I think I need to throw in the towel.

Vet-Tech · October 2010

I don't want to give up but I think my supply is crappy. I took DD in on Thursday to have her belly button rechecked & they put her on the scale. She had only gained barely 5 ounces in 10 days. She was 7# 12oz at birth & she's now only 8# 5.9oz. Poor thing hasn't even gained a pound since birth! The doctor told me to nurse from both sides, then offer her the occasional 1 oz or so of formula after & see if she was still hungry. I've been doing that 2-3 times during the day & she's willingly drinking it down. Just tonight, I nursed her & she was crying & tugging at both breasts, so I gave her to DH for a 2 oz bottle & tried pumping. I barely got anything after 20 minutes of pumping. I've been eating oatmeal, drinking more water & taking the Fenugreek for a week. I have a hungry baby & I'm not able to feed her. It's very frustrating to me. I start out the day fine (I think). I can hear her gulping down the milk but by the end of the day, I think I'm empty. I don't want to stop breastfeeding but I'm obviously not giving her the nourishment she needs. That's apparent by her lack of weight gain. So if I have to give up, how do I go about it as painlessly as possible?

Nurselorie · October 2010

You don't have to give up altogether! You can continue to nurse her very frequently along with the supplementing as directed by a lactation consultant. Pumping is not a good indicator of supply but it can help build supply. My good friend did both, BF and supplement and ending up BF for close to 2 years. I know you are discouraged right now- talk to a LC and get some support!

ncbelle · October 2010

First of all, lots of women nurse and supplement if you don't want to quit.

If you do want to continue...have you met with an LC - that would be my first step.

What is your nursing schedule like currently (how often; how long)?

And as the pp said, the pump is NOT an indicator of your supply.

Allie30 · October 2010

My thoughts on the matter is that ANY breastmilk I can give her is better than no breast milk. I'm supplementing with formula (currently about 50%) and pumping and taking supplements to increase my supply, hoping I can get back to a 100% BM situation. I was hoping ot EBF, but since I can't -- yet -- I'm happy that I can give my baby at least half breast milk and all the benefits that come with it.

J+MS · October 2010

You don't have to give up!! I'm supplementing 8-10 oz a day but at least she is getting some BM.

mrsleo524 · October 2010

I was totally in your shoes at one month and now I give her as much breastmilk as I can and give her formula for the rest of her feedings. If you want to keep breastfeeding, keep at it! If not, it's okay.

Vet-Tech · October 2010

Thank you for the support. I feel like a terrible mom because my baby is hungry & I can't give her what she needs. Those of you who do supplement with formula, are you doing it like my pediatrician suggests (1-2 oz after breastfeeding) or are you giving a full bottle as a feeding? I usually let her nurse on the first side for however long she takes, then I offer her the second side. The problem is sometimes she falls asleep & she is such a sound sleeper, I cannot wake her enough to be interested in continuing to eat. Maybe I sabotaged my supply by not pushing her to nurse enough. Until recently, she never seemed hungry or frustrated while nursing. She sleeps well at night & I have to wake her up to feed her sometimes. You would think if she was hungry, she would wake up, wouldn't she?

dusk42 · October 2010

I pasted links for a very good book/website below - the key thing that these researchers have found is that women with fertility issues sometimes have milk supply issues as well (probably hormonally based). There are ways to make the best of the situation and still BF while supplementing, and knowing this was hormonally based and that I was doing everything right helped alleviate a lot of the guilt of DD not be "EBF." I have PCOS and have had to supplement since DD was born. What I did was just to nurse as much as possible and then have DH give her two ounces in a bottle (we started out using a syringe with tubing to supplement at the breast, but I think we switched around a month). You can also give her a little bit (like half an ounce) and then nurse (so she is not frustrated while trying to nurse).

Additionally, I would jump straight to More Milk Special Blend instead of the fenugreek - I got the alcohol-free liquid. I took fenugreek, blessed thistle, shatavari, etc. in different combinations, and MMSB was the only thing that worked - probably because it is an extract and not the dry seeds/herbs. I think I got the best price from Vitacost.

If you don't want to stop, you can keep BFing and still keep her happy and healthy. After I made my peace with supplementing (and now that she is eating a lot of solids), BFing is just for our health and our happiness, which is awesome.

Good luck!

https://www.makingmoremilk.com/

https://www.lowmilksupply.org/

Discordia1030 · October 2010

PPs have given you great advice, but I just wanted to say don't give up and don't feel like a bad mother if it doesn't work out. Breastfeeding is hard work and you're doing a great job just because you are trying everything you can! GL!

mrsleo524 · October 2010

What I did was nurse until I felt like she wasn't getting anything then feed her a couple ounces of formula. It was usually at night when I felt like this happened. My milk supply was always strongest in the morning and weakest in the evening, when DD wanted to cluster feed. It was hard - emotionally and physically. We started with 2oz and if she was still hungry, we'd feed her one or two more.

My daughter slept really well too so I had to struggle to keep her awake. I'd strip her down to her diaper and either tickle her feet, gently push up on the bottom of her chin or scratch her back to wake her up. Sometimes I rubbed her elbow - right on the bone.

Since I'm back at work, I pump as much as I can and she eats that the following day. We always make sure to feed her all the pumped breastmilk first THEN supplement with formula. She's up to 4-5oz bottles now. Oh and I would encourage you to continue using the pump when you aren't nursing. Even if you aren't getting a lot out - it can only help your supply by replicating the suckling. It's easy to let it get you down if you don't see much come out but remember that the baby empties the breast MUCH better than a pump does. Good luck!

Mrs.B6302007 · October 2010

b/c of a breast reduction, I have to supplement w/ formula. It varies between 50/50 and 60/40 but I still get to BF *some* and that was my goal. I hope you will be open to that before you give up completely. GL!

mrsashby · October 2010

Every time you supplement...even if you just nursed are you then pumping 15-20 mins? If you you do this everytime you supplement this should/will help your supply.

MrsCAA · November 2010

mrsashby:
Every time you supplement...even if you just nursed are you then pumping 15-20 mins? If you you do this everytime you supplement this should/will help your supply.

I did this with massage and it helped. I got extra milk in the morning to give later in the afternoon and then slowly worked my way later and later in the day until we didnt need to give any bottles. And i still pump in the AM to have milk in the freeze and to milk with cereal.

Also i do: high fiber diet, water, i did reglan for a wk, fenugreek, sleep as much as possible.

https://newborns.stanford.edu/Breastfeeding/MaxProduction.html

Side note: you could get checked for thyroid, and if you have odd bleeding starting around around 4-6 wks post it could be placenta retained.

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