XP: Advice on supplementing with formula

firemansflame

I’m thinking of supplementing but I’m struggling with the decision. I was able to EBF DS1. He never had formula and I was able to nurse him for 15 months. I was really hoping to do the same with DS2 but we have been dealt a different set of experiences / circumstances this go around.

So my little guy is very small. He was a month early and got very sick over the holidays and lost nearly a pound. At 5 months old he only weighs 11lbs 6 oz (born at 6lb 2 oz). Right after he was sick I was sick and the combo of that really took its toll on my milk supply. Prior to all of this he would go anywhere from 5-8 hours overnight without eating. Because of his illness / weight loss we have had to take him in for weekly weight checks. His last weight check he didn’t gain anything and is very fussy at the breast.

He is also up every 2 hrs at night to eat because I just don’t think he is getting much milk. When I pump at work I’m getting about half of what I normally did (and about half of what I have to send to daycare – and my freezer stash is dwindling). I’ve been eating lactation cookies, taking fenugreek and drinking lots of water and mother’s milk tea and I’m still not keeping up. I feel like for everyone to be happy possibly supplementing might be something we should consider.

I was thinking that I might give him a bottle of formula right before bed since I’ve heard sometimes formula keeps them satisfied a bit longer than breast milk. I could then pump after putting him to bed. Hopefully this would make up the difference of what I need to send with him to daycare during the day so that the only time he gets formula is right before bed. What does this plan sound like to you all? I am kind of intimidated by making this decision but I’m going on two weeks of a hungry baby and my nips are so sore and I’m exhausted. I just want my satisfied happy baby back!

Thoughts ladies?

magdalina.h

Formula at bed time might help and it might not. It might be a better idea to do the formula for breakfast and you pump that feeding since you make more at your first morning pump. That way you can empty and hopefully signal to your body to make more. I'd be hesitant to try to get rid of the MOTN feeding since he's struggling with weight gain right now.

firemansflame

Agreed.  My goal isn't necessarily to eliminate MOTN feedings but he is clearly not getting enough to eat at night because my supply is so low that he is waking really frequently due to hunger.  I was thinking that perhaps if he got a good full feeding of formula before bed he would stay satisfied longer than 2 hrs.  I mean - he would benefit from the uninterrupted sleep too right?  He goes longer than 2 hrs between feedings during the day because he gets more milk from me and seems satisfied.  That's not the case at night time. 

I'm just not sure if I could add a pump session to my morning routine.  It would be more managable at night after getting both kids off to bed.  I'll def consider that though - That is a good point around not getting as much pumped milk at night. 

Thanks!  Keep the advice coming

Coconuthead

Maybe you could also try pumping after every feeding to help your milk supply get back up, especially on the weekends. Maybe you could pump enough extra to also cover his daycare needs. Good luck!

magdalina.h

I like the idea of still doing the MOTN nursing because that will only help tell your boobs to make more. Trust me, I know it's hard in the morning. When I just EP'd (for a month due to weight gain issues) I would get up at 5:45, pump, feed her, then wake the toddler to get him ready and blah blah blah.
I also think formula in the morning because if he has a reaction to it, you/daycare/il's will be awake.
Have you tried power pumping? For an hour, pump for 10 minutes then take a 10 minute break.

JilllyBean

Hi, I could have written this post myself! Except that my guy is pretty big! Well really tall. 93% for height and 50 for weight. Anyway....I had the exact same thing happen, he was sick (not eating), then I was sick. He is 5m as well and for the past almost 6 weeks he is up 3-4 times a night to eat. And I know he is truly hungry as we try to soothe him other ways and it does not work. (I thought it was this 4m wakeful, well no, it wasn't) I wasn't pumping as much either and he was eating so often. 

I just started supplementing with formula, was EBF before and it has been great for us. He gets a 6oz bottle of formula before bed, usually doesn't finish it, but drinks quite a bit and he is now getting up once a night around 4AM (7 hrs sleep straight). I feel horrible because he was basically starving. At daycare they also give him a bottle of formula instead of BM. I still send 2 bottles of BM. I just couldn't keep up! He's a hungry guy! 

I feel like people make you feel so guilty for doing this and of course you can try and increase your supply and all, but I feel good about my decision. I did try a few things to increase, but there was no way I was going to get enough to satisfy him and I wasn't going to take drugs or anything. My goal was 6m and so any time I make it past that is a bonus in my book. Plus he is still getting BM! We are all a lot happier around my house. I am not so stressed about how much I produce, worrying if he is eating enough, worried about daycare wasting milk, etc. 

Anyway, just thought I would share my story in case it helped. 

Aubs0009

I don't see anything wrong with adding a bottle to supplement. I would also suggest getting up in the middle of the night and adding a pump session. I was told that your milk is at it peak between 1 and 4 in the morning. When my milk was dwindling, that is what I would do.

Asivec

My pedi said to maintain bm supply, try not to offer more than 6 oz of formula a day. 2 oz after every feed seems like a lot. Did you check how much your LO can transfer (weighted feed)? Is pumping after some feeds possible?

I supplement because of similar issues. I was doing 1 2oz bottle and now I give 2 2oz bottles. LO didn't gain enough weight at the last well visit. My goal is to pump after every other feed and get my stash to a point where it can be bm instead of formula.