x post from march 2012 - ep to formula

mrshurley10

i have been pumping all of my daughters meals since she refused my breast 2.5 months ago. i am beginning to get frustrated with this process as i feel it pulls so much time from being able to be with her. i am considering switching to formula when she is 6 months. have any of you done this yet or are any of you planning to switch at 6 months. if so do you have any advise on how to make your boobs stop producing. i have already had mastitis 2 times and have had thrush for about the last month and a half so i am really worried about doing it wrong and making these problems get worse. any suggestions will be appreciated. thanks!

JaimeG183

I would drop 1 pump a week until you are done. If you slowly drop them it should be easier

JaimeG183

I think I'd also start introducing 1 bottle of formula (while still pumping) to build a freezer stash so she could have 1 bottle of BM a day longer

My LC said that the benefits of BM are given in 1 bottle a day (or less)

LillyGrrl

She already said it's been 2.5 months...why would she try the baby back on the breast at this point? Are you interested in continuing to breast feed and just don't want to because you had EP'ing?

 If you want to stop- you could pump for a minute or two to reduce engorgement but not pump to emptiness- you would likely dry up sooner than if you were to just drop a session all together and it would likely hurt a lot less.

Most babies can transition to formula without a problem.

 

mrshurley10

i would have loved to try to introduce the breast again but have had thrush for so long that i never wanted to increase the chance of my daughter getting it by nursing...

bhdoucette

Thrush is so painful. Have you tried diflucan? It was the only thing that worked for me. I wouldn't let thrush deter you from trying again though, if BF is something you really want to do. Once I started diflucan and washing my bras in a detergent with bleach, DD and I didn't pass it back to one another.

kalette

Start dropping pumps! Every time I feel like quitting Eping I drop a pump, and so far my supply has been fine. I've always made too much anyhow and would be fine with it if it decreased, but it hasn't yet and I'm at 3 pumps a day (every 8 hours). Try it and see if it makes you happier, you might be able to keep going, and if not, well your that much closer to quitting.

 

ETA: Do it slowly, change it up only one hour at a time, so if you pump every 3, drop to every 4, then 5, 6.. after 6 it gets a little harder if you want to keep pumping at the same time every day. You go from ever 6 to every 8, to 12.

adamstodrake

JaimeG183:

I would drop 1 pump a week until you are done. If you slowly drop them it should be easier

When you are ready, wean yourself down off pump sessions slowly. Sage tea was what really helped me finish drying up when DS selfweaned and I was still producing a lot. Nasty tasting, but helped immensely.

mrshurley10

kalette:

Start dropping pumps! Every time I feel like quitting Eping I drop a pump, and so far my supply has been fine. I've always made too much anyhow and would be fine with it if it decreased, but it hasn't yet and I'm at 3 pumps a day (every 8 hours). Try it and see if it makes you happier, you might be able to keep going, and if not, well your that much closer to quitting.

 

ETA: Do it slowly, change it up only one hour at a time, so if you pump every 3, drop to every 4, then 5, 6.. after 6 it gets a little harder if you want to keep pumping at the same time every day. You go from ever 6 to every 8, to 12.

 

thanks for this idea i will try that, it would be great if i could get the same amount of milk out of less pumps and your right if i dont i will just be that much closer to quitting.

mrshurley10

bhdoucette:

Thrush is so painful. Have you tried diflucan? It was the only thing that worked for me. I wouldn't let thrush deter you from trying again though, if BF is something you really want to do. Once I started diflucan and washing my bras in a detergent with bleach, DD and I didn't pass it back to one another.

 

i tried 2 weeks of diflucan and it didnt work so the dr put me on some other drug and it didnt work so now i am just dealing with it....until it gets too painful again then i will go back to the dr. i am hoping that i can just switch to formula soon and not have to deal with it again...we will see i guess :-)