Who's recovered from low supply?
mrshall10210
member
I just need someone to tell me that it can be done. Or that it can't. Whatever. I'm so discouraged today.
I've posted quite a few questions here with my story, but here it is again. LO was small when she was born, 5lbs 12oz, but full term and healthy. Her latch was very shallow and painful in the hospital and by the time we got home, she would not latch at all. I started EPing the day after we got home, every 2 hours, so she would have BM to eat. I was getting enough, at that point, to keep up with her. I got sick and ran a high fever for about 10 days when she was maybe 2 weeks old, and we had to start supplementing with formula because my supply went down. It has increased some from there, but I am still only pumping about 1.5-3 ounces total, every 2-3 hours. I'm taking Fenugreek, eating oats, lactation cookies with brewers yeast, drinking tons of water, pumping a lot, I even bought a new/better pump (Medela PISA). I don't know what else to do and I feel like maybe I will just never be able to increase my supply.
It depresses me to have to keep giving her formula. I feel like my BM doesn't satisfy her, and she's fussier/hungrier after a BM bottle. It upsets me to be tied to this stupid pump every 2 hours for 30 minutes and barely get any milk. It makes me want to quit. I know some BM is better than none, but is there any point to me trying so hard? Has anyone been in my situation and actually managed to build up any kind of supply? Everyone keeps telling me it can be done, but I'm starting to not believe it.
Re: Who's recovered from low supply?
I recovered from low supply (my supply regulated too low because of my DS's tongue tie), but I was still nursing him. I was able to get my supply up by pumping for 10 minutes after every nursing session around the clock. It was two weeks of torture, but we are almost at 8 months now.
Have you worked with a LC to get your DD back on the breast? I am not sure that you have a low supply. If you can get 3 oz after 2-3 hours, you may very well have enough milk. Your DD would be much more effective at getting the milk out of you than a pump is. Also, it's common for bottle fed babies to drink much more BM than they actually need because the bottle feeds them so quickly that they don't have time to register they are full.
Have you tried power pumping? I believe it is 5 minutes pumping, 5 minutes break, for at least 1 hour. If you do that 1-2x per day for 3-4 days it should help to increase your supply.
Also, if that doesn't work, you could look in to Domperidone. There is a thread here that discusses how various ladies on this board have used it. You may want to speak with a LC before starting it.
As you pointed out, any amount of BM is beneficial. Good luck!
Big hugs. I know this is all really hard. But you will get through it.
IUI#2 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 5-9) = BFN
IUI#3 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP!
beta #1 11/23 = 270, P4 = 75
beta #2 11/28 = 2055
Our daughter E was born 7/29/2012!
Surprise, our 2nd daughter P was born 5/22/14!
I don't really know what I expect anyone to be able to tell me, I'm just very discouraged today.
(((hugs))) I'm sorry you are so frustrated, but I do understand. It's stressful when all you want to do is feed your child and your body just can't keep up with the demand. The constant crying can really wear at your nerves.
I would try to have her nurse every time she wants to eat. Even if she only latches for 5 minutes or less, you are getting her reacquainted with the process. Then offer her a 1 oz bottle if she seems to still be hungry once she's done (your DH can get the bottle ready while you nurse). Only offer bottled milk in 1 oz increments, waiting 5 minutes in between, until she seems satisfied. Give her body time to tell her brain that she's full. I would also do breast compressions while you nurse your DD; it will help the milk flow a little faster and she may not get as frustrated while trying to eat. Instructions are here via kellymom.com
Once you are done nursing her, I would pump for at least 5-10 minutes. Try to pump as soon as possible after nursing. That should help your body know that it needs to produce more.
Hang in there and don't forget "never quit on a bad day!"
The problem is that she won't latch in the first place, usually. The whole time I'm offering the nipple, she's red faced and screaming that awful, painful, choking/panting cry. So we give up. IF she will latch, she'll nurse for awhile... the other day she latched and ate from both breasts for an hour total... and at the next feeding, screamed again and refused. It baffles me. I can't understand why she'll do it PERFECTLY and happily, but only twice a week. Also, with the bottle, if I try to take it away and give her a break in between ounces, she screams when I take it away. I guess she is just very determined to eat. =/
I'm so sorry. I really feel for you because I was in the exact same situation when my DS was 3 weeks old. That cry is just heartbreaking.
I'm going to keep making suggestions, because it sounds like you really want to make this work. If you want to ignore me, that's fine! I won't take it personally
Are you able to get her to settle down at all when you offer the breast? Can you have her suck on one of your or your DH's fingers and then quickly swap it out for your nipple? That's what the LC in the hospital recommended to us to help DS focus and calm down when we were trying to nurse.
Also, are you getting your milk flowing by massaging before offering her your nipple so she doesn't have to wait for a letdown? That may help, especially if you are able to squirt a little milk in or around her mouth as you try to latch her so she knows what is coming.
If none of these things work, I would definitely make an appointment with a LC to get some help. Sending good thoughts your way!
5 DIUI - BFN
IVF#1 - BFP - AJ 7/12
FET#1 - BFP Due 7/24/14
We went through some similar stuff.
1- domperidone. Stat.
2- offer the baby 1/2-1 ounce from a bottle to take the edge off hunger and then offer the breast. Not the other way around. Best piece of advice our lc gave us. It's how I got dd back to the breast. She would not have it if she was hungry hungry. Now, several weeks later, we are ebf.
3- has she even evaluated for tongue tie? Does she have any symptoms?
4- tried power pumping?
Good luck! Hang in there!
I will look into that drug... I can't spell it. I don't like to take things and I already decided reglan isn't worth it. But I don't know much about the other one except that it's not approved in the us.
No tongue tie, according to a LC. Her latch is actually pretty comfortable now, when she will do it. She actually latched tonight and nursed from both sides and seemed satisfied afterwards. I pumped when she was done and barely got anything, so I think she did a good job of emptying both breasts. An hour later, starting to show hunger signs... Forget it. She screamed for ten minutes til the bottle was warm.
I haven't tried power pumping yet. It's on my to do list.
Thanks guys. I appreciate any and all suggestions. I don't even care if I have to EP, I just would like to have enough milk to do it.
Have you tried offering the bottle first and then breast. Limit it to 1/2-1 ounce just to let her know it's time to eat and then offer the breast. The other thing I did based on lc rec was latch dd on when she was still drowsy and not quite hungry. Let her non-nutritive suck. It usually triggered a let down and then she would suck properly. This messed up our feeding routine for a week but I was ok with that. It worked well.
Like you, my doc r(x)Ed reglan, but I was terrified of the nasty side effects. I've had zero with Dom.
Good luck. Hope it's going ok!