Breast Pumping and Milk Supply

Hi,
Organic tea which is Healthy nursing tea by secrets of tea help me to produce factory of milk supply;)
God bless you...!!

I think you don't need a 2 sided pump. I had a y-shape tubing that hooked to 2 cups and pumped at the same time, so I could pump 2 sides in 15 minutes. This kept both sides at full throttle without being away from work for so long.

Hi R..
My local La Leche group advised me to take fengugreek, 3 pills 3 times a day with Blessed Thistle, 3 pills, 3 times a day. Caution for women with diabetes since fengugreek decreases blood sugar. Take these for 4-5 days and you should see an increase with your supply. A word of advice, the fengugreek will make your sweat and urine smell like maple syrup. (but it could smell a lot worse). Also pump as often as you can, as everyone is saying....supply and demand. And don't give up....this is the greatest gift we can give to our children. Good Luck.

The best way to determine how much milk she's getting is by doing a pre-feed weigh and a post-feed weigh. Your ped may be willing to let you come in and use their scale and a room to nurse in, call and ask. A 4 month old should get around 4-6 oz per feed. Also, your estrogen levels are high in the morning. This is the best time to nurse/pump because its your highest level of production throughout the day. Evening is worse, you may not be getting much then. First thing is first, put her to breast as often as possible. She sounds like she may be getting lazy from the bottle. I had the same issues as you when I returned to work with my daughter when she was 4 months too. The best time to put her to breast if she's really fighting you is when she's tired. She's more likely to latch on if she's too groggy to realize its not a bottle. But try and try again. Keep offering it to her as much as she'd like. If she just ate 20 mins ago and is fussy, offer it again. She will help your supply more than any pump will. Pumping is for when you have to be absent from her. It usually takes 1-2 days to get back on track, but you have to have the time to spend. What I would do if my supply was low (and what LLL recommends) is to sit with your baby, skin to skin all day. Have your breast readily availbale, let her nurse for food, comfort, cuz shes tired/bored, whatever. Be available at her beckon call. In a day or two, your supply should be up and running. Maybe try this when you have 2 consecutive days off. Also, see if you can't get away a bit more often from work. Good luck!

Breastfeeding is supply and demand so giving her formula will signal your breasts to produce less milk. If you feel you are having supply issues you could increase your water intake, eat oatmeal, pump more, try pumping the opposite side while breastfeeding, take fenugreek, drink mother's milk tea, cut out formula, and of course, nurse more.

BTW, pumping is never a good way to determine your supply level.

Hi R.,

I had pump exclusively for my 2 yr old son who couldn't nurse because of his heart condition for 11 mth and am now pumping for my 5 mth old daughter. I work full time and have three 20 min pumping sessions set aside during the day. Breat milk production depends heavily on demand. So the more frequent stimulation means more milk. I'd suggest that you get the Y shaped tube so that you can pump both sides together. And I don't know what kind of work you do, but perhaps you could fit in one more pumping session during the day.
Taking supplements, drinknig and eating more didn't really make much difference for me. Oh I tried everything!! The only thing that worked was fitting in more pumping sessions.
Being a working mom and trying to feed them breatmilk is one of the hardest thing I've done. So good for you for trying your best. And good luck.

Y.

First off, I think pumping is one of THE hardest things to do when you are breastfeeding. Kudos to you.

You said you can't afford the double-sided pump...that's the one I had when I was pumping for my now 4-yr-old son. All I can suggest here is to try pumping one side while your daughter is nursing on the other to stimulate both breasts simultaneously. Generally, you'll produce more milk when both are stimulated together.

Selena may be teething if she's not interested in nursing. She also may be getting spoiled to her bottle. Have you tried having her position changed when she takes a bottle? My daughter was a breast/bottle baby and had to be laid over my lap with her head supported over my knees for her bottle. She equated cuddling close to breastfeeding and wouldn't take a bottle from anyone in a cuddled position. She also hated breastfeeding when she was teething. Try a bit of baby Orajel or Baby Ambesol a few minutes before trying to feed and see if that makes a difference.

Another issue may be the nipple used on the bottle. If the flow is too fast or the shape and flow isn't similar to the breast, then there could be some nipple confusion going on. Try switching to a "natural" nipple like Avent or one of Gerber's breast-shaped nipples. They have more than one hole and a shape and flow more like the breast so confusion isn't as big a problem.

Don't give up hope. If these options don't work, try to make an appointment with your local LLL or lactation specialist at the hospital and have them help you with your pump and your baby.