Is it OK to breastfeed a baby lying down?
Is it OK to breastfeed a baby lying down?
Yes, when done correctly, breastfeeding while lying down is perfectly safe. Follow these tips to make sure your baby is comfortable and safe: Practice during the day before trying to use it at night. Ensure that your space is free from excess pillows and bedding.
What position should baby be in for breastfeeding?
Position your baby at your side, facing you, with baby’s legs are tucked under your arm (yes, like a football) on the same side as the breast you’re nursing from. Support your baby’s head with the same hand, and use your other hand to cup your breast as you would for the cradle hold.
Why is breastfeeding position important?
Proper positioning for breastfeeding is important to help your baby to eat and transfer milk and swallow and to prevent or minimize nipple soreness for you. Place your baby in a relaxed and flexed position with his or her head slightly extended. Make sure your baby’s head and body are at the breast level.
Should I squeeze my breast while breastfeeding?
Breast compressions manually stimulate the milk ejection reflex, and can help your baby to get more milk out of the breast during a feed. They can also increase the speed of the milk flow to keep your baby awake at the breast.
When should I start side lying breastfeeding?
If you take the proper safety precautions, side lying breastfeeding can be done as early as the very first feed. If your little one is very tiny, you may need to give them extra support. Use pillows or blanket around their bottom and lower back to support the proper feeding position.
What is the proper way to breastfeed a baby?
Put the thumb of your free hand on top of your breast and your other fingers below. Touch your baby’s lips to your nipple until your baby opens their mouth wide. Put your nipple all the way in your baby’s mouth and pull your baby close to you. This lets your baby’s jaw squeeze the milk ducts under your areola (nipple).
Is it OK to breastfeed while laying down?
You might hear that breastfeeding your baby in a lying down position will cause ear infections. Research indicates that this is not true. No matter what positioning you use, breastfeeding actually works to decrease the incidence of ear infections.
What is the best position for breastfeeding?
There’s no one correct position for breastfeeding. Any of these styles may work well for you and your baby. Lying down with your bodies parallel. Make sure you’re comfortable enough. For example, you could rest your head on a pillow, rather than your arm. Holding your baby across your lap, supporting her with the same arm as your breast.
What are the different types of breastfeeding positions?
Sit up straight in a comfortable chair with armrests. Bring your baby across the front of your body, tummy to tummy. Hold your baby in the crook of the arm opposite the breast you’re feeding from — left arm for right breast, right arm for left. Support the back of the baby’s head with your open hand.
Is lying down to breastfeed dangerous?
The only danger in breastfeeding your baby while lying down is if the mother fall asleep, she can squash her baby to death. If this happens, the death is often classified as SIDS but it is in fact suffocation, and no mother can feel good knowing she caused the death of her baby.
