Exclusive Pumpers Tribe - Page 9

[mamanurse]

I honestly don't know how I cut back from 10-12 pumps per day to 5. I used to pump every 2-3 hours and then I guess I started stretching it out. When I wanted to cut out the nighttime pump, I just waited for my breasts to wake me up and then I'd go pump. It eventually got to where I can go for 9 hours without pumping, but I'm a loaded weapon in the morning.

[mom2ken1cam2]

mama-a-llama

I know all about the staying up until midnight on MDC...I'm addicted (in a good way) This weekend I tried stretching out my pumps to 4 hrs one time a day which left me with only 6 pumps/day as opposed to 7 b/c I don't pump in the middle of the night any more! It gave me more rest and I feel like I've made more milk this way. I haven't recorded, but I want to do that tomorrow so I know for sure how much I'm pumping, but ds only took one supplement bottle today and he usually has 2! WOOHOO! I did pupm for longer so I'm sure that helped as well! Keep us posted as to how things are going! Happy Pumping!

[Swirly]

Originally Posted by mamanurse

I hate to say this Swirly, but maybe it's AF. My breasts/nipples hurt for about a week before AF comes. I also notice a drop in supply and pop fenugreek for the last half of my cycle.

Bah, you were so spot on with this assessment. AF returned this past weekend, while we were having a very stressful visit with my in-laws, to boot. The period, the stressful family stuff, the crappy diet, and missing two pumps while away did further damge to my supply.

I have consistently pumped 33-36 ounces for the past 5 months or so, doing 5-6 pumping sessions per day. Aurora has bad GERD and an eating aversion, so she usually only took 20-24 ounces per day. I got sick of my tiny freezer overflowing and of tossing milk, so stopped storing most of the excess not long ago too. Anyway, now all of a sudden, she is eating ~30 ounces per day, and I am making only 28-30!! Will she seriously require a supplement after all this time? I find that idea horrible, after all this time of breast milk only.

Can I increase my supply this late in the game, and if so, how? I bought fenugreek and am taking it now. I always eat oatmeal every day. I am drinking more fluids. I went back to six pumps a day after doing five for a while. I really can't add more pumps, at least not on any sort of long-term basis. My baby is *very* high needs and very active and I have no help at all, so the times I do pump when I am home alone with her make her very sad.

We have no spare money due to my staying home now, so a new pump is also not an option.

What can I do, and how soon should I see results from the Fenugreek if it works?

[GooeyRN]

Originally Posted by Swirly

Bah, you were so spot on with this assessment. AF returned this past weekend, while we were having a very stressful visit with my in-laws, to boot. The period, the stressful family stuff, the crappy diet, and missing two pumps while away did further damge to my supply.

I have consistently pumped 33-36 ounces for the past 5 months or so, doing 5-6 pumping sessions per day. Aurora has bad GERD and an eating aversion, so she usually only took 20-24 ounces per day. I got sick of my tiny freezer overflowing and of tossing milk, so stopped storing most of the excess not long ago too. Anyway, now all of a sudden, she is eating ~30 ounces per day, and I am making only 28-30!! Will she seriously require a supplement after all this time? I find that idea horrible, after all this time of breast milk only.

Can I increase my supply this late in the game, and if so, how? I bought fenugreek and am taking it now. I always eat oatmeal every day. I am drinking more fluids. I went back to six pumps a day after doing five for a while. I really can't add more pumps, at least not on any sort of long-term basis. My baby is *very* high needs and very active and I have no help at all, so the times I do pump when I am home alone with her make her very sad.

We have no spare money due to my staying home now, so a new pump is also not an option.

What can I do, and how soon should I see results from the Fenugreek if it works?

Swirly,

Taking Calcium and Magnesium during AF and right before helps some people to not experience such a sudden drop in their supply. Try drinking a dark beer everyday to see if that helps. Avoid any kind of mint, sage, and citrus, since they lower supply. Its so hard to pump when we are alone with our babies! I know how that is. Especially when they are high needs. My daughter was high needs, too. (she is getting easier as she gets older, thankfully!) But lucky for me, at that age (5-6 mo) she was still taking short frequent naps. You will probably laugh when I say this... Do you have a decent hand pump? Like a Avent Isis? If so, wear her on your back while walking around the house to keep her happy and pump for a few minutes (enough to get one letdown, anyway) while walking to help your supply. If you can tolerate it, add a middle of the night pump for a few nights. Prolactin levels are highest overnight. I hope you can increase your supply some so you don't need to supplement. Good luck.

[Swirly]

GooeyRN, thank you so much for your ideas and support. I have the hand pump that comes with the Medela, but have never tried it. I may just do that today though. I also did not know about the calcium and magnesium, or about avoiding the foods/herbs you mentioned. I do pump at 3:45 am every night, but this weekend may add a second pumping in the night time. Also, this weekend, I may be able to pump a few times extra, if we stay near home most of the weekend. I think I read that even a few minutes is better than nothing. I have been pumping for 25-30 minutes per session as well, rather than my usual 23-ish.

[mamanurse]

Sorry to hear about your supply drop. Mine also takes a steep dive leading up to AF and for the first few days of it. I take a lactation blend herbal supplement when I think AF is going to show up and it seemed to help last month.

Also, it's not too late to increase your supply. More frequent pumpings coupled with fenugreek and oatmeal will probably help.

[peytonsmomma]

Hi ladies...I was wondering if I could join you. I am a "most of the time" Ep'er. (I still like to get DD to the breast at least a couple times a day). She is 4.5 months old, but I've only been ep'ing for 2.5. We were supplementing with formula for the first 2 months of her life, however, she started having major issues with it, so I decided she was only going to get breastmilk.

How do you ladies do it? How do you find the energy to keep up the pumping? I plan on doing it until the pump breaks, but man...I'm just exhausted!

I look forward to getting to know everyone here!

[mamanurse]

Peyton's mom- I'm glad you decided to go with breastmilk all the way. Is there a particular reason why your babe doesn't do all her feedings at the breast?

BTW. I like the name Peyton.

[jlpetitte]

I know I am sorta jumping in here, but I am hoping you wise women could help me out. I have never pumped myself yet (no children), but a good friend of mine is pumping exclusively. I don't exactly know why, but I think she just hasn't had much support really and her baby didn't latch well, so pumping seemed easier... Anyway, she has had a blister on the side of her nipple and now she has a cracked nipple and her milk is pink (from the blood I suppose). She asks me for advice because I know some about BFing, but don't know much about this. Any suggestions? I recommended maybe a bigger flange, but she doesn't think thats the problem. Her baby is 4 weeks and she is using a medela pump- hospital grade. She is not real motivated so I gave her a number to a help line, but I don't think she is motivated enough to seek out a LC, but I really don't want to see her switch to formula.

[peytonsmomma]

Originally Posted by mamanurse

Peyton's mom- I'm glad you decided to go with breastmilk all the way. Is there a particular reason why your babe doesn't do all her feedings at the breast?

BTW. I like the name Peyton.

Thanks.

After ditching bottles and formula, I tried strictly bfing, but we ended up taking her to the er with dehydration issues. She wasn't clinically dehydrated, but it was enough to scare me! I've been mostly pumping ever since.

[Swirly]

Originally Posted by jlpetitte

I know I am sorta jumping in here, but I am hoping you wise women could help me out. I have never pumped myself yet (no children), but a good friend of mine is pumping exclusively. I don't exactly know why, but I think she just hasn't had much support really and her baby didn't latch well, so pumping seemed easier... Anyway, she has had a blister on the side of her nipple and now she has a cracked nipple and her milk is pink (from the blood I suppose). She asks me for advice because I know some about BFing, but don't know much about this. Any suggestions? I recommended maybe a bigger flange, but she doesn't think thats the problem. Her baby is 4 weeks and she is using a medela pump- hospital grade. She is not real motivated so I gave her a number to a help line, but I don't think she is motivated enough to seek out a LC, but I really don't want to see her switch to formula.

It totally sounds like she needs the bigger flanges. I had cracked and bleeding nipples in the beginning with my Medela advanced PIS also, and going to the 27 mm flanges fixed the problem. Left alone, this problem will decrease her milk supply as well (assuming this is what is causing it). It is a relatively cheap experiemnt for her to try to see if it helps (like $12).

[nostrow]

So I finally finished reading all the pages and now I've got a flurry of thoughts running through my brain.
1. I am absolutely in awe of all of you fabulous women! When I start to hate my pump I just think of the great company I'm keeping with you other ep'ers and it renews me. Way to go!
2. I am a bit peeved that I was misdirected/gave up too easily on Zoe when she stopped nursing at @3months....

So I have a couple of questions. Are any of you with older babes, Zoe is 7 months, giving any foods other than mm? Zoe seems to REALLY want to eat and we've done only Avacado and sweet potatoes, both of which she really loved. What else can I/should I do? We have a bit of a wheat intolerance in Annika so I don't want to rush the grains with Zoe....

My other question is, is there any hope of trying to get Zoe back to the breast at this late stage in the game? I've been offering it periodically and while she no longer screams when she sees it (I was starting to get a bit offended) she thinks they are for using her new teeth on!: I'm wondering if I should just resign myself to pumping for as long as I can. In that same vein, do you think I can increase my supply a bit now at 7months? I don't make enough for her feedings (she is @24lbs now!) and I'm always a couple of oz. short....

Back to work.

Keep on keepin on momma's

Nikki

[Swirly]

Nikki, I am trying periodically to get my babe on the breast, but as of the past couple of weeks she won't even seem to consider it anymore. Prior to that, I could periodically get her to latch and maybe even nurse for a few seconds to a couple of minutes once in a while. She had tons of latch problems in the beginning (neck and mouth problems, poor suck reflex, etc), then nursed for a while with a nipple shield, but then her GERD got really bad and she developed an aversion to my breast and stopped altogether. I always hoped and believed we would transition to breast completely, but I think I have recently given up hope. Maybe someone out there will have a positive story for us.

As far as solids go, we have allowed her to taste a variety of veggies and fruits, but she doesn't swallow yet. We are using a self-feeding approach, rather than giving her pureed foods. She likes to taste stuff, but mama milk is all she needs for nutrition, so we are just taking our time.

[GooeyRN]

Originally Posted by nostrow

So I finally finished reading all the pages and now I've got a flurry of thoughts running through my brain.
1. I am absolutely in awe of all of you fabulous women! When I start to hate my pump I just think of the great company I'm keeping with you other ep'ers and it renews me. Way to go!
2. I am a bit peeved that I was misdirected/gave up too easily on Zoe when she stopped nursing at @3months....

So I have a couple of questions. Are any of you with older babes, Zoe is 7 months, giving any foods other than mm? Zoe seems to REALLY want to eat and we've done only Avacado and sweet potatoes, both of which she really loved. What else can I/should I do? We have a bit of a wheat intolerance in Annika so I don't want to rush the grains with Zoe....

My other question is, is there any hope of trying to get Zoe back to the breast at this late stage in the game? I've been offering it periodically and while she no longer screams when she sees it (I was starting to get a bit offended) she thinks they are for using her new teeth on!: I'm wondering if I should just resign myself to pumping for as long as I can. In that same vein, do you think I can increase my supply a bit now at 7months? I don't make enough for her feedings (she is @24lbs now!) and I'm always a couple of oz. short....

Back to work.

Keep on keepin on momma's

Nikki

Hi Nikki!

My dd also completely quit nursing at 3 months. She was never very good at it though. She is now 10.5 months. She still wont even attempt to latch since. You are doing good by pumping for your baby. Mine isn't into solid foods. She will eat finger foods (cheerio's, bits of bread, bits of veggies, etc) but will not eat from a spoon. She grabs the spoon out of my hand and throws it on the floor. :


Hi Swirly! Thanks for replying to my thread on life with a baby. I guess you understand my frustrations trying to pump and deal with a high needs baby better than anyone! PPV to all!

[Swirly]

Gooey, I wish I could give you a hig. I think we both could use one. If you ever want to pm me or even call me and share the joys and frustrations, I am available.

[GooeyRN]

Thanks, Swirly!

[melbb]

Nikki,
My DD stopped BFing at 4 months and all she would do is scream at the sight of them. I kept trying periodically to latch her on, but it was too emotional so I didn't try much. Now at almost 10 months, she doesn't scream at me anymore, but she doesn't know what to do. She also has 6 teeth now and uses the nipple shield as a teether. I don't really have any advice as I have the same problem. I am too afraid to use the bare nipple and she only BF without a nipple shield for 1 week. I have pretty much given up. I think about trying, and then tell myself, what is the point? And now I am cutting back on pumps as I cannot keep up with this and she is approaching 1 year. I plan to pump 1x/day after a year. Other than that, she will get formula and solids.

You may be able to increase your supply. It is an individual thing. I personally could not increase my supply beyond about 26 oz/day, no matter what I did. So I have always had to supplement. If you want to try, use a good hospital pump and pump at least 8x/day and pump at least once in the middle of the night. Take herbs if you want and eat lots of oatmeal. I think oatmeal is the only thing that helps me at all. I get more for my midmorning pump because of it.

As for solids, Audrey will not self feed and has virutally no pincer grasp. She gets pureed food, mostly fruit. She is not overly fond of veggies and meat, although she is showing more interest now. She also eats yogurt and cheese. Since you have allergy concerns, I would take it slow. Wait at least 4 days before trying a new food. I had to do this with Audrey as DH has allergies and I was worried about it. I only started out sporadically giving her solids (at little over 6 months). She wasn't eating regularly until about 7.5 months and now she eats 3 meals a day. Her milk consumption went down from 38-40 oz to 32 oz.

[kathteach]

Bumping.

I have recently spaced out my pumps every four hours and go five and a half hours without pumping at night. It's helped a lot with my sanity. My supply has dropped a bit, but I'm still making extra.

Does anyone know if I could build my supply back up if I wanted? Would more pumps later do it if I needed it? Or is it once you go down, you're down?

[jarynsmom06]

Pleas help me

Ok, so I don't really belong here because I don't EP, however I am having some issues with pumping and I figured this is probably the best place to come. I have gotten some good advice in the BF challenges to try and increase my supply, but I have a question about pumping. I work 10-12 hours at a time 3 days a week. I work in an ER and sometimes it is hard to get away. I want to try to get back on track and pump every 2 hours. If I pump that often now, I may get an ounce. I am using a Medels PIS advance that my sister gave me. I haven't had anything replaced and it is a year and a half old. She didn't use it quite as much as me I don't think. Anyway....My question is this. If I pump every two hours 1) how long should I pump? ( I usually pump for 10 min., after this there is nothing coming out. 2) If I still pump a few minutes after nothing is coming out, will this make my breast produce more 3) Do you think a handheld pump may work better? I can't afford another pump right now, we are really having trouble financially, which I think is the culpret of the supply drop (stress) but I do have a WIC appt thursday and I thought about asking them for one. I already checked with my ins co. they don't help at all : I am really having a hard time with this becaue we have had to suppliment, I am not able to pump enough for him to have when I am away and he is starting to take more at each feeding. He gets enough when he nurses but I can't keep up with him. Every time he is given formula I feel like a bad mom and I want to run and cry.

I took fenugreek for a month and it didn't do anything. I have drank MM tea, eaten oatmeal ( althought I only did that a few times because I was too tired to make it : ) ummm...I haven't pumped while he is eating though, I keep wanting to do that, but I always forget and when he gets started he gets really mad if I make him stop, plus he is 5 months old and at the stage of looking around and wanting to stick his fingers in his mouth too, so I have to hold his hand to keep him from doing that. SO....this is my story and anyone willing to help me I would be greatly appreciative. I am at a loss from here. TIA

[mama-a-llama]

sorry to be sort of terse, i'm pak

Originally Posted by jarynsmom06

If I pump every two hours 1) how long should I pump? ( I usually pump for 10 min., after this there is nothing coming out.

at 2 hours, 10-15 min seems reasonable

2) If I still pump a few minutes after nothing is coming out, will this make my breast produce more

yes. the signs in lactation room at hospital when i was first pumping said pump 2 min past nothing coming out.

3) Do you think a handheld pump may work better?

dunno. works worse for me for ep'ing, but was adequate for occasional pumping. some moms like them better

Every time he is given formula I feel like a bad mom and I want to run and cry.

I took fenugreek for a month and it didn't do anything. I have drank MM tea, eaten oatmeal ( althought I only did that a few times because I was too tired to make it : )

check out the end of this post. and this. yes, it's from vax forum, but has good nutritional suggestions for lactation.