Babies Refuse to Latch and Milk Supply Keeps Dropping

“My baby is 9.5 weeks old, and we use a nipple shield for every feeding. After breastfeeding, she’ll continue comfort sucking for what feels like forever. She’s become so used to nursing to sleep that she falls asleep at the breast almost every time. The funny thing is, I don’t think it’s necessarily my breast she’s attached to as much as the nipple shield itself. I use the Lansinoh nipple shields, and the closest pacifier I’ve found is Tommee Tippee, but she knows the difference and spits it out”

“It’s been a rocky road for me and my 12 week old baby girl. I had to supplement her with formula due to a shallow latch and inefficient transfer and since I couldn’t ever get the hang of pumping (I just learned the other day that I had the wrong flange size and the wrong pumps, and the LC I saw at six weeks in was less than useless) my supply never fully came in. I have maybe a half supply... Maybe. I’m finally working with a good LC who worked out that I need to give her roughly 14 oz as a supp”

“My baby is 2 months old. From the very beginning, breastfeeding hasn’t been very easy. She had trouble latching but after working with a midwife she was able to latch. Her feedings were always on the shorter side (5-10 minutes) but she always had enough wet diapers and was gaining weight, albeit on the slower side but was still within a healthy range. About a week ago she started to plateau in weight. We met with a lactation consultant who thinks maybe she has a tongue tie and is affecting her a”

“Hello! I had a newborn a week ago and I just couldn’t wait to breastfeed her but things took a bad turn I was told my nipples aren’t developed enough. But what is actually hurting is that they weren’t always like that. As we are temperature and touch sensitive they always used to become hard and protrude but immediately after my c/sec they became too soft and flat(hormones maybe?) and my baby just won’t latch and it’s affecting my milk supply too I have been putting all my energy into trying to”

“I’m 3 weeks postpartum and breastfeeding has been very challenging - for a few reasons: - my baby had a latch issue (which we got resolved) so she wasn’t pulling milk/colostrum for the first several days - once my milk came in, she wasn’t drinking enough and dropping weight so we started combo feeding - I started pumping to ensure I was emptying enough to produce more - while she’s increased what she’s taking in at the breast, my supply hasn’t increased enough for what she needs at each feed. I’”

“I have a 6 week old and breastfeeding has been both good and bad. My baby was pretty small when born and I had a hard time getting her to latch, so my lactation consultant gave me a nipple shield and assured me that baby’s getting enough milk. As my baby got chubbier, I weaned off the shield. That’s when I started having trouble latching again. She always makes an O with her mouth as if she’s whistling when trying to latch. I mostly side lie, cradle at a 45 degree angle (butt on my thigh), and a”

“I need help before I give up and switch to formula. I need to know if anyone has had success with a situation like this. C-section. Baby wouldn’t latch at hospital. Tried several times. Fed pre expressed colostrum and formula due to bleeding and cracked nipples. Pumped exclusively for the first 3-4 weeks. (With occasionally trying to latch.. never worked) Made an appt with a IBCLC. Went well. Went home with a short nipple diagnosis, nipple shields, and breastfed for a few days and had pain incre”

“I had emergency CS 3 days ago. Second baby, planned to exclusively breast feed. I have a baby on the larger side 8lbs 12oz for reference. She was put straight on the breast and latched really well, had nurses take a look and she had a good deep latch but it was painful and pinching, anyway within a day my nipples are sore cracked and actually bled on one side. I had multiple nurses help me latch he’s correctly and she was but still was causing pinching feeling and she constantly wanted to nurse”

“Hi everyone. I am exclusively breastfeeding my 7w and 3d old daughter. We never had an issue with breastfeeding; she latched as soon as they laid her on my chest, her latch was perfect, there was no tongue tie, and there was no issue with milk supply. For the last two weeks, I have been really struggling to breastfeed her. Every single afternoon, she gets very fussy at my breast. She kicks, moans, grunts, and unlatches a lot; she also cries while nursing sometimes, which I never saw happen befor”

“I told myself before the baby came that I wouldn’t get too attached to the idea of breastfeeding because not all women can. Yet here I am eleven weeks in hysterically crying because it’s not working. I turned out to be one of those women who can’t do it and I can’t cope. My baby struggled to latch and it was painful at first so I combo fed her. I saw an osteopath and an IBCLC and things seemed to be fine even though I had to keep using the formula supplements , but she fell to the 9th centile an”

“Anyone else using nipple shields to help their baby latch? If so, how did you wean them off and how long did it take? submitted by /u/Mean-Technician-2057 [link] [comments]”

“When my baby was born my milk only came in on one boob. I tried and tried all the tricks to get milk to come in the other one but nothing worked and no lactation consultant could help. I thought it was just my body being weird and very uncommon but 8 months later i just heard of a friend of a friend who is having the same problem now with her newborn. I hate that it happened to me because i had to switch to exclusively formula feeding at 5 weeks and have been since then but i guess it’s just on”

“My 8 week old baby has struggled with latching and transferring milk effectively since birth, and even with a nipple shield she’d latch but wouldn’t suck or do anything. I’ve been exclusively pumping and bottle-feeding after a month and a half of triple feeding. I try to latch her 1-3 times a day but the longer we go on the bottles the more impatient she seems to get. Everytime she pushes away I get so demoralized and feel like I’m making no progress. I’m using paced feeding and super slow Pigeo”

“My baby girl is 6 weeks and she’s been on the bottle since birth. I got her to latch when she first popped out and we did skin to skin, and one time 2 weeks ago with a lactation consultant. Only 2 times in her 6 weeks of life has she been able to latch, and my milk supply is so low that I have to formula feed which is killing me mentally. My anatomy, milk supply, and her being used to bottles is making this incredibly difficult and I’m not sure how to troubleshoot to have her latch more often. I”

“My baby is almost 7 weeks old and we have been triple feeding since day one due to him being born early at 36w1d and being in the NICU. He just had his tongue tie released earlier this week. We have been doing weighted feeds for weeks and I’ve noticed he always struggles to latch and to stay engaged on my left boob, but the flow and output of that boob is just as good if not better than the right side. We have done a couple of weighted feeds for each boob and he always barely transfers anything”

“Has anyone experienced breast refusal and a drop in their baby’s weight percentile? I had my third baby two months ago and am struggling with feeding. I breastfed my first two babies without issues, and they both gained weight well. My current baby was born around the 80th percentile, dropped to the 66th percentile at two weeks, and is now at the 31st percentile at her two-month checkup. Her pediatrician recommended supplementing with one extra bottle at night and returning for a weight check in”

“Hello, my LO is 10 months and is recovering from surgery that required general anesthesia and some post-operative pain medications. At first when she woke up, she was a boobie monster. The day after, she seemed unsure of nursing though. She's been a bit on and off, and she ended up seeming more comfortable taking a bottle of pumped milk even. Can anyone share experiences and advice? She's normally nurses and only bottle feeds at daycare. submitted by /u/International_Line55 [”

“My 2 week old has been quite angry with my left boob since yesterday. It has plenty of milk (it's actually the boob with the better supply) but he won't even latch properly even and then he is very frustrated and yells at my nipple. As soon as I switch him to my other boob: instant latch. No issues. He did get his tongue tie cut two days ago so maybe it has something to do with that? What can I do? submitted by /u/Schmeganovic [link] [comments]”

“My 2 week old has been quite angry with my left boob since yesterday. It has plenty of milk (it's actually the boob with the better supply) but he won't even latch properly even and then he is very frustrated and yells at my nipple. As soon as I switch him to my other boob: instant latch. No issues. He did get his tongue tie cut two days ago so maybe it has something to do with that? What can I do? submitted by /u/Schmeganovic [link] [comments]”

“My baby is 38 days old. She was born at 37 weeks via induction, and I had a normal vaginal delivery. I’m posting because I desperately need guidance on whether I can still get my baby to breastfeed and whether I can build my milk supply this late. After delivery, I wasn’t really given the opportunity to establish breastfeeding. We did not get to have skin-to-skin after delivery, they took the baby to NICU and I didn’t hold her until the next day. After delivery instead of bringing my baby to me”

“If you would’ve told me when I started my breastfeeding journey that I would make it to a year, I wouldn’t have believed you. I cracked a nipple the first night, couldn’t latch my baby on my own, cried and cried, felt like I couldn’t do it. Baby got jaundice and didn’t transfer milk well for weeks. Talked with multiple lactation consultants, started triple feeding, and persisted with the support of my partner. And baby and I did it! He learned to transfer milk, my supply caught up and we exclusi”

“I have one kiddo. Breastfeeding was rough because one side just never developed as much and was constantly having issues. It never produced as much (I suspected this when I was nursing, and then when I switched to entirely pumping, it would always give an ounce or two less than the other side from identical pumping conditions) and was always getting clogs or feeling sore. Meanwhile the other side had basically no issues and produced like a champ--if I'd had two of those, my breastfeeding jou”

“I have a 6 week old baby and from when she was born we have had a lot of difficulty with latch. I had a pretty traumatic birth with an emergency c-section and couldn’t latch her the first day of birth. I saw a lactation consultant in the hospital the next day who helped me and I was able to latch her. When she was 4 days old at home I had to use nipple shield due to extremely painful cracked bleeding nipples as she had such a shallow latch and kept slipping off my breast. I continued using nippl”

“4 mo baby now has a shallow latch and is pulling at the nipple and it is ... not fun. Why is he doing this? He used to have a great latch up until 2 or so weeks ago and would not pull. Is it a sign of decreasing supply? submitted by /u/Affectionate_Bad1723 [link] [comments]”

“My daughter is 3 weeks and the first week seemed okay. But the last 2 weeks it seems like breastfeeding isn’t working the way it’s supposed to. She latches great on one side and it takes her longer on the other. But either way she drinks for about 10 seconds, lets go, starts screaming and latches again. And we do this for like 30 minutes or so. I don’t want to give up but at this point she seems happier with the bottle, Is any of this normal? Can we improve or it’s not going to work? submi”

“My baby has never latched on to my left hand side and she caused nipple trauma on the first latch to my right. In the ward we then were encouraged to supplement with formula and I was told my baby did not have a tongue tie. I started pumping and fed my baby about 90% breast milk, 10% formula for the first few months. We later found out my baby had a posterior tongue tie and a high palate. The tie was divided and her tongue movement is better and she will latch, but her sucking motion is poor and”

“My 6 day old LO initially had a great latch and still does when she latches but unfortunately as I started topping her up with a bottle she got lazy and would take hours to latch so I've resorted to nipple shields which she took to straight away. When using the nipple shields I ended up feeding her about 8 times within a 10 hour window and she seemed on high alert all day and was very cranky last night and wouldn't settle. I'm worried she's not getting enough milk when using nipp”

“I’m desperate to bring back my milk supply I had to stop trying to breastfeed my baby because I was put on medication, after finishing my medication I took a while to try and latch my baby again and I wouldn’t pump because i had difficulty trying to balance it with everything else going on it’s been 1.5 months now and I’m trying everything I can to bring back my milk supply, is it possible? If so what would help I need ALL tricks and tip😫 submitted by /u/k_xab [link] [comments”

“is there anything that can be done to prepare for breastfeeding when you have inverted nipples? what about right after delivery? what actually helps and what is just clutter? submitted by /u/Antique_Cut1354 [link] [comments]”

“My baby was born at 37 weeks and the hospital told me that she would have some issues with breastfeeding because she was slightly premature. They gave me a nipple shield to help with her latch at the beginning but didn't really give me any pointers on what that should look like. She also was very, very sleepy and sleeping through hunger, so we needed to wake her up to feed and supplement as she was losing weight too fast. Cut to 6 weeks, she is gaining weight tremendously, but we are still h”

“hi all, i really need some help. my baby was born at 36 weeks, healthy. but she couldnt latch properly. I also had a flat nipple and an inverted nipple. My LC suggested nipple shield, it worked somehow, but my baby couldn’t effectively suck, so my supply never really got to where it should be. i also had major emotional turbulence at PP day 4, I think that also got in the way of my BF journey. Now my baby is 10 weeks, mostly on formula feeding. But i am still trying to get her to bf as much as i”

“I am FTM and my baby is currently 12 days old. I produce decent amount of milk. Baby does not latch onto me without nipple shield. I try to breastfeed her for about 30-40mins but she always seems to ask for “more”. We supplement 30-40ml via bottle feeding (formula or pumped milk - whatever is available) Does anybody else’s baby do this ? How do I know her breastmilk/feeding is sufficient ? Also any tips for getting her to latch my breast ? Note: we are meeting with lactation consultant for latch”

“Hello! My baby is 6 weeks old. For the first week or two of her life, we attempted breastfeeding. I ultimately gave up even after seeing a lacataion consultant. I was never able to get a great latch - she was either too sleepy or too fussy and when she did latch, it was very shallow and SO painful. I tried all the things, even nipple shields. I never felt like we had great success with milk transfer either. It just became too much with trying to feed her at the breast, bottle feed after, and the”

“Hi, I am a first time mom, almost 8 weeks postpartum today. I had a delayed milk and during the early days, baby was having trouble latching so I was pumping from day 3 to 6 weeks. Throughout the time, I was getting about 1 to 4.5 oz from both breasts combined. For the past almost two weeks, baby learned to latch! And so I was completely breastfeeding. Baby’s getting enough wet and dirty diapers so I like to believe he’s been getting enough. Usually, he would nurse only from one breast but he’s”

“Do your breastfed babies burp? Baby's 2 months old. We had 1 visit from a LC at the hospital when he was 2 days old and struggled to latch. Haven't seen one since. We used a nipple shield for the first 6 weeks but we're fully done with it now. This baby BURPS. I feel like it's more powerful since we dropped the shield? As soon as I pick him up to my shoulder after a feed, he belches like a grown man, no patting required. Sometimes we don't even make it that far. He unlatches”

“My baby is now a month old and is still not able to transfer milk efficiently via breastfeeding. His latch is terrible despite trying all the tricks and seeing 3 different lactation consultants. One LC says he has a posterior lip tie and a "very tight" lip tie. He is unable to flange both his bottom and top lip. Even if you manually correct them, they pop right back. He lost 12% of his body weight the first week and developed severe jaundice (were .5 bilirubin from being admitted). We”

“I’m currently 6weeks pp and I’m looking to put my son back on the breast. I managed to breastfeed for a week and a bit and then pretty much stopped after that cause my nipples ended up cracked and bled anytime I tried to draw milk from them. Which put me off touching or going anywhere near my breast area for a few weeks due to how sensitive it was. At first I was getting 3oz but since I stoped being consistent for a few weeks I’m now only getting droplets out. I was on and off pumping to help su”

“I know they’re not recommended, but has anyone used nipple shields for the entire breastfeeding journey? We’re only in our third week, and I simply can’t latch her directly onto my nipple because the pain is unbearable, even with a good latch. Shields at least make it somewhat manageable for me. submitted by /u/sleh_96 [link] [comments]”

“I want to make a long story short, but I need help. I have a 7 week old, born 7.2 pounds, lost a small amount of weight right after but gained it back in 5 days with exclusive breastfeeding. I was so proud. I thought that would continue. He got to 7.85 at the end of August, about 2-3 weeks old. Then at our 6 week appointment, he weighed 7.9. I have been so so stressed because I didn’t know my baby wasn’t gaining weight. What changed in that time period is I went from feeding him 40 min on each b”

“Hi all! We’re working with an IBCLC, an OB with specialized breastfeeding training, a chiropractor, and waiting for an ENT eval (small tongue and upper lip ties). LO can sometimes get a good latch but last nights MOTN feeding was so shallow and I just let her have it after several attempts to fix. (Poor choice by me!). I did a short pump after that made it much worse. My nipple now has a big white spot at center and a red bump on the side (I think from friction). Any tips on pain relief?? 😭 TIA”

“Hello Mama’s, Has anyone done a virtual lactation consult in regard to getting a deeper latch with your baby? My girl is 3 months old and I am just struggling getting her to latch deeply and stay on. I’ve been considering one of the virtual appointments because the in person ones don’t have openings until late October 😵‍💫 Just wondering if anyone felt like they actually got good guidance despite it being through the camera. Thanks in advance. Also, if anyone has any tips for deep latching, ple”

“Hi all, I'm looking for support as I weather a nursing strike. My baby is 12 weeks old, and was an incredible breastfeeder from the start. No issues with latch at all. But lately I am struggling to get her to nurse. She will nurse eventually for the most part, but as of last night it's getting to outright refusal. I am a medical resident, meaning I work 65-70 hours per week. I went back to work at 5 weeks, 6 days- any longer and I can't graduate on time, so I will not be able to star”

“Hi all. So I had my son on 09/09/26, so he’s 17 days old today, and we’ve never truly been able to nurse at the breast. When we were in the hospital we attempted but he either had a really shallow latch or wouldn’t get on at all. Unfortunately, he was a jaundiced baby and had to be on the bili blanket for several days once we got home. I attempted to nurse during that first day, but he had no wet/poop diapers all day so we had to use formula to get him caught up. Since then we’ve been feeding vi”

“I have a flat and inverted nipple so I’ve always struggled breastfeeding. With my first only made it a few months, my second I only pumped, and I just had my third he’s 7 weeks and he refuses to latch anymore. Out of all my kids he had the best latch. And we breastfeed on and off the first few weeks but we did introduce a bottle the first week because my nipples were bleeding. Everytime I try and latch him he get hysterical and freaks out. I’ve tried multiple positions, I’ve tried just doing ski”

“I’m a proud mother to a 5 day old baby boy, and we have been trying so hard to get him to latch. He simply cannot do it. The few times we were able to, it was painful, even with the help of hospital staff. Today we had our lactation consultation at the pediatrician’s office, and after an hour of trying, the lady said it just probably won’t work out. His chin and jaw are too small for me, and he has a tongue tie. She thinks cutting the tongue tie won’t help. This is my second baby that I’ve tried”

“Baby is 8 weeks old today, when she was born she would not latch for more than a few seconds or suckle a bottle and had to be cup fed for the first week. After 1 week she took to the bottle but still wouldn't latch so i have been exclusively pumping and bottle feeding the whole time. This week I thought i would give nursing another go (as pumping/washing/sterilising was draining me) and to my surprise she latched and stayed on for 20+ minutes. For the past 3 days i have been mostly nursing w”

“So my baby is about a month and a half old and we have been breastfeeding since she was born but she had a tongue and a lip tie so I have been using a nipple shield basically from day one. We had the procedure to cut the ties about a week ago and her latch has improved so much but because of that she's now not properly emptying my boobs while breastfeeding due to the shield making her have a shallow latch so I've been having to pump after feedings and give her that in a bottle basically”

“Hi, I gave birth few days ago after a prolonged labor which ended up in an emergent c section. It is now day 6 and there is no colostrum or milk production. Baby does not want to latch. I have been trying to pump intermittently and hand express but have had no success. Anyone who was in the same boat as me and was successful in breastfeeding their child, what worked for you? I feel guilty. Please help! submitted by /u/dingding2345 [link] [comments]”

“second child. first child did triple feeding for six months and rest formula due to latch, and so many other problems. with our second, if the latch and sucking were good, we said our goal is about two months of ebf(as I need to go back to work). everything healthy, sucking and latching good. newborn gaining weight steadily and trending to be meeting birth weight by 11days. but we started noticing jaundice from day 7 ish. our first had bad jaundice for two months but no need for admission and we”

“We’re at our first cluster feeding stage. Baby is 9 days old. He’s terrible at getting onto my left boob (right is fine for some reason??) and just wants to fall asleep at the breast after a couple minutes. The suckling he does do after the initial frenzy is kind of slow and lazy and GOD it makes me want to peel my skin off. I hate the sensation. I wish he would just get it over with. I don’t generally have a problem with the feeling breastfeeding, it’s just when it slows down that I can’t stand”

“Hi all! FTM here, (currently recovering from 4th degree oasi, agh) but I had a question regarding latching and flatter nipples/softer breasts. I've had not a single bit of luck latching my little one bare and have had to rely on nipple shields. I really don't like using them and want to be able to latch him bare - but every time I try he gets so upset and can't manage to get a latch. I am feeling so lost and frustrated with this especially when he gets upset... Has anyone experienced”

“I am so incredibly frustrated and sad at the turn my breastfeeding journey has taken. What is supposed to be “natural” did not come naturally to me at all, and not only do I feel like I failed my baby but I feel SO angry and failed by our healthcare system. I planned to breastfeed for the first year and now I’m not sure I’ll make it. My baby is 17 weeks and I am just now confirming MYSELF that he has a shallow latch. The LCs at the hospital did nothing but say it looked good from a distance, eve”

“Hi All, I have a 5 month old baby boy. I fed him exclusively from my breast for first 2 months. But I had a tooth extraction in second month and I had to give him stored milk via a bottle. After 5 days of extraction, I tried breastfeeding again,but he completely refused, We tried several times, but the baby keeps on crying and simply refuses the breast. Its been 3 months since this and we have tried various times, baby only latched couple of times and simply cries most of times. and hence we hav”

“I am 3 weeks PP and mu breastfeeding journey has been pretty difficult. I have flat nipples and my baby’s initial latch was not proper which led to cracked nipples which made feeding very difficult. My supply also kicked in a bit late around after 7-8 days. I was feeding her and complementing with formula to ensure she gets proper nutrition. Last 3 days I have been experiencing sharp shooting pains in my nipples after feeding due to which I was pumping and feeding her, direct BF became too painf”

“My baby is 11 days old. We were in the hospital for 42 hrs after birth. We tried breastfeeding that whole time, we use a syringe of donated milk at one point. Baby absolutely destroyed my nipples in that time. We continued to try at home, and supplemented some formula, because I couldn’t feed her enough to satisfy her. We started pumping the day after we got home because it was just so so painful. My nipples were cracking and scabbed. It was so painful I was nearly screaming trying to get her la”

“Currently 19 months into nursing my second, and am almost 10 weeks along with my third. By the time my third will be born, my older babies will be 4 and 2. I’m curious how breastfeeding will.. work? When I have two kids that also need my attention throughout the day. With my second, for the first ~8 months, I had a pretty significant oversupply so I’m not worried about being able to produce enough for the new baby. I’m worried about how I’ll be able to nurse as often as a newborn / baby needs wh”

“I birthed through CC and had huge problems with lactation at the very beginning my baby was fed with my breast and also modified milk the baby got attached to the bottle to the point she won't eat from my breast she treats the nipple like a pacifier and it hurts me both mentally and physically I have no time for myself, others or other important things like laundry since I feed every 2-3 hours and I need to clean and sterilize the bottles then I have a breastpump on for 30-60 minutes and whe”

“My baby is 5 days old. She's my second. I was unable to breastfeed with our first, but am currently EBF so far. I know it's so early, but I am in so much pain. She is not the best at latching, and when she latches on to the right side the pain is so intense that it makes me cry. On both sides it's still painful through the whole process. I have a public health nurse coming on Monday to help assess her latch, but I really don't know how I will stay sane until then. I'm also so”

“Hi everyone, I am really struggling as a new mommy. My baby is 2 weeks old and im struggling to get her to deep latch for breastfeeding. i have met with a lactation consultant multiple times and I still am struggling to get her to deep latch. Some context my baby was born at 37 weeks and I have huge boobs, like size H and my nipples are big. The nipple guard was helping at 1st but hasn't recently. She is a lazy eater and prefers bottles. Is there anything I can try to fix this? I am a 1st ti”