Well, the pediatrician just let me know dd #3 has jaundice! This poor kid (she's 6 days old) went through trauma today with the blood draw (I have never felt so helpless in my life)! I know to make sure she gets plenty of fluids (breastmilk) and give her a little morning sunshine, but anything else I should know about this jaundice thing? I don't recall my other 2 dd's having this problem...I feel so clueless, you know?

((hugs)) mama! we went through this with Isabella when she was a newborn...she had the breastfeeding jaundice.

what I wish they would have told me is that jaundice makes them sleepy....so it is a vicious cycle...cause you need to get more BM in her to flush the jaundice out...but the jaundice makes them sleepy and they tend to not nurse as well...so keep waking her up and making her eat!

Isabella's just got worse and worse because she would not wake up often enough to eat.....and I didn't know any better...even with her being our 6th!!

So how long was it before things got better with sweet Isabella? Please tell me not too long. And yes, my poor baby is super sleepy. She's being fed every 2 hours though (sometimes every 1 & 1/2 hr) and I clean her cord--which she doesn't like-so she wakes up. Should I stop breastfeeding for a while if it is breastfeeding jaundice? And, what's the difference btx breastfeeding jaundice and "regular" jaundice? AAAAARRRGGGHHH! I read somewhere you're supposed to stop breastfeeding for 12-24 hours if it is breastfeeding jaundice...but like you said, it's a vicious cycle. The kid's gotta eat to get the jaundice out of her system but the stuff you feed her is causing it?!?! DD will drink formula but she gags afterwards which freaks me out(--gags like she's choking on regurgitated formula). She sees the pediatrician again tomorrow (for another blood draw, I'm assuming)!!!! Wish my sweet pea luck! :(

Originally posted by Hazel
So how long was it before things got better with sweet Isabella? Please tell me not too long. And yes, my poor baby is super sleepy. She's being fed every 2 hours though (sometimes every 1 & 1/2 hr) and I clean her cord--which she doesn't like-so she wakes up. Should I stop breastfeeding for a while if it is breastfeeding jaundice? And, what's the difference btx breastfeeding jaundice and "regular" jaundice? AAAAARRRGGGHHH! I read somewhere you're supposed to stop breastfeeding for 12-24 hours if it is breastfeeding jaundice...but like you said, it's a vicious cycle. The kid's gotta eat to get the jaundice out of her system but the stuff you feed her is causing it?!?! DD will drink formula but she gags afterwards which freaks me out(--gags like she's choking on regurgitated formula). She sees the pediatrician again tomorrow (for another blood draw, I'm assuming)!!!! Wish my sweet pea luck! :(

do not stop breastfeeding her! that is really the best thing for her is to nurse. if you can't get her to nurse enough, maybe try nursing and feeding it to her with a cup or spoon? with Isabella, it took about 3 weeks total to get hers cleared up...but her levels did not get critical, so we only had 3 blood draws. how far down on her body is the yellow??? Bella's was past her knees. just keep getting that breastmilk in her-that truly is the best thing for her.

((hugs))

If you have sun where you are, sit in the window (or outside, but you'd freeze here!) and nurse, nurse, nurse!
Hugs, mama, we were there nine months ago; I know it's not easy.
Hana

All 3 of mine have had jaundice. Nurse, nurse, nurse!! I also layed them in a sunny window. They were fine in about 2 weeks.

two of my 3 had jaundice but the blood kind very very bad.so we had to be under lights for 4 days ,one kid was very lethargic while the other was not.oddly enough both were born in january so no sunshine around!

If they're drawing blood from the heel, ask them to give you a washcloth and get it really warm(but not enough to burn), wrap it around the heel and wrap a regular diaper around it for like 3-5 minutes and it should help bring the blood closer to the surface for them and make it so much easier! I used to do this all the time and it worked great. Don't let them tell you the little warmer is the same, it's not! If you have any more questions, feel free to ask, I used to do home visits and blood draws at home all the time! Tina

the people who drew my kids blood used a heated pack,it worked so well and they rarely cried.

it's not breastmilk jaundice.

True breastmilk jaundice is *extremely* rare and does not appear until the 2nd week.

That said, for a long time it was believed that breastmilk had something to do with all jaundice and subsequently while the knowledge has changed, it is slow for peds and other med. professionals to come around.

NURSE alot. All you've been told is great...lots of sunshine-take her down to her diaper-no other clothes...sit in a SUNNY window and bask. Don't take her outside-even in the warm months the sun is too harsh for newborn skin directly.

My DS1 had normal physiological newborn jaundice-it never got critical.

DS2 was critical. His bilirubin got up to 24.x and they do blood transfusions (full body) at 25. He was very ill. His was not normal physiological jaundice-he had birth issues and injuries that caused HUGE bruising, and subsequently the pathological jaundice. He was on lights for 5 days.

I've been in the lactation field for over 5 years...trust me on this when I tell you it isn't your milk but you must wake her (however you can) to nurse her to get it over faster and prevent it from getting worse.

The orange-ish color is, so far, isolated to her face. From the neck down, dd is as pale as milk. Her eyes are just yellowish on the outer edges. Thanks so much mamas!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Hazel
The orange-ish color is, so far, isolated to her face. From the neck down, dd is as pale as milk. Her eyes are just yellowish on the outer edges. Thanks so much mamas! [/QUOT

i hope it passes soon i know how scary it can be.

Originally posted by Snugglbond
it's not breastmilk jaundice.

True breastmilk jaundice is *extremely* rare and does not appear until the 2nd week.

.

That is not the information I was given from the pediatrician and the hospital/LC--when I worked in the ped office they always said that breastfeeding jaundice was extremely common :confused:

here is some good sites for you to read about it Hazel...

http://pediatrics.about.com/library/breastfeeding/blbreastfeedingh.htm
this article was really good...talks about different types of jaundice, breastfeeding jaundice, and the "not eating often enough" type....oh yeah...and this article is from Dr Jack Newman....you can see it a little easier here: http://babiestoday.com/breastfeeding/drjack/jaundice.htm

There is a condition commonly called breastmilk jaundice. No one knows what the cause of breastmilk jaundice is. In order to make this diagnosis, the baby should be at least a week old.....Breastmilk jaundice peaks at 10-21 days, but may last for 2-3 months. Breastmilk jaundice is normal. Rarely, if ever, does breastfeeding need to be discontinued even for a short time

this one addresses breastfeeding jaundice AND breastmilk jaundice: http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/baby/babyills/89.html

and another good overview:
http://www.chsd.org/blank.cfm?id=1721
Jaundice that starts later (breastmilk jaundice) is thought to be caused by a factor in the milk that slows the body’s ability to pass this excess bilirubin. This late onset jaundice usually shows up after the first five to seven days of life and may last for several weeks to months at low levels. This is not dangerous

hope those help you feel better Hazel!!

Thanks for the info, Jessica and to all the other mamas too! I just got back from the ped's office and they took more blood (I will never get used to that type of crying). I tried the warming of the heel but dd still cried--maybe it just wasn't warm enough. Anyhoo, we got some sunshine this morning through the bedroom window--and when we walked dd#2 to "kinneygarden". I was thinking I had to set my alarm to go off every 2 hours last night to feed, but dd was waking up on her own anyway to bf, so at least I know she's eating okay. I'm gonna keep bf-ing her--seems I have to anyway; dd can't stand the formula I tried to give her! lol! thanx again!

Good luck and I hope your baby's jaundice goes away very quickly.

Anna was jaundiced for 27 days, and on light therapy for 17 of those days. Poor baby had 17 bili bloodtests plus various other bloodwork for the first whole month of her life. She's almost 6 weeks old now and her heels are finally healing from all the little slicing cuts.

~L