Milk Supply - Cedar Springs, MI

Hi E.,

First I want to congratulate you on continuing to breastfeed!!! It's really the single best thing that you can do for you and you child.

Around 12 weeks you baby will go through a growth spurt so this may be some of what you are experiencing. I also went through a period of low milk supply when nursing my twins. I found that increasing my exercise, simply walking on the treadmill during the cold winter months, or going outside to get some fresh air when the weather gets warmer. Also, increasing your fluids should help. I did take the herbal supplement Fenugreek for a while and that seemed to help, as well as, Raspberry Leaf Tea, both found in health stores. But the number one thing you can do to help both you and your baby is to RELAX and don't give up. Try soothing music or read a book while nursing. Point being ... don't think about it. Re-focus your thoughts to something more relaxing and this should help. I found these tips helpful for me and my four children, all of whom I nursed for up to 2+ years. Good Luck!!!

dear elizbeth
i went thur the samething with my last daughter they put me on reglin for it i also drank a tea for brest milk and that seam to help there is also somthing called fenugreke that help with milk supply .if he dose not empty both brest at a feading pump the rest out so they can refill your body will slow down unless he is using all the milk good luck and atick with it

Hi,
Use herbs...
My lactation consultant told me to try Healthy Nursing Tea from secrets of tea and I am glad I did. It has really made a big difference in how much breastmilk I make.
take care;)

Hi E.,
I was wondering if you had nursed your daughter, too? Did you have a similar problem, if you did nurse her, too? I do know that babies experience growth spurts at 2 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months of age, and will breast feed very frequently for a 2-3 day stretch, during those times, in order to increase your milk supply. This is normal, and once your supply increases, the baby will return to a more normal feeding pattern. I do not recall, off hand, a problem with milk supply related to polycystic ovarian syndrome, but I will try to look it up for you. This is just something that I have not yet seen, in my 10 years as a lactation consultant. The whole Reglan regimen can be repeated if you need. Avoid excess water intake, i.e., more than 2-3 quarts per day. And, try to relax, if your worry about it too much, it can adversely affect your supply, too. J. C. Lactation Consultant

hi. i'm so happy to hear you are trying everything to continue nursing, seems like more moms are choosing against it lately. have you talked to a nutritionalist or a naturopath? i know there are teas and other suppliments (not pill form) that can aid in milk production. milk thistle is one and there are teas on the shelf at any natural food store, one is called "mother's milk" i believe. good luck and i hope you find a combination that works for you!

I went through this also. I tried several things as the others have... drinking water, extra sleep, eating right, pumping every spare minute that he wasn't eating, even a mint additive to my water that my Dr recommended. None of it helped much. I did not try the fenugreek as I am very leary of herbals unless my Dr suggests them. She did finally put me on Reglan. It did help, but dropped off after the med was gone. She prescribed another dose and the same thing happened, so I basically gave up and was quite disappointed. I pretty much had to supplement him the entire time anyhow because he just wasn't getting enough. However, I must say, my son is a strong healthy 2 1/2 year old now so I guess going to formula entirely didn't hurt... Just give him as much breast milk as you can for as long as you can, even if you have to supplement. I'm hoping for better nursing results with the next one due in April. I asked my Dr if there is anything I can start doing now to increase my milk supply and she said that what determines your milk supply is the amount of PROPER suckling that takes place within the first 4 days. She said that unfortunately there isn't much you can do to change it after that. Best of luck to you!

Hi E., I was worried about my mild supply also, I went and bought "Nursing Tee" from whole foods, taht seemed to help, but if youare still concerend about it, and it's your childs food supply, you may want to consider supplementing a bottle or two in bewteen breastfeeding,then you pump those two times, that way you still get to breatsfeed, your baby will get what he needs, and with pumping you don't have to risk another milk supply drop, just a suggestion.

I would recommend contacting your local La Leche Leader. She would be able to provide free support.

Here's the link: http://www.lalecheleague.org/leaderinfo.html

Sounds like maybe a growth spurt, my son did the same thing. Just make sure to nurse him more often and make sure you are getting enough to eat and enough fluids. Fluids are really important. Good luck.

it is normal for your baby to get a growth spurt and eat a TON around 3months, could this be a growth spurt and NOT low milk production?

Otherwise Mother's Milk Tea can help, Fenugreek can help on it's own as well.

Pumping is not a real great idea though, because your body will respond better to your babies mouth than a hard plastic pump.