Breastfeedin

Hi J.,

I am also a mom of two kids (four year daughter and 10 month old son) and work full-time - not in law enforcement though. :-) Here are some things you can do that helped me when I was having issues. They worked and I am still nursing. Foods/drinks that help with milk production - oatmeal and root beer (diet or regular). Supplements that help - fenugrek and blessed thistle. Things to stay away from - caffeine and, believe it or not, peppermint and sage. I was chewing peppermint gum without even thinking about it and it really did kill my milk production. There was a noticeable difference after I stopped.
Good luck!
S.

Nurse, nurse, nurse...
There is nothing like your baby to get your milk supply up to snuff. If at all possible take a few days and go no where and try to nurse as much as your baby wants.

Try increasing the number of feedings to increase your milk production. Also, I have found and have heard from others as well that your body responds differently between pumping and nursing so you may be producing more milk that you realize. I would suggest weighing your baby just prior to nursing then weigh him right after and that will tell you how much his intake is. Just don't give up! Talk with your local La Leche league and they should be able to help or a local lactation consultant. Good luck!!

I would put the baby to the breast as often as possible, even just let her latch on all day. That's the best way to build back up supply. I was hospitalized when my son was 8 days old, and was away from him for 5 days. I pumped as much as I could, but my milk supply was way down. It took about 10 days of constant nursing and supplementing him with formula (slowly lowering that amt), but eventually my supply went back to normal. He's still nursing at 15 months. It's frustrating and scary, but it can happen. If you need the name of a good lactation consultant, I can provide it too! GOod luck!!!!!

There are different herbs that can increase the milk flow.
All can be made as teas and simply drank daily.
Please check to make sure you do not have any allergies to these herbs.
I found Red raspberry tea, not only helpful but tasty.
Borage, Fennel, and fenugreek can increase flow, yet I found as a tea they need to be added with other teas and honey to be pleasant to drink.
They can be found in supplement form also.

Drink extra water- I could always tell my flow decreased when I did not have enough water.
Add extra salad and raw veggies in too!

Herbs that can decrease flow are Sage, yarrow and black walnut.
Check with a Health food store on their recommendations too.
Best to you- J.

Just stick with it, if you are able to feed your baby now without dumping, let him nurse as much as possible. This will be the best thing for building your milk supply back up. If your baby still acts hungry when you feel your breast is empty, give him/her 1 oz formula in a bottle then try to nurse again soon after. i had a similar problem after I had my twins but this really worked for me. At first I felt as if all I did was nurse babies all day but I built up my suppy again and got back into a routine in no time. Just stick with it and dont give up!
Good luck

I am breastfeeding twins and have had a lot of luck using Fenugreek supplements. I was VERY skeptical but find that it really works for me. I buy mine at Whole Foods in little caplets and take two caplets three times a day for a few days until my supply goes up. Once your supply increases you should be able to maintain it by nursing and pumping regularly. I spoke with our pediatrician about it and she saw no problem with using it if I felt it helped. It has been used for years and is used quite commonly in other cultures.

I question why you were told you had to pump and dump. There are SOME antibiotics that are not safe to take while breastfeeding but most antibiotics are just fine (this information is from my good friend who is an ob/gyn and who is a big supporter of nursing). Who told you to pump and dump? Are you seeing a doctor (for yourself or for your infant) that is truly supportive of breastfeeding?

You should contact the lactation support at the hospital where you gave birth or La Leche League....

There is also fenugreek and blessed thistle in capsule form. If you'd like more information check out kellymom.com OR contact me and I could help you out as well. :-)

I understand what you are going through. When my daughter was three weeks old I went into the hospital for a week. I pretty much lost all of my milk. Because I was there so long I decided to keep my daughter on the formula that she had to start while I was in the hospital. I didn't feel bad about it either because she already received the best part, which is the colostrum. I feed her Sam's club formula because it is just as good as the others and it is $20 for 3 pounds of formula.

That was what I did but I would suggeste contacting the Le Leche league. I could have done that but I was intending on switching my daughter over when she was six months old anyway. I didn't want to keep switching her back and forth. Anyway, try going to: http://www.lllusa.org/web/EastsideMI.html This is the website for eastern Wayne county. These women are mothers who have breastfed and can give great advise. I'm sure they might know something that you might try. They will have group meetings in your area, usually at a library or somewhere like that. You can even bring your baby with you.

Good luck and congratulations!

Fenugreek is amazing! I use it and I know several other mothers who do so. You can purchase it from Meijer in the herbal supplement area or from Whole Foods.

Though drinking alcohol is not encouraged, I have found drinking a 1/2 to full bottle of a DARK beer is VERY helpful.

A friend of mine's daughter is supposed to only be on breastmilk because she is going through chemo and she was told only dark beer works. She also uses Fenugreek on a nurse's suggestion.

I work full time and pump about 4 times a day. I do supplement when needed with formula. It usually is one bottle per day or every other day depending on how hungry she is.

Hope that helps

Drink more fluids - that will help, your body is probably still adjusting and getting back to normal, so the extra work it takes to breastfeed is going to take some time too.

Keep pumping! an have you had a beer ? I know it doesn't sound like the most ethical thing but it not only helps you to relax for good let down but I heard it does have actual milk benefits.And Have you contacted the La Leche League? They are very informed an can help out a lot!They helped me so maybe they can give you some good pointers!:)

The old wives tale, and I was told it by the doctor, was to drink a beer every day. It helped me, but I am told you can buy a pill form too. Honestly, I think it helped me relax a little too, which always helps.

Trust that your baby will get enough if you let her eat on demand. While your supply is low, that may be every 2 hours. Plan to take the toddler to a sitter or have someone come in (just like when baby was new) so you can devote about 1 week to nursing yourself back to health. Don't pump, put it away and let your baby do her job, so that your body will learn to do its. This seriously did work for me, give it a try, everyone I know who used the pump to do this, didn't succeed. Pumping took away from what your baby would get herself, and then you supplement with formula which keeps them full longer so that they don't eat as often and you make less. I am not sure where you live but I would be happy to put you in touch with a Le Leche person, she would be happy to help or to get you in contact with someone close to you. She is the head of the league in my area and I am sure that she can get you free help. Just my 2 cents, but remember that your milk changes as your babys needs change so you make a different amount for each age.

When I returned to work full time after a 16 week maternity leave I found that I was getting only a few ounces at a time when I would pump at work. I did not have a problem, however, feeding my son directly. Does it seem that you are having problems with production when you feed your daughter as well?

In my case I found that it seemed my son was getting enough milk to fill him up when I nursed him, but I could produce enough milk to meet his daily demand while he was at day care. I had to start sending him to day care with bottles of formula as well as expressed milk.

Although they are similar, the stimulation that you receive from the pump and from the baby are not the same. My advice is to test whether you think you are producing more when nursing and, if that is the case, suppliment with formula and nurse as much as you can.

Good luck! I understand how stressful this is.

All I can say is keep at it. When I went through a phase of pump and dump once I got her back on to nurse on her normal schedule I was going strong again. I was also working full time and had to pump during work hours so that would slow my milk down a bit. Get your daughter back on and it should come back. Hope this helps.

Hi J., my only suggestion for you would be to keep trying to actually breastfeed your infant since you amountis decreasing, this might in fact actually increase your milk production along with the meds your ObGYN gave you. Sometimes it can take a week or so for the meds to work and for your body to adjust back to the way you were. Im not sure your feelings about supplementing with a formula for the times that you are unable to breastfeed? Save your actual milk for when you are home if you are concerned with the "bonding" process of breastfeeding. I am not a doctor but i am in fact a nurse( corrections) so i know how long the hours can be. If oyu have any more questions or need more help just let me know. I hope that it works out for you and this helped somewhat. Take Care and enjoy your babies...

Hi J.
I was curious, why were you given the antibiotics? Which hospital were you at? And do you know which antibiotics were used? I hope that you are still breastfeeding. Continue breastfeeding frequently, and as long as the baby will, this should increase your milk supply. A pump will not empty the breast as well as the baby will, if the baby is nursing well, and long enough. It is hard for me to be able to tell what is really going on, here, with out doing an actual consult, that is, seeing you and being able to assess the actual latch, positioning, and to ask you several more questions. J. C. RN, Lactation Consultant. (I live in Commerce Twp.)

They say the more you have the baby on your breast, the more milk you will make. I also had a doctor tell me to drink one beer a day since the yeast helps milk production. The same thing happened to me, but I stay at home so I had the option to forgo pumping for a little while.

Hi J.,

My daughter is the same age as your daughter! I also had to increase my low milk supply. After seeing a lactation consultant, I pumped after I breastfed my daughter, and I tried fenugreek. Fenugreek is an herbal supplement that can help increase milk supply. You could try it out and see if it works for you. I took 3 pills 3 times a day. I know it seems like a lot but it actually helped me, and that is what the LC suggested I do to. You can buy fenugreek at GNC or any vitamin store. Also, it is safe to take while breastfeeding. Check out this website kellymom.com it has EXCELLENT breastfeeding advice!!

Drink TONS of water!! Even more than the recomended 8 glassses per day if you can. It's hard, but will reallly help. Also nurse the baby as often as you can as the baby will stimulate your milk production better than pumping. Be sure when you are away from your baby at work that you are pumping long enought to get the hind milk, usually 20-25 min. Also, try to pump the same times each day that you would normally nurse.
For example, when I returned to work I nursed the baby before leaving for work in the early a.m., pumped mid morning (around the time she would take her 1st nap at 10 a.m. & I would nurse her to sleep when home), pump at 12 noon lunchtime, and mid-afternoon (approx. 2:30 p.m. when the baby would normally nurse to sleep for afternoon nap). Then you can nurse when you pick up your baby after work. You can also try Mother's Milk Tea, an herbal tea that promotes lactation which can be found in Whole Foods or other health food stores. That way you are pumping every 2-3 hours just like you would normally nurse.
Finding the time to pump 3 times during the day at work can be hard, but is well worth it! Good for you for putting forth the effort - don't give up, you can do it!!

HI! I found the site. Call me - S.

Question.... What are the meds? How does it affect milk production?

Keep feeding AND pumping. I also have a 3 month old and I often can't pump more than about 3-4 oz. Also know that your baby is more efficient at removing milk from the breast than any pump is. Nurse frequently for atleast 15 mins each side. Continue pumping daily until you have some extra to freeze. You may want to offer the extra stored milk at times when you feel like baby has not recieved enough.
Drink lots of fluid and stay rested.
I honestly don't think you have anything to worry about unless your baby is crying lots and failing to thrive.

FYI: with my first child. I stopped nursing and a week later we were in a situation where he needed to eat and no food or bottle was available. So I tried nursing and milk was still available! I actually continued nursing for a couple of weeks after that! So that just shows you that our milk supply doesn't turn off like a tap. But does ebb and flow! Hang in there. Keep nursing and pumping.

Have you tried drinking a beer? i know it sounds bad but it helped me and one beer (per day) wont hurt the baby and its supposed to help the milk come in.

Hi J.,
Have you ever tried fenugeek? YOu can buy it in the healthfood stores (wholefoods etc..) actually you maybe able to buy it at a regular drug store... Anyway it is an herbal pill (it's safe- ask your dr.) It helps increase your milk production. I took it with my first born and it helped me breastfeed for 8 months.

You might be reluctant to try it because it's herbal but it is an herb that is commonly found in food (mostly greek food). Good luck