Not Producing Enough Breast Milk, Going Bald, and Could I Be Preg. Again?

For your milk supply, there are herbs you can take. Fenugreek is one of them. It is pretty cheep, I was told to take like 9 a day. There is also some stuff called Mother's Milk that has fenugreek plus a few other herbs; I am allergic to ragweed though, and one of the other herbs is related to it.

As far as the hair loss goes, my baby is 8 months and I am still losing mine. It is just the extra hair that you had while pregnant.

I only breastfeed part time and I still haven't gotten my period back. I think you are probably fine.

Are you still taking a prenatal vitamin? The hair loss could be vitamin/mineral deficiency related but it might be worth talking to your doctor just to be sure it isn't something else. As you know some hair loss is normal as your hormones balance out. If it seems like too much, talk to the doc.

If you think your supply is down, maybe pump and see what comes out and then feed the baby from the bottle. Supply may not be down, it just might feel different as you and your son are more efficient at nursing.

Adding in pumping, extra nursing sessions and doing a diet check will help get your supply up. Eating whole grain oatmeal, drinking dark beer and also trying mother's milk tea will help too. Do a google search for increasing breast milk supply and you may get a few more tips.

Also, if you've started to diet to loose weight, you should only be loosing a pound or two a week - any more will compromise your supply and milk quality. And don't overdo it on exercise as that too can affect supply. Drink lots of water - I find if I'm not drinking at least 3 liters a day, my supply drops.

Not having a period this long is also totally normal.

Good for you for nursing this long! Hope something here helps. Happy New Year!

Hi M.,
Is your baby satisfied with the amount of milk he's getting? If so, I would not worry about your supply. If you are concerned, eat oatmeal (it helps increase your milk supply), pump when you can, and nurse, nurse, nurse! :) One thing that has helped me nurse my son this long (he's 16 months) is taking a calcium and magnesium supplement. I really notice a difference when I don't take this twice a day. The best one is from Nature's Sunshine. I love it!
My hair began to fall out when my son was around 6 months old. It happens to alot of women. If you are concerned, talk to your dr. and have your thyroid checked. I became hypothyroid after my son was born, and it did make my hair fall out until I got it under control with medication.
As for your period, I didn't get mine back until my son was 11 months old. The more sleep you get at night, the sooner it will tend to come back. Nursing has alot to do with it too. I miss not having it! :) Enjoy it! It will come back when it is ready!

Good luck!
T.
www.ReadandGrow.com

Completely normal not to have your period...the more you nurse, the more likely it is to stay away, with my first son I think I went till like 14 months or so before I got one (was when I stopped pumping).

I know alot of women lose hair after having a baby, but I don't have any personal experience with this one so not sure what to tell you.

Best thing to increase your milk supply is to nurse more. I know 6 months is a hard age because they are so curious and are easily distracted....but try your best to take him to a quiet room that is not stimulating. Also don't know what you are doing with solids, but you want to make sure you are nursing him before feeding any solid foods as milk should remain the primary nutrition source until at least 12 months. Other things that will increase your supply is drinking alot of water, getting more rest, improving your diet, eating whole grain oatmeal, taking an herbal supplement called fenugreek, pumping inbetween nursing sessions.

Also, you may just be feeling like you are not producing as much because you don't feel as full or don't feel letdown as strongly...or because your baby doesn't nurse as long. But those things are all normal and don't necessarily mean your supply is down. After you have been lactating for a while you don't feel as full and letdown is not as dramatic. And as your baby gets older, they get more and more efficient at nursing. My 9 month old now only takes 5-7 minutes per side when before it would be more like 15 minutes plus...he is better at it now and his muscles are stronger so it is just easier for him.

The breastmilk will slow some in my experience of feeding two boys. As they start eating more food they eat less milk. I would say three times a day is what my boys were doing regularly at six months sometimes more if they did not eat food well.
The hair, I too lost tons of hair after pregnancy, it will stop. I asked my DR about it after I had this trouble. She told me that when your are pregnant you may not have noticed but you hardly lost any hair in your brush. Now that your body is starting to relax it will lose the hair you kept durring pregnancy, which was 10 months worth. I had the problem for about 3 months. If it does not stop after that I would say something to my DR because it could be thyroid then.
Lastly, When I stopped nursing so much I got my period and then got pregnant right away again the second time. So if you really do not want another baby at this point in time I would go to your DR and get progestin only birth control pills so that you can keep breast feeding but not have to worry about getting pregnant. The ones with estrogin I guess effect the production of breatmilk. Much luck to you, I feel for you, I went through a lot of the same things as a first time mom as I assume many of us did.

Hi M.,

To boost your breast milk try taking 3 tablespoons of flax oil every day. Put it in a protein shake to make it easier to swallow. It will help your babies brain development, burn fat for you and maybe even help with your hair issue.

By the way, I didn't get my period for a long time while breast feeding. I think its natures way of providing birth control for you :) just don't count on it exclusively.