- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Breastfeeding
Cookiecake7
member
Talk to me about power pumping
Cookiecake7
member
I returned to work on December 12. DD has gradually stopped breastfeeding at home and is getting more and more food from bottles at daycare. She will eat a little in the morning and a little in the evening, but not a whole lot. The problem is (along with breaking my heart that I can't nurse as much as I'd hoped when I am with her) she is eating more than I can pump. I pump four times a day and get about four ounces total each time.
For the first two weeks at DC she only had 3-4 bottles but this week she has had five. Maybe it's a growth spurt but just in case I'm hoping to get my supply up. I know it's common for the supply to decrease a bit when first starting work and then go back up after a few weeks but, just in case, what do you think about a power pumping session? Thanks!!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Talk to me about power pumping
My undestanding is that you are basically trying to mimic cluster feeding. A holiday weekend is a great time to do it. You go 10 min on, 10 min off for about an hour.
Kellymom also suggested pumping after every feed as an alternative.
Why is LO not really eating in the morning/evening? My LO is more distracted and not taking full feedings as of late, so I'm also going to try and address that to improve my supply.
I haven't tried it yet but may also be doing it this weekend too. GL.
Honestly, it sounds like you are producing enough and I would tend to think she is being overfed during the day. How many hours are you away from her, how many onces is she taking each bottle? Is the childcare provider slowing feedings down so that it takes 15-20 minutes to finish the bottle?
As an example, most babies take 25 oz a day (range is 20-30). If you're pumping 16oz and not keeping up with 5 bottles, I'm going to guess that your DD is getting 5 four ounce bottles, totaling 20 oz. If you work 8 hours, half hour lunch, with a 45 minute commute, you're away from her for 10 hours. So in 40% of the day, she is drinking 80% of her total milk intake for the day. This is why I think she's being overfed (assuming it is not a growth spurt. If it is a growth spurt, it's fine!)
As for power pumping, it should help boost your supply. I've also had good luck with fenugreek supplements. But the more you can nurse, the better since baby is better at getting milk out and stimulating more milk production compared to the pump.
Is your daycare overfeeding her? Getting 4oz per session is AMAZING. My first pumping session of the day, I got 1.5oz total.
BF babies take on average 25oz per day. The range goes up to 30oz. Some babies will take more than that, but not often. How much is your LO eating per day? My LO eats around 30oz per day. She gets four 4oz bottles while I am at work. I pump 5x per day to get 12-15oz. I pump on weekends to add a little to get to the 16oz she needs per day. I think my daycare is overfeeding her slightly, but we are working on it.
Also, what nipple are you using on the bottles? They should be the slowest flow there is. Like, newborn flow. Make her work for that bottle, just like how she has to work to nurse.
Thanks everyone! This week she has had five four ounce bottles. I'm hoping this is just a growth spurt since it hasn't been that mane bottles from the beginning. We have the slowest flow nipple and it sounds like it takes her about ten to fifteen minutes to eat. If this lasts longer than a week I'll discuss it with dc provider. At home she eats maybe a half feeding in the morning and one full feeding in the evening. So, she's always been a big eater but I'm worried she is starting to prefer the bottle over breast and has decided to eat more from the bottle whenever possible.
I also think she might be ready for some solids. I know the majority of her calories should still come from bm but I think she might be ready to eat a little more. I don't know...I think now I'm just venting. Thanks again!
We started solids at almost an identical age, and let me tell you it solved all of our overfeeding issues at Daycare once he got the hang of eating (which took less than a week). I'm not saying that you have to start solids, and I had intended to wait until 6 months, but he was very interested in food, was sitting up on his own, and had lost the tongue thrust reflex. Instead of arguing about giving him more milk, I just let the daycare give him some solid food along with his bottle. Since it's not as nutritious, he's not getting super fat from it, but it takes him a while to eat and he's less likely to cry for more after a bottle + solids.
He now nurses at 6am, 4oz bottle at 8:30, 3oz bottle + 1/4 cup solids at 11, 4oz bottle + 2oz prune juice (we have serious constipation issues if we don't keep up with this daily) at 1:30, 3oz bottle + 1/4 cup solids at 4pm, nurse at 6pm, sometimes another 1/4 cup solids if I want to try out a new food and watch for allergies, and then nurse before bed at 8. I am looooving this schedule! No complaints on either side and LO is actually losing some of his excessive chub that he got before we started solids when I think daycare was overfeeding.
My LO takes 2 5oz bottles when I am away. Sometimes he finishes, sometimes he doesnt. But he always takes at least 4oz from them. Its more than I would have expected from a breastfed baby at his age.
We arrived at this number by doing a few weighed feedings and he was always taking more than 4 oz during these sessions. I used that as a guideline. I also used it to set my pumping goals.
If you are concerned about overfeeding, could you do the same so you know how much is actually needed that time of day?