January 2016 Moms

Supplementing?

Is anyone else formula feeding and pumping? I only get about 16oz a day from pumping so I feed LO formula at night. Does anyone else have any experience with this? No matter what I do I cannot up my supply. Did your supply eventually get larger?

Re: Supplementing?

  • Is anyone else formula feeding and pumping? I only get about 16oz a day from pumping so I feed LO formula at night. Does anyone else have any experience with this? No matter what I do I cannot up my supply. Did your supply eventually get larger?

    How many bottles is your LO taking and how old are they? 16 oz seems sufficient if you are also bf. Baby stomachs are not that big. My LO never took more than 4 oz and that was after months. Look into paced feeding to make sure you're feeding baby at the right pace!
  • I've been EBF and then started pumping too because DS wasn't putting on enough weight and his pediatrician recommended pumping after every feeding during the day time. That was working for a while, but then suddenly he was up for hours at night crying because he was hungry. I would go back and forth nursing on both sides over and over and pumping both sides over and over and nothing was working. I just couldn't seem to make enough for him. After 3 nights being up all night with my poor hungry DS I finally supplemented with some formula and he passed out full and happy. I felt awful about breaking down and using formula, but it was the first night he was satisfied and that DH and I got any sleep. I've been reading on ways to up my milk supply and am trying to add things to my diet. I've read that sometimes this is just a stage and to work through it, supplementing as necessary. I still pump even when I'm not getting anything for the stimulation, but if he doesn't grow out of this than I'm just going to live with breastfeeding except for 1-2 feedings a day. Sorry for the book long response, but that's been my experience with this situation so far.
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  • willashbabywillashbaby member
    edited January 2016
    DS has a tongue tie and does not latch so I pump 8-10 times a day. My supply is building slowly since it was delayed by 4 days due to his poor latch. I give him everything I produce which is currently about 450 ml per day and I will supplement 2-4 additional ounces at night usually. I hope my supply improves to the point where I won't need to. I'm taking Honest lactation plus supplements, drinking a guiness extra stout every afternoon, and starting tomorrow steel cut oatmeal for breakfast. I also pump a ton and powerpump 2x per day. I find the powerpump very effective.
  • I'm a LC, you can look into Stanford's videos on pumping to increase supply, they are extremely informative.

    Also, remember that every drop of breastmilk your baby gets is great, don't feel bad that it's just 16oz now. Stressing about it is the worst thing you can do.

    Have you tried pumping one breast while nursing from the other? It can feel a bit cumbersome at first and you'll have to see what hold feels better but it usually helps a lot.

    Also, tongue ties should be checked and possibly corrected, it's amazing what a tiny snip can do. My daughter's had hers done at 8 weeks and I'm still kicking myself for not having it done earlier.
  • I started FF after 2 1/2 weeks and am also giving pumped milk.  I pump 4-5 times a day for about 10 minutes each time and I get about 4-5 oz. each time.  I tried going longer on the pump (15-20 min.), but I got nothing.  He's eating 3.5-4 oz. now at 5w, so I too worried that I wasn't going to be able to keep up with my milk in order to keep feeding him with the way that we are.  Currently, he gets 2 breast milk bottles and then 1 formula bottle, then I repeat.  This way, that 1 formula bottle allows me to stay ahead 1-2 feedings at all times.  

    At first I was bummed out about going to formula, but I feel so much better knowing that I am able to still give him breastmilk and that he's eating well and getting full from me and from the formula.  I realized that it wasn't so much the breastfeeding I was bummed about, but whether or not I'd be able to give him my own milk.  Breastfeeding was going okay, but he started to get really sloppy on the breast and getting frustrated when I tried to slow him down and readjust him so he wasn't dribbling so much of it out of his mouth. I loved the bonding and connecting we'd have during nursing, but I still give him my full attention during bottle feedings and in other ways.

    Pumping and supplementing has worked out great for us so far.  
  • I'm having a problem with oversupply. You'd think it would be great but it sucks because he's not getting full. Hell nurse for 35 minutes and still scream for more because he's not getting enough hindmilk. We've started supplementing to try and break the overproduction. It's enough to make me want to throw in the towel most days. He can only nurse on my right side. He has done too much damage to the nipple on my left. Excruciating pain any time he nurses there. Even stopped nursing for a week on that side and only pumped.
  • I'm jealous of your small supply! I can pump for half an hour on each side and still produce less than an ounce total. This is exactly how it was with my son too... I just don't seem to make enough for my piggies.
  • I suggest you research the benefits of breastfeeding. Many studies have shown them to be FAR exaggerated when controls for socioeconomic factors are put into place. When compared within families, the benefits of breastfeeding are much smaller than common lore says. I nursed both of my older kids to 8 and 15 months, and will this one, too, but I feel a lot better about supplementing after reading the research. Do what you can do but don't beat yourself up if you have to supplement. Your child will still be healthy, bright, and love you. Promise!

    DD 12/20/99, DS 12/14/12, M/C 9/2014, M/C 1/2015


  • I'm having a problem with oversupply. You'd think it would be great but it sucks because he's not getting full. Hell nurse for 35 minutes and still scream for more because he's not getting enough hindmilk. We've started supplementing to try and break the overproduction. It's enough to make me want to throw in the towel most days. He can only nurse on my right side. He has done too much damage to the nipple on my left. Excruciating pain any time he nurses there. Even stopped nursing for a week on that side and only pumped.

    @Wicked4589 have you tried working your supply down? I have an oversupply issue also and did a little research on the LLL website to see what I could do to help. Currently I am nursing only one side every 2 hours. If she wants more less than 2 hours after I start nursing that side, she gets that side again, If it is more than 2 hours after the start of that side I switch to the other. I have had to hand express a little bit once today just so one of my boobs didn't explode but it seems to be working and definitely helping her get enough hind milk and fat. I was pumping excess for a couple of days but I know that was only making the issue worse. I am hoping this continues to decrease my supply gradually
  • I can only nurse from my right side. He has caused too much damage on my left side to attempt to nurse. I gave it almost a week break and put him back on the left side. Excruciating pain. So I pump on the left and nurse on the right. But no matter what I do, he is always so hungry after nursing. Today he nursed for 40 minutes and I still had to supplement with 2 oz formula. :( I am so frustrated with it.
  • I would be thankful to get even one ounce. Baby is 4 weeks and Iv never been able to pump more than a tablespoon (or less). Been supplementing since day 5
  • Apparently I have an oversupply issue. I can pump about 5 oz s sitting. I have a hard time knowing how much my LO gets at a time. My doctor mentioned supplementing one bottle at night to help her sleep better. She is currently feeding every 3 hours, but doesn't go back to sleep for her late night feedings. I'm kind of beside myself on what to do.
  • @Meg920 When I began supplementing I chose to give 1 of the bottles at night for that reason.  We never had sleeping issues with LO, he's pretty much on a 3-4 hour sleep schedule, but we thought that if we did the 1 bottle of formula around his 11pm-12am feeding he may sleep till at least 4-430, even 5 if we were lucky.  It was a little bit hit or miss at first, but I do think the formula at night has made a difference.  He has more nights of going 4 hour stretches...sometimes he will go 4 1/2 hours, than the 3 hour mark.

    If your LO is staying up during her late night feedings, I don't know if the formula would make a difference or not, but worth a try.  Are you currently not supplementing at all and are thinking about starting? 
  • We started supplementing at day 5. Days 3 and 4 were torture. We could see she was hungry, but we were having problems latching. Everybody (LC, La Leche) just kept telling us to wait and stick it out. Day 5 we went to the doctor and she had lost 17% of her body weight. Heartbreaking.
    We still don't have great latch, but we're working on it. In the meantime I'm pumping and supplementing. I will do anything to help my baby girl thrive. I also started taking a lactation supplement (with fenugreek and blessed thistle), and now, any time we're skin to skin, I start leaking like crazy. I can now get about 1.5-2 ounces after pumping with a single pump for 30 minutes.
  • @teachmegs817 so far we have not supplemented at all so far. I'm just worried that she isn't getting enough hindmilk. She is gaining weight well. She gained like 5-6 oz last week. I just never feel empty and I want to make sure she has enough and I really think it might help her sleep a 4 hour stretch. My lactation consultant recommended that I pump before feeding, but that's so difficult at 3 am with a crying baby lol.
  • I can only nurse from my right side. He has caused too much damage on my left side to attempt to nurse. I gave it almost a week break and put him back on the left side. Excruciating pain. So I pump on the left and nurse on the right. But no matter what I do, he is always so hungry after nursing. Today he nursed for 40 minutes and I still had to supplement with 2 oz formula. :( I am so frustrated with it.

    I'm in the exact same boat. My right side was so bad that my entire nipple was a scab that blocked every duct. There was literally no way to get anything out so I became engorged and even more miserable. I couldn't nurse her at all on that side for over a week. Now that it's healed, it's excruciating. Most of the time, she refuses that side now.
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