My daughter been sleepy since birth, so getting her to latch on and eat has been rather difficult. But my milk hasn't came in just yet, so I've been pumping every 3hrs to get things started. The most I've gotten was 4mL, then the next two times were a few drops. I'm not going to give up this time. I'm going to breastfeed, even if that means to pump and bottle feed her, I will.
Few things:
- you don't need to resort to a bottle right away. You can add your milk to syringes and supplement her this way so she doesn't get nipple confusion. If you need more help with this, I can elaborate.
- I wouldn't recommend pumping until 1m PP. It can mess with your supply and lead to clogged ducts/infections. If she isn't feeding and you do end up engorged its fine to pump some.
- if you're able to wear her in a wrap or sling with an open shirt, she may be able to root at your breast when she wants. Same for laying in bed skin to skin.
Breastfeeding was a struggle for us at first. My son was sooo weak and sleepy and latching made him more tired. I supplemented via syringe for about 2 weeks until he got stronger.