Question about pumping (long)

Heather757x

I have been lurking on this board since having my daughter Feb 11. Breastfeeding started out well but after about a week I got really sore so I pumped exclusively for a couple days for my nipples to heal. During that time I was pumping 3-4 oz at a time. I then met with a LC and we started the nipple shield which works well but LO still seems hungry after and for me it's a pain to use the shield. So this past weekend I have just been pumping and I would only pump 2-3 oz after 25 min of pumping which is not enough to feed her so we have been supplementing with formula. This morning I decided to breastfeed her with the shield for 15 min on each side then I pumped after for 13 min and got 4.5 oz. So my question or what I'm not sure of is that I though my supply was low but after nursing getting 4.5 oz is not low supply but how do I get that much when I'm just pumping and not nursing.

BootsOrHearts

Some women don't respond well to the pump, you could try listening to a tape of your baby crying or looking at pictures of baby, etc. to help.

Skin to skin contact with baby can help increase your supply, that could be what happened in that case.

Also the baby can get more out of you than the pump, and a nipple shield will limit how much the baby can get.

What was the reason for them recommending the nipple shield? If you have inverted nipples, try pumping for a few minutes before feeding to pull out your nipples. Or is it a latch issue? Basically a nipple shield is just a short term solution, it's not meant to be used long term.

Heather757x

It was for a latch issue. She would not get her tongue out of her mouth and she is not tongue tied or anything and she is able to but it takes so coaxing for her to get it out. The LC thought that the shield would help train her how to get her tongue out and where to place it when she was sucking . Ultimately I would like to just pump and feed but I need to get my supply up with just pumping in order to do that.