Should I supplement with food or formula?

[momma2alauna]

My DD is 5 months and 1 week today. Over the last few days she has been eating every hour all day and all night long. I don't have enough milk to keep up with her and I feel terrible because she gets so frusterated and sad when nothing is coming out. She does this thing where she will pull her head way back while sucking, as if trying to get every last drop out. She then gives up and just cries until I can distract her enough to make her forget about it for a short while. Is it possible that she is going through her 6 month growth spurt a bit early? I don't think she is teething either.  
I'm already on fenugreek, I've had supply issues since birth. I drink tons of H20.

Any suggestions for a momma who really, really wants to soley breastfeed, but feels terrible for making my babe go hungry?

Thank you!

[greenmulberry]

Are you SURE you are out of milk??  My DD (14 weeks) does that behavior sometimes and if I squeeze my nipple, I still get milk. I have found she usually needs to be burped when she starts flailing and acting frustrated, or there is a big poop coming. She also is becoming more interested in what is happening in the room and pops on and off a lot these days.

I only ask because there have been times that I really thought I was out of milk because of how DD is acting, but it wasn't true. Your DD looks nice and meaty in your so I was just wondering why you thought she wasn't getting enough.

[LadyCatherine185]

how is she gaining? is she having plenty of wet and dirty dipes? that is how I would tell if you are making enough milk or not. If those things are ok then maybe there is another reason she is doing this. Like the PP said, could be gas/digestion related.

My DS1 nursed every hour around the clock for a long time (and i have oversupply).. some kids just eat frequently and have that need to suck. Does she take a binky of any kind?

[momma2alauna]

Greenmulberry- I'm definitely not sure that I am out of milk. When I squeeze my nipple, milk does spray out, but I had just assumed that there wasn't enough coming out, which causes her to be frusterated. You are probably right though, she is a pretty gassy baby and she spits up All.Of.The.Time. It is just odd that it seems to be worse right now because I have not changed anything in my diet. I have started giving her infant probiotics because of a yeast diaper infection. Maybe that is not sitting well in her tummy.

LadyCatherine- she is gaining well and has a wet diaper at least once every couple of hours and a BM every day, so she must be getting enough. She does take a binky.

Thanks for your help, ladies! It sounds like she is probably getting enough milk from me, which is wonderful because I won't have to supplement. I will just have to try and burp her more.

[LadyCatherine185]

what kind of probiotics are you giving her? if they have dairy in them (even trace amounts) that could be causing her tummy upset, which would definitely cause the pulling off like that. Most probiotics are dairy based, and unless they specifically say "dairy free" on them I would be cautious. We use Udo's Choice Infant Probiotic and it is dairy free

[greenmulberry]

I think the sucking helps with tummy troubles, although I have to say that if my baby is awake, she wants to eat every hour as well. She loves boob.

I think if you get milk spray when you squeeze, you have milk, remember they are better at getting the milk out than your hand or a pump!

Her behavior just sounds like my DD when she is gassy. My DD also has this awesome move where she will latch on, then slam the boob out of her mouth with her arm if she is feeling fussy. Ouch. I just quit trying to nurse and carry her around upright for a while until I get a good burp, then she is usually better about getting serious with the nursing.

It might be the probiotics, but I don't know.

[momma2alauna]

Wow, I'm sure it is the probiotics! She is pretty sensitive to dairy, it causes her to break out in a rash all over her body, so I do my best to always avoid it. I have been using Primadophilus probiotics. It does not say anything about being dairy free on the label, so it is probably safe to assume that it has dairy in it. I guess that was a waste of money!

[wehrli]

you said that if you squeeze your nipple milk sprays out? have you thought about overactive let-down? it can also cause a baby to spit-up more frequently. I don't know much myself but I've read that... maybe look it up?

[momma2alauna]

Originally Posted by wehrli 

you said that if you squeeze your nipple milk sprays out? have you thought about overactive let-down? it can also cause a baby to spit-up more frequently. I don't know much myself but I've read that... maybe look it up?

Interesting. I know when DD was first born we had a lot of trouble with overactive let down. DD would choke really bad every time I nursed her. I was terribly scary and I almost gave up nursing, but luckily, she figured out how to deal with my fast let down. I thought that it must have subsided because she never chokes anymore, but maybe she just knows how to deal with it. I will have to look into it again. Thanks!