The correct breastfeeding position should be towards the side of normal development, never towards the cleft side, so as to avoid grinding the cleft palate or nasal mucosa causing pain and thus interfering with feeding.
The mother should keep the child at 45 degrees and feed face to face. Do not lie flat to avoid milk flowing into the nasal cavity or choking. To avoid rubbing the cleft palate and to help with sucking, a palate guard may be worn for feeding.
Children tend to swallow a lot of air during feeding, so they need to be fed in small portions. During pauses in between, pat the back to help burp the milk to avoid spitting up. The patting method can be done by placing the child on your shoulder or holding him/her straight in your lap, holding him/her by the armpit with one hand, fixing the head so that the head is tilted sideways while the body is leaning forward, and then patting the back to help burping. Each feeding should take no more than half an hour. If it takes longer than that, the child is trying too hard to suck the milk. If there is a problem with feeding, you should consult your healthcare provider. It is normal for milk to flow back out of the nose during feeding. There is no need to be too alarmed, just stop feeding temporarily and resume feeding after the child coughs or sneezes. After feeding, you can let your child sleep prone or on the right side, mainly to help digestion, and to prevent inadvertent choking when the milk overflows.