Not gaining club -sigh-

[Kontessa]

Zoey doesn't look to have gained this past week and might even have lost weight. She has been going through days of nursing ever hour and being so so grumpy at night and she was not like this before. She is now 5 weeks old. I have been taking goats rue and fenugreek and it does not seem to be helping us. I am in contact with an LC but she is very laid back and not over concerned yet as the scale she said last time could be off for a number of reasons so now we are going to the ped this coming week for the very first time. -sigh- I just need his darn scale is all to show she is not gaining right and then maybe get some more ideas from the LC.

I know something is not right. I thought before maybe I was overly worried because my last two babies failed to thrive and so I have phantom emotions from that gripping me in fear but now after this week... I need to listen to myself more! I am going to order Dom as it will take two weeks to get here anyway.

I do NOT look forward to battling the Ped office about not vaccinating. -sigh-

[Dee-Groovy]

[Starfish11]

I'm a low-supply mama so I know the anxiety about wondering if you make enough milk to feed your lo. I actually get aggravated when people say "oh you make exactly what your baby needs." Umm, not so much. My DD was a really slow gainer and I felt like I was at the principal's office all the time when we did weigh-ins. This was self-afflicted b/c my ped is very laid back.

Anyway, this time I've added Red Clover Leaf to my repertoire of fenugreek and mother's milk tea (do you have access to that? it really helps!). The red clover leaf has been awesome.

I also pump ten minutes past every feeding to get more production and pump at least twice a day in between feedings (might be hard right now given your hourly feedings.).

Also, I have a really dark, hops-rich beer every afternoon--holy cow that has helped. I do wait two hours before feeding baby so I know that it might not be easy for you to do this either.

Good luck, mama.

[Kontessa]

I have done the red clover before and could order online but it did not help much in the past.... things do change though! Thanks for the idea!

At the moment I only pump twice in the morning and only when things are not stressful as the LC says she is more worried about stress....

Also, I am not really one to drink but a beer sounds good. What kind is best for this? I am clueless about such things. Tried that last baby, not sure it worked, I think I drank something with the word red in it... If nothing else it might help with stress!

[jenrett]

Originally Posted by Kontessa

I have done the red clover before and could order online but it did not help much in the past.... things do change though! Thanks for the idea!

At the moment I only pump twice in the morning and only when things are not stressful as the LC says she is more worried about stress....

Also, I am not really one to drink but a beer sounds good. What kind is best for this? I am clueless about such things. Tried that last baby, not sure it worked, I think I drank something with the word red in it... If nothing else it might help with stress!

i think you want a dark beer but also something hoppy - sometimes hard to find that combo, depending on where you live. i could be wrong, though.

have you tried kangaroo care? or hanging out for 24-48 hours in bed, with skin to skin contact with babe, and doing nothing but drinking water (or beer!) and nursing? I know that for me, the skin to skin contact is crazy and I will be dripping milk before I know it. I hope that helps!

[Starfish11]

Hey mama, a beer like Guinness is recommended for this; a dark stout with plenty of yeast.

I did do some google work to see if I could find exact recommendations but mostly found some mainstream sites that indicate that there is no connection. I will say that it might be anecdotal but add me to the list of people with stories. I actually have been able to even increase what I pump.

Anyway, it might have totally something to do with the relaxation piece...who knows but it has worked for me

I also read to give the baby three hours between drinking a beer and nursing.

It's VERY unsettling to have this issue

[jecombs]

I don't have low-supply as a constant issue, but there are days when I feel like DS needs more than I have (like during growth spurts). I have found that eating a nice big bowl of oatmeal really does increase my supply. Maybe you could add that into to your combo of fenugreek, etc. I get the best results with whole, old-fashioned oats, cooked on the stove-top. For some reason instant oatmeal cooked in the microwave just doesn't do much for my supply.