So far I've been getting her in okay.I've only been sitting with her because of a c-section(I still want her to be comfortable in it for when I can wear her and doc said it was okay as long as I don't feel strained having her in there) but even sitting I can't get the postion right(maybe angle is a better word) so that she latches on in the sling. I have to take her out everytime. Anyone have any tips or help to get this right? I really don't want to give up already!

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Mommy to Emily(9), Ryan(5), Annie(2), and Maddie (3 mos)

What type of sling is it? I have always used a Maya Wrap (ring sling), although I've tried others and they didn't seem to work well for me. In my sling, it took quite awhile the first time around to get my son latched on well (and stay there). When they are so little (although he started out at 9 lbs., 1 oz, and 22 inches) I always felt like I was going to suffocate them. Once they had a little head control and weren't quite so little, I seemed to do much better nursing in the sling. Sorry I couldn't offer any great tips, except maybe to give it a little time and then try again. (It was literally a couple months for me before I felt really comfortable walking around a store nursing while I shopped.). GOOD LUCK!!!

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Emma Biedenbender
Signs of Early Life
http://www.signsofearlylife.com

I also had a ring sling...and I found that I could only nurse him on the side the rings were on! I got mine from www.sleepingbaby.net and she says she's never figured out how but I personally think it hinges a lot on boob size and er....saggage...Ie: if you have bigger, saggier boobs you will need to nurse on the side opposite of the rings. mine were small and not so saggy (those were the days!) so I had him on teh side the rings were on. I had his head about even with the rings too and out of the sling so he could reach and I could manipulate his head so he could turn it and nurse etc and I just held his head in my hand. If you have a different style of sling I can't be much help but if you need more help with the ring slings you can ask me anytime and I'll try to explain it better.

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Play with it! a lot! I had a c/s too, but I didn't get my sling until she was a few weeks old, at which point my incision didn't bother me anymore. I did most of my playing sitting crosslegged on my bed, with her in the sling. I used a ringsling and a hotsling. Just play with the fit and lay, do it when Maddie's not ravenously hungry, so she's not frantic and upset, but is still interested in nursing (maybe after you finish on one side, burp, and put her back on for the other side). I always nursed with her head on the ring side, although I've experiemented with the other side and can make it work, it's just not as easy. For the record, I'm a 40F and they are not as perky as they were when I had c cups in HS. But really, the absolute best advice is to just play with it and experiment often and frequently, until you are both used to how it goes. It took a long time for me to get used to it and get it right, but we can do it easily now, and we did it at Walmart while christmas shopping. (Which was SO much better than running off to a bathroom or hurrying through shopping so we could get home and feed her.) Just like doing back carries, it just takes a lot of patient practice.

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Oh, and you NEVER have to give up on it! If it doesn't work for you now, when she's so little, you can always try later when she's a little bigger. If you keep at it, it will click.

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oh well it was a good theory. even if its not true!

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