Milk Supply Getting Low

Hey Beth,
I had the very same issue which I believe was stress induced. I did EVERYTHING I could do. What did help a little was taking nap in the afternoon, but it certainly didn't increase my supply to the amount my little guy needed. Ultimately I ended up taking a medication called Motilium which I ordered on line through In House Pharmacy. It really seemed to do the trick and got my milk supply up to a level that my little guy was happy with.

Drinking from a bottle is easier, so he's not going to "suck" if there's no milk. He'll just hang out and wait for the bottle.

Just keep pumping frequently... it's a supply and demand process. If you are "full", pump so you can "refill". At one point (yes, I was a pyscho), I was getting up in the middle of the night to pump. I had a nasty bout of Mastitis and needed to get my supply back "up". It wasn't particularly "fun", but it worked.

Are you supplementing because you "think" you need to, or because your baby is actually losing weight consistently? If your baby gains weight without supplements, then STOP the formula. Nurse, nurse, and nurse some more. Baby seems hungry? Nurse. Baby seems sleepy? Nurse. Baby seems fussy? Nurse. I'm talking about every hour, and every three to four hours at night. The more you nurse, the more milk your body will make - and pumping is NOT as effective as the baby, so that isn't an equal alternative. Your baby is probably going through a growth spurt right now, or will soon, and would be happy to eat all day and night if offered the chance! :) You are drinking enough, and it sounds like you are eating healthfully, so keep it up! If you need to spend a lot of time sitting and relaxing with baby, do it. If that means the older two get way more TV time than you want them to right now, that's ok - this phase will pass and you will all get back on track with life in a few months. Good luck!

If you feel the need to supplement by all means do so. You stressing over your milk supply will not help matters. When my LO stopped nursing I was totally dried up in 24 hours. However, this is unusual I have some medical problems that caused me to dry up so quickly. This also made it difficult for me to produce a bunch of milk.

Other Mama's go ahead and tell me how bad I am, but what I found to help my milk supply the most was to:

have a beer!

This increased my milk supply usually by 2-4 ounces the next day. I would nurse my LO before bed then have a beer and go to bed myself. This also helped relax me. I also had some red wine that seemed to help my supply.

Best of Luck and don't let any other Mama's make you feel bad for giving a bottle. You are the mother and mother knows best. :)

why do you think your supply is dropping? Are you pumping only? pumping is no indication of your supply AT ALL, do NOT judge your supply on what you pump. Get your baby to the breast, your supply is fine. Babies have growth spurts at 6wks and want to nurse nurse nurse all the time. Just because she's hungry or fussy doesn't mean she needs formula or your supply is down, babies want to eat! She's only 6wks old, she will be hungry all.the.time, so get her on the breast nad let her eat when she's hungry. She is your best milk maker, nursing her signals your body to make milk for what she needs. IF you stop even one nursing session to supplement with formula your supply WILL drop, its supply and demand, take away the demand by supplementing and the supply drops.

You are probably drinking too much water too, 100 oz is insane. Drink to thirst only, if you are thirsty, drink something, sip with meals, etc. Yo udon't have to drown yourself and too much to drink can have an adverse affect on your milk supply too.

You ask 'is there anything else I could be doing?' and my answer is yes, RELAX! Nurse your baby, stop watching the clock, let her nurse one side only per feeding and do not switch breasts, one breast only per feeding. Nurse the other side at the next feeding, and so on. Nurse her whenever she is hungry, again do not watch the clock. Babies can't tell time and don't care if it says 20mins until their next feeding, they are hungry now, feed them now. Its silly to not nurse her when she fusses or is hungry, she's only 6wks old.

Please call the hospital where you gave birth and make an appointment with a lactation consultant. It is rare for a mom of a newborn to have such a low supply - it makes me wonder if your son has a latch issue, or if something else is going on. A lactation consultant would be able to figure this out much more easily than anyone here can, online without being able to see you and the baby while he's nursing.

If the hospital doesn't have a LC, then you could contact your local La Leche League. I found that the LLL Leader in my area knew exactly who the best lactation consultants were, and could put me in touch.

I would suggest you look at these pages for lots of information.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/low-supply.html#supply
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/enough-milk.html

I have a feeling you only have a perceived supply issue. As long as you have diapers you are okay and are stressing over things you don't have to worry about.

6 weeks is prime time for a growth spurt so he exhibit different behaviors from wanting to nurse more to not wanting to nurse. Or acting like he wants to nurse and then throwing a fit. These behaviors bring up your supply to match babies demand.

Also I would suggest stopping the bottle for a little while if possible or at the least make sure the only time he gets a bottle is when you aren't around as he could be developing nipple preference. He knows the bottle is easier to get milk from so he throws a fit because he wants instant gratification of the bottle.

Also you always have milk it is supply and demand. You are always constantly making milk. Think of it this way, your breast are a factory making the product and selling the product not a storage facility where the milk sit until it is used.

I'm going to school to become a lactation consultant so if you have any questions feel free to ask. I can also recommend a really good group on cafemom.com if your interested.

Also only drink to thirst because drinking to much water can also inhibit supply.

Six weeks is a growth spurt age. I'd stop supplementing and just nurse, nurse, nurse. For some mamas, the growth spurts (3 weeks, 6 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 months and 9 months) last a couple of days. For my youngest they tend to last a week to 10 days (ugh!), but we get through them. An excellent resource for breastfeeding is http://kellymom.com.

I have no real advice on low milk supply - only to say that if you get to the point where your body isn't keeping up with his needs, then supplementing (even if it means going to formula much earlier than planned) is totally fine. Do what you can.. pump often to try to increase supply, drink lots and lots of water etc... but if it's just not enough for the baby, please don't be so h*** o* yourself and go to formula. It's ok : ). Good luck!

How are you determining that your supply is low? Are you going by what you can pump? Most of the time, moms interpret normal things as indicators of low supply and wind up supplumenting when they really don't need to.

Here's a really, really good article on that:
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/low-supply.html#supply

Please do read this article. I thought my supply was low, too, when it really wasn't and learning a little more about what normal breastfeeding looks like helped me to get comfortable with what my body was doing.

HI Beth,

Well, it's true that many moms (perhaps even most) will make enough milk simply by nursing more often. Sometimes that just doesn't happen, however.

Call your ped. or Torrance Memorial, and get a referral to a lactation consultant. there is a place in Hermosa (?) Redondo (?) that also offers BF classes and groups. Do weigh your baby often (like every week) to be sure he's gaining weight.

My kiddo got really fussy at about 3 weeks of age. We thought he was colicky until I went in for a lactation apt., and found that he was latching poorly, and wasn't gaining well, and was, quite frankly, being deprived of adequate nutrition. I supplemented him with formula and nursed as much as I was able (and pumped like a madwoman).

So: see a lactation specialist, supplement with formula so your child is well-nourished. Pump and pump and pump some more (after every feeding). I also found that eating alfalfa sprouts helped boost my supply (though I think there may be some issues with whether sprouts are OK to eat raw?). Also, taking a really warm shower (or warming a damp washcloth in the microwave -- don't burn yourself!) helped. As did really trying to relax, and focus on how much i adored my baby and smelling him (sounds goofy, I know...) I've also heard that frequent sex helps. (Ha! like there's time, energy and inclination for THAT! Worth a try though. :-) )

The long and short of it is that it doesn't have to be all or nothing, some breastmilk is better than none, and formula is better than starving. My kid is one of the healthiest, slimmest 5 year olds around, and he got tons of formula.

So do your best, but remember, there is much more to being a great mom than milk production!

best of luck to you
C.

Stop the formula and nurse more often. Unless your baby is losing weight while nursing on demand there is no reason to think that your supply is low.

If you are just pumping and not nursing full time -- and your body is not reacting as well to the pump, you might think about renting a hospital grade pump (go to www.medela.com and you can search for where to rent them). I had issues nursing my daughter and by 2 mos, I was just pumping with a Medela Pump in Style consumer pump. By 4 mos, I was totally dried up. I nursed my son for a year -- no problems; rented a hospital grade pump to use while pumping at work after 3 mos. Plan to do the same this time around.

When you supplement with formula, your baby is not giving your body the signal that it should produce MORE milk and so it is a cycle that decreases your supply. The more you do it, the lower the supply gets.

I had the same problem - the only way for me to increase the milk supply was to pump after every nursing and pump every 2 hours. That makes our body think we need to provide more milk. It's kinda like having twins at feeding time and is really hard to do. Especially with your house already filled with other little ones who want your time and attention! I lasted for 9 months and was thrilled to stop nursing. I had a goal of making it to 6 months.

Oh yeah - super important to eat a lot! I was eating haagan daz every nite, turkey & avocado sandwiches, high calorie - high nutrient meals (except the ice cream) and I still lost all of my pregnancy weight (w/in 6 weeks of delivering) and then some because of trying to produce milk. I hate to say it because it was impossible for me to do, but I was told to sleep more (yah right with a newborn?!).

I know this is way late, but try wearing your baby, if nothing else is working. Some lc say the more you hold your baby, the more your milk comes in. Hard with other kids, but a sling, or harness worked with me.=) Well, I could never figure out the sling, but we got a mai tai type that is wonderful, and also a strappy harness type that transfers into a backpack later. =)
Also, skip the caffine. Also hard to do with other kids, but that might help! =) If you don't like oatmeal, try oatmeal cookies. There is a great recipe for lactation cookies online and they are really tasty!
Good luck!
R.

First, contact La Leche League and get to a meeting. Maybe being around other nursing moms will relax you and help with some let down. Second, ummm, seriously, I don't know about all those herbs. I nursed for quite a few years and I didn't use anything. Which brings me to my next point, relax and just nurse. The key to producing more milk is baby nursing. You got the water down and 100 oz sounds like a lot too. I remember when I nursed my first baby and I couldn't get him to latch on for the first week. I was so 'frantic' and the neighbor across the street came over. She had 5 kids. She was just like, "relax" and she left and the rest is history. It will be okay.

As far as pumping, what kind of pump are you using. Assuming you are doing okay, off the herbs, eating foods other than oatmeal and you know, it might not hurt to chillax on the water too a bit, use a good double pump...not a cheapie. Rent one if you need to for a month. What that might do is create a more natural suction. Further, maybe baby isn't hungry. Some babies suckle on the breast. In other words, he feeds and then suckles for a bit. Are you sure he is hungry? Maybe he's gassy or something. Is he gaining weight?

Now contact La Leche and they will put you in contact with groups and people in your area! And relax...it will be okay.

I had the same concerns with my 1st baby, who seemed constantly hungry & we supplemented. Eventually (at 4 months) I wasn't producing anymore.
If you really want to NOT supplement, you need to spend about a WEEK, just breastfeeding to reboost your supply. If you stop supplementing, baby will stimulate your production, and you WILL produce more. That's going to be tough with your other 2 kids around, so it's best if you can pre-plan some additional help to keep your kids occupied.
With my 2nd baby, the best advice I got from my lactation consultant was to boost your supply by feeding baby 10 mins on one side, 10 on the other, then 15 on the 1st again, 15 on the other. THEN pump for 10 minutes. This way, each feeding takes 1 hour, baby gets full, you get LOTS of stimulation & you'll start producing more. This has been really successful for us. Also, it means that your husband, or even maybe your 5 year old can help give your baby whatever you pumped, giving you a bit of a break.
As far as the calories go, my dietician recommended no less than 1800, but maybe even up to 2200 calories, depending on how active you are. Key thing she told me was: if you're hungry, eat something, and make sure it's real food, not junk. I try to keep a lot of easy snacks near where I breastfeed, so while I'm feeding my baby, I have a big glass of water & a piece of fruit or cheese & crackers, or a piece of toast, or something. Also, be sure you're getting enough rest. With 3 babies, you must be exhausted. Don't stress too much if you end up supplementing a bit throughout the year, or weaning early. You've given your baby a great start, and you can only do so much while maintaining your sanity too!

Why are you thinking your supply is low? It is rare - if you are consistently breastfeeding, NOT supplementing and keeping hydrated to have issues with basic supply and demand. During the growth spurts every 2-3 months - the baby will need to feed CONSTANTLY - not due to hunger, but due to stimulating your body to produce more to keep up with their development needs.

It sounds like you are gauging your supply by what you pump - which would be very incorrect and inefficient. It also sounds like you are offering WAY too many bottles - whether it be expressed milk or formula.

You need to stop giving bottles - unless you are a full time working Mother. Expressed milk should be for emergencies, daycare or date nights ONLY, not to give Daddy/Grandma/MIL/etc some time to feed baby. That is YOUR job Momma - you have the breasts.

Sounds like you need to stop bottles cold turkey while you are present with your infant. Only nurse when you are together. Bottles are for when you must leave your infant for 2+ hours in another's care. You also need to pump and SAVE your expressed milk, not use it unless you are working full time and the daycare or child care provider needs the milk.

Fenugreek with Blessed Thistle is the best combination for upping supply, as is of course keeping hydrated, oatmeal and eating healthy snacks. Limit caffeine too.

calories is about 500 more than what u normaly consume, i think.
also, if you can, try to spend a toppless weekend with the baby! skin to skin as much as possible, and just let her suckel on and off all day.
And only ever give formula right AFTER a breast feeding is complete!
keep up the fenugreek and water and try not to stress.
also, you may be starting to menstrate early. this happened to me and cause a dip in my supply. but it came back. been breastfeeding now for 14 months.
baby get more out than u do when u pump. and keep growth sperts in mind.

Make sure you are feeding every 2.5 hours - that will stimulate your supply. If you pump after nursing that can help as well. You might want to look into one of the hands free/portable pumps so you can do it on the go since you have a busy house. Maybe you could get a mother's helper to help with the older kids so you can focus on getting your supply established... There are also some feeding systems that allow the baby to get their supplemental formula at the breast... you could try that for more stimulation while supplementing. Make sure you are getting enough rest! Sleep makes a big difference to my supply. Try and relax - the stress will not help your supply either. Good Luck!

I would suggest nursing the baby more often. The more you nurse, the more milk you make, so if you increase the nursing sessions, your milk will increase after a day or two.

You could also try pumping shortly after nursing the baby.

If the baby ever just nurses on one side, that is a great chance to pump the other side.

I, too, got up in the middle of the night just to pump. I dont know why - post partum craziness.... I was obsessed with having enough breast milk.

And I agree that pumping is not as effective as nursing. I always heard that, but did not believe it until i got a clogged duct while out of town on a business trip. I pumped and pumped and massaged and pumped and did everything and pumped some more, but I could not clear it. I got home and my little baby girl fixed it in about 10 minutes.

Definitely nurse as much as you can.

I was going to say exactly what Kathleen R. said. Nurse, nurse, nurse!
Good luck!

So stop the fenugreek. I had several friends use it and they dried up. I nursed my daughter for 2 yrs and am now nursing a 5month old. I felt my supply was a little low around her two month birthday when she was going through a growth spurt so I started using Organic Mothers Milk tea by Traditional medicine. You can buy it at any health food store or www.puritan.com (buy the first few boxes local and then order from this website.I have found they are the cheapest). GNC carries it also. You should drink five cups of it per day and it will increase the milk supply. Supplementing with formula will absolutely sabotage your supply and is the worst thing you can do if breastfeeding is what you really want. Women are meant to lactate and that baby is what tells your body how much to supply. No more bottles. Just put that baby on the breast. Pumping exclusively will dry you up too so stick to purely breastfeeding. I think this tea will help so jump on it and let us know how it works. It only took about a day for my supply to go up and I have been crazy about drinking it every day since then. Good luck and happy breastfeeding.

I had a similar experience, although my little boy is almost 9m old. I am using Healthy Nursing Tea by secrets of tea that's organic tea and without preservatives and increase my milk supply quickly...

Make sure that you are breastfeeding or pumping for at least 15 minutes every 2 to 3 hours. Also keep taking the herbs. Don't go overnight without pumping or breastfeeding. I personally use Breastea from http://www.breastea.com and it has helped a lot. If you don't like herbal tea you could take the More Milk capsules. Make sure that mom is getting plenty to eat and don't worry about dieting right now!

Updated

I personally use Breastea from http://www.breastea.com and I've seen a big increase in my pumping output. Eat something every two hours if needed. You have to make sure you're eating enough to have a good supply.