ensuring milk production?

nielsen4897 · December 2013

Hello all,

After I had my son (5yrs ago!) I was unable to produce milk. Doctors put me on regulan and fenugreek but nothing worked. On the best of days I got 4 ounces total, which my son gobbled up. After 3 months of pumping with only mist for milk I have up.

Now, I am almost 5 weeks pregnant with our second. (Finally! Two and a half years and with a specialists help)

I want so badly to breastfeed this one.

Anyone have advice on if there is something I can do to up my chances of milk production after birth?

Any similar stories? What happened to you?

laurmar21 · December 2013

I couldn't breast feed my first either. They told me I didn't produce enough milk... though, now looking back, I know that wasn't true because I would leak ALL over my sheets at night... like soak them wet. But when I would pump, I didn't get a thing. I think I was too up tight with being a first time mom, that my milk wouldn't let down. With my second, I felt much more at ease, because it wasn't my first go of it. And I made sure to pump often until my milk came in. I pumped after every feeding... even if I didn't get anything, just to make sure my milk came in. And let me tell you... did it ever come in! I actually had the opposite problem this past time with having TOO MUCH milk. So, hopefully that will help you too!

sbhughes09 · December 2013

I have almost the exact same story with DD who's 3 now. I don't think it's that we "can't produce milk." For me, my daughter was born a month early and I had a 24-hour labor after 7 weeks of bed rest. I think stress combined with lactation consultants telling me to pump instead of focusing on bonding with my baby hindered me from the start. This time around I plan to focus on lots of skin-to-skin and trusting the process.

nielsen4897 · December 2013

Perhaps it was my first time mom anxiety

boymomstrong · December 2013

Make sure you establish nursing first, dont pump for 4-6 weeks and if you feel too full do a manual let down, also the more you trust your body and hust put baby to boob the better things go... Remember crying, cluster feeding and popping on and off over and over for hours, is not a sign your not makibg milk, its a sign baby is telling your body more, and that your doing it all right...
Blind faith!

I nursed my son for a year, then had to wean to try for #2, but at a year we were still nursing 5-7 times a day, and weaning was so hard for me to do! I hated to stop and break that bond...

It also helpes to have a cery supportive partner, who understands this is best and encourages you... Make sure your on the same page!

Good luck!

PrimRoseMama · December 2013

WhoCanItBeNow said:

nielsen4897 said:

Perhaps it was first time mom stress...I was so frustrated and anxious. I was later diagnosed with post partum depression and, frankly, never really bonded with my son until he was at least one. I call it up to being in the m middle of writing my PhD thesis and being young. Now, I have a whole different perspective and regret all the time wasted when my son was a baby. This new one is my chance to be the mom I should have been, and hopefully that comes with a side of milk

Wow. How sad for your son that you feel that way about this.

I feel this way too...agree with @whocanitbenow . The wording really made me uncomfortable. You were the mom "you were supposed to be" for your son, right? I mean, you (@nielsen4897 ) loved him & fed him. Just because it wasn't breast milk doesn't mean you did anything wrong by him.

Formula feeding moms are still the "moms they should be" to their children. How you feed your child does not, in any way, determine your value as a mom.

The time is valuable with your son. I'm sure he would not appreciate you saying this. You loved him & that is never "time wasted".

This new baby is not a "do over". It's a new human. This whole post just kind of saddens me & is all kinds of messed up.

laurmar21 · December 2013

I think she was just saying she regrets having post pardom depression and not being able to bond with baby. I had depression after my first son too.... it is rough. And I wish I would have been able to relax and enjoy him more too. But, the thing is... when you're going through it... you dont' even realize you are depressed... you just can hardly function. And, when your first experience doesn't go well, it just adds to all of the stress. I am very bonded with my first son now... but it was really hard at first, and I wish too that it wouldn't have been so hard at first. But, I was able to remember that and relax more with my second and just make a conscious effort to just enjoy my second instead of stressing so much. That's more how I took what she said.

Bonnesetter27 · December 2013

PrimRoseMama said:

nielsen4897 said:

Perhaps it was first time mom stress...I was so frustrated and anxious. I was later diagnosed with post partum depression and, frankly, never really bonded with my son until he was at least one. I call it up to being in the m middle of writing my PhD thesis and being young. Now, I have a whole different perspective and regret all the time wasted when my son was a baby. This new one is my chance to be the mom I should have been, and hopefully that comes with a side of milk

Wow. How sad for your son that you feel that way about this.

I feel this way too...agree with @whocanitbenow . The wording really made me uncomfortable. You were the mom "you were supposed to be" for your son, right? I mean, you (@nielsen4897 ) loved him & fed him. Just because it wasn't breast milk doesn't mean you did anything wrong by him. Formula feeding moms are still the "moms they should be" to their children. How you feed your child does not, in any way, determine your value as a mom. The time is valuable with your son. I'm sure he would not appreciate you saying this. You loved him & that is never "time wasted". This new baby is not a "do over". It's a new human. This whole post just kind of saddens me & is all kinds of messed up.

I agree. I had trouble bfing my DS but I loved him. I was never able to exclusively bf because of a lack of supply. This started immediately (he became dehydrated in the hospital). Everyone thought when my milk came in I would be fine but I didn't even notice when my milk came in because it was so little. I used fenugreek and pumped like crazy but it didn't work. I went to the dr and he ran thyroid tests (I have underactive thyroid) which were normal. I think it was a combination of things. First he refused to latch after awhile because bottles were easier (which further hurt my supply), I didn't do enough skin to skin (I did some), probably my T4 and TSH were within normal limits but not good enough for milk production, and my son had a large appetite. I am going to look at these books to help
The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making more milk
Breastfeeding made simple:Seven natural laws for nursing mothers.
I will try very hard to bf this next baby but I am very realistic that my body just may not be cut out for it. Remember formula isn't arsenic.

nielsen4897 · December 2013

To those that made judgemental comments please remember this is spouse to be a support forum and non judgemental. Unless you have walked in my shoes I ask that you keep your negativity to yourselves.

Meery82 · December 2013

nielsen4897 said:

To those that made judgemental comments please remember this is spouse to be a support forum and non judgemental. Unless you have walked in my shoes I ask that you keep your negativity to yourselves.

I think I understand what you meant about this being your "chance to be the mom you should've been", but it was worded poorly. I'm assuming you just meant that a lot of things went wrong with the first baby and you're hoping to bond sooner with this child. I had a very similar problem with breastfeeding as you did and was very upset that I had to supplement with formula from the beginning. I now realize how life saving formula was for us. I hope you have success with breastfeeding this next child, but it shouldn't keep you from bonding with your child if it doesn't work out. And don't regret how things worked out with your first baby; it's part of what will prepare you for this next one. He was loved, fed, and clothed. That's really all a baby needs.

Also, this forum has nothing to do with support. People get to respond however they please, as long as it doesn't violate TOS.

PrimRoseMama · December 2013

nielsen4897 said:
To those that made judgemental comments please remember this is spouse to be a support forum and non judgemental. Unless you have walked in my shoes I ask that you keep your negativity to yourselves.

Pardon? You have no idea what my history is. I had a very hard road BF my daughter. I switched to formula for my own sanity & her health. At no point did I feel like I wasn't the mom I was supposed to be.

The mom I was supposed to be & am is the one that doesn't base my love on the condition of being able to breastfeed. I fed my kid. Did I struggle with feelings of failure? Yes. That doesn't mean I looked to #2 for a "do over". That's jacked up.

This is not a "support forum". This is an entertainment forum. If you put inflammatory stuff like what you said out there then you are not entitled to be treated with kid gloves. What you said is insulting to those that had trouble BF at any point.

You essentially said that those that choose formula are "not the moms they are supposed to be". People are going to flame that shit hard.

I've struggled with PPD but I don't say that shit. It's insensitive & lacking in awareness.

Ceridwen21 · December 2013

I was not able to produce enough milk for my DS due to having hypoplasitic breasts. Nothing will change that for this baby. I'm glad I never felt like less of a mother for not being able to exclusively breast feed. How sad.

HDxNxJ · December 2013

I nursed all of my kids, and honestly the best advice I can give is Oatmeal, every morning, LOTS AND LOTS of water, I mean to the point where it makes you sick to drink anymore!! Being Hydrated is the hardest part ( at least it was for me) and there is a mothers milk tea that I made into an iced tea, ( it ensured I drank an entire pitcher of water a day and it had the milk production benefits of the tea all in one)

nielsen4897 · December 2013

laurmar21 said:

I think she was just saying she regrets having post pardom depression and not being able to bond with baby. I had depression after my first son too.... it is rough. And I wish I would have been able to relax and enjoy him more too. But, the thing is... when you're going through it... you dont' even realize you are depressed... you just can hardly function. And, when your first experience doesn't go well, it just adds to all of the stress. I am very bonded with my first son now... but it was really hard at first, and I wish too that it wouldn't have been so hard at first. But, I was able to remember that and relax more with my second and just make a conscious effort to just enjoy my second instead of stressing so much. That's more how I took what she said.

Thank you for that. This is what I was trying to say and I am sorry it came across differently to others. I am not saying if you can't breastfeed your a failure but when you hear time and time again that is natural, and then you can't do it, it made me feel terrible. My son is now 5yo and is, and always has been, a wonderful blessing

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