"Persuade" your baby to eat

-Give your baby lots and lots of attention and skin-to-skin contact. Use a sling or baby carrier to keep him close between feedings. Try getting in the tub together. Nurse without a bra, and undress your baby down to his diaper. Throw a blanket over him if the room is chilly.

-Try nursing when he is sleepy. You may be more successful in getting him to nurse if is drifting off to sleep or just starting to wake up. Tuck him in bed with you at night.

-Try to minimize distractions. Nurse in a quiet, dark room, or put on some soothing music.

-Try different nursing positions, and try nursing while in motion – rock, bounce, or sway while nursing. Experiment, and find out what works for your individual baby. Some babies will nurse while rocking or walking, but not while you are sitting in a chair. Some will nurse while lying down, but not while sitting on the couch. Some will nurse in the cradle hold, but not in the football. You get the idea.

-Try getting your milk to let down before you attempt to nurse. This will encourage the let-down so that he doesn’t have to wait for it once he starts nursing.

-Offer the breast frequently. Don’t wait till he’s really hungry. This seems logical (“if he’s hungry enough, he’ll nurse.” but it can often backfire. A frantically hungry baby is less likely to be willing to take the breast. If he gets really upset while you are trying to get him to nurse, stop the feeding, give him a little milk (preferably not by bottle) just to take the edge off his hunger, then try again. Try dripping a little milk into his mouth with a dropper or syringe while he is at the breast to encourage him to nurse.