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Preemies
RP: Dimishing Supply
Help! I just brought my son home from the NICU after a 16 day stay (we
was born premature at 32 weeks). At the hospital I was pumping my milk
and bottle feeding him and occasionally breastfeeding him. I always
had plenty of milk for him. My milk supply in the last two days as
gone down to half of what it was before we came home! I don't know
what to do !!! Any ideas why this is happening? I'm trying to sleep
as much as possible and I'm eating and drinking the same, I don't know
what else to do. Advise?
This discussion has been closed.
Re: RP: Dimishing Supply
I am so sorry this is happening. My son was in the NICU for 3 weeks (born at 32 weeks). I was never able to BF, only pump and bottle feed. Just today my stockpile in the freezer has gone down to less than a day worth and my supply isn't keeping up with my son's needs. I am still going to try to pump and hope I get enough, but I think tomorrow I am going to give him 1 or 2 feeds of formula for the first time. It makes me very sad but I know I have tried everything, even tried to get him to BF.
All I can say is try the standard, increase water intake, eat oatmeal, sleep. Some friends have told me to let him sleep on my chest to try to stimulate more milk or even try a beer. Well, I tried a beer and my supply didn't increase.
i've got a post on my blog about milk issues...maybe some of those tips could help you.
are you using a different pump? it's possible that it's not fitting just right... it's also possible that he could be having a growth spurt- those are SUPER hard! they basically cry and have to nurse constantly to boost your supply to catch up. did you switch/start birth controls? stress can have a HUGE effect too... so it could be that the changes of having him home are more than you realize.
try drinking more water than you ever thought you could... try spending a whole day, literally, topless, just in bed, nursing all the time. frequency will boost supply more efficiently than duration. (ie. pump all the time for 15 mins instead of once for 45.)
my supply tanked around 8 months.. and i was able to get it back up with motilium, but by then (about 10 months) my daughter was well on her way to weaning. now, i just get to nurse her when she feels like it... and i pump and add it to goats milk formula to supplement. she's so old now that she's eating more foods though- so she's not on much formula.
the longer you can possibly bear to stretch it out, the better it will be for him. even if you're not getting enough for a full feed- add what you are able to get to his bottles- it will go a long way to boosting his immune system and helping the little guy out.
good luck! and congrats on having him home.
Ditto to the above.
Also, have you checked the wearable parts on your pump, sometimes they can get small tears leading to decreased pump effectiveness. All you need to do is switch them out with new ones.
Massage your breasts in the direction of the pump when pumping....proven to help increase out put.
If you're EP, are you still going 24/7? If not, I'd suggest doing so. It's hard, but worth it.
Nurse as much as you can. Nothing is better than baby at getting your milk out, and stimulating you. While your supply is coming back baby will probably be fussy and put a lot of demand on you until it picks up.
GL
Have you tried Mother's Milk Tea or fenugreek?
Also, have you posted on the Breastfeeding Board? There is always lots of good advice re: supply issues on that board.