk for a day.  After that we went back to exclusive breastfeeding and she never had another bottle.  She weaned somewhere after her fourth birthday.

I wish you the best of luck.

Answer 6

My baby was taken for observation after birth because of meconium in the amniotic fluid.  They wanted to check him for infection, and put him on antibiotics for a week as a preventative step.(I am living in Japan now, and they are very medically cautious compared to the US, too much so maybe) Anyway, my son was able to breastfeed once right after birth then he was on a very restricted milk schedule with no feedings for the next 24 hours.  But he took to the breast like a champ.  The only problem was because of the delay in breastfeeding as often as he wanted(the first four days)it took longer for my milk to come in.  But by the end of week 1 things were good to go. Good luck!

Answer 7

I couldn't breastfeed my son for the first 24+ hours and then from the stress of the constant harassment and abuse from hospital staff I had no letdown for the whole 5 days we were in hospital until the doc said we could leave and I did one last "weigh the baby before and after each feed".  It was a nightmare and a long story  about the whole stupidity.

Anyway "without problems" -no.  But we are still nursing 2.5 years later, and I nursed through a whole pregnancy and nurse his 9 month old little brother as well.  The problems were resolved over two weeks with some patience and good lactation consultant.

Answer 8

It took me 3 days to get my first child to even latch on good.  I was so scarred that he was going hungry, but when I talked to the doctor about she said that it was normal and to just keep trying.  So I'm sure you won't have any problems.