breastfeeding help needed ASAP!

[maisiedotes]

AARGH! I am so upset. My breastmilk supply has been low- I now know it is most likely due to latch problems. Anyway, I went to the lactation consultant the other day and this is the most recent thing she told me to do, which I have been doing since Thursday:

nurse mairaed till she is satisfied or loses interest, then stick her on the SNS (we have been supplementing with formula because I can't get keep up with the breastmilk) and breast. Then I would pump for 5 minutes, shake out my breasts while leaning forward, pump for 2 minutes or until there was nothing else coming out. That is what I have done approx every three hours. Well, today she was sleeping and I decided to just pump at the three hour mark. I got almost NOTHING. maybe a teaspoon from the left breast and less than 10cc from the right breast. What do I do now? I called the nurse's station at the hospital and they told me I could try pumping every 2 hours now but I am so freaked out that I am drying up! I am going to call the lactation consultant tomorrow when they are back in the office but I don't know what to do for the rest of today! Is it possible I can build my supply back up, or am I doomed?

[MamaJenese]

OK. I am not in your DDC and I do not know the whole story but here are my two cents.. Do not panic about the pump. I am nursing two and have never ever been able to pump a drop. If I were you I would spend the next couple of days topless in bed with the baby. Drink a ton of water, eat oatmeal, and get some mothers milk tea. The very best way to increase your milk supply is to have that baby at your breast. Also as hard as it may seem relax. Stress is no good for your supply. There is no reason to give up yet!! You ar not doomed!

[Undercover Hippie]

Good advice from the PP though I think you are doing some of that already. I am wondering if, since you usually nurse before pumping and this time you just pumped, if maybe you never actually triggered a let-down? It can be hard to let-down on a pump by yourself, I know WOHMs who have to pump away from baby sometimes struggle with that. And if you didn't get a let-down then it would make sense that very little would come out. Don't freak out, try again as soon as she nurses again and let us know how it goes!

[attachedmamaof3]

Agree with the PPs...

How much you can pump is actually NOT AT ALL indicative of your supply.

Keep in mind that as long as you are nursing when the baby wants for as long as the baby wants your body will regulate supply. (Oh, and LOTS and LOTS of water)

[wwisdomskr]

sorry for short post, hun

i think you need to stay in bed with her, skin to skin, with lots of water in your reach, as much as you possibly can

this is what I did (in addition to the pumping, etc) after my dd1 came home from the nicu. we went on to breastfeed exclusively and continued the nursing relationship for 3.5 years

i know this is so hard right now...it's hard even when you're not having specific problems. with no kinks, it takes 6 weeks of nursing on cue to securely establish your supply, etc...

hang in there...better yet, try to hang out with some other breastfeeding moms. is there an lll group nearby?

[maisiedotes]

Originally Posted by wwisdomskr

hang in there...better yet, try to hang out with some other breastfeeding moms. is there an lll group nearby?

Actually we are going to a meeting tomorrow morning- my first.

Thank you all for the help- I am hoping I am just not a good pumper but I suspect that since I nurse for 45-60 min and she is still hungry that we may have other issues. It is so discouraging. We will keep it up though- if nothing else I will keep putting her to the breast and hopefully that will build my supply. She does alot of non-nutritive sucking but I am OK with that- she is not hurting me most of the time. I think she is done giving me hickies...

thanks again everyone! I am determined to make this work. I just feel so bad for the baby... I want to give her what is best for her!

[myjulybabes]

We've been having problems too, though I think we're mostly over the hump *knock on wood*. I have to remind myself daily though that what I can pump is not necessarily indicative of what the baby is getting, especially if I'm stressed. Stressed = no letdown for me.

What jumps out at me is that you're only pumping for 7 min every 3 hours...that doesn't sound like enough, IMO. (though I'm not a professional, just an experienced mom who reads a lot ) I know it's really hard to find enough time to pump when you're trying to take care of the baby too. But what finally kicked things into gear for me was taking a weekend and pretty much dumping the baby in dh's lap any time she wasn't nursing and pumping for 15-20 min as close to every 2 hours as I could get. I didn't get a lot of milk each time, but it seemed to really kick up production for me

[maisiedotes]

Originally Posted by myjulybabes

We've been having problems too, though I think we're mostly over the hump *knock on wood*. I have to remind myself daily though that what I can pump is not necessarily indicative of what the baby is getting, especially if I'm stressed. Stressed = no letdown for me.

What jumps out at me is that you're only pumping for 7 min every 3 hours...that doesn't sound like enough, IMO.

I had been pumping for an HOUR every three hours. They told me that was too much... so I went to 45 minutes and they told me that was ridiculous too. I may go back to pumping longer when I do pump. The thing that confused me was, they say "the breast is never empty- there is always more" so I would keep pumping and pumping till I got a decent amount. I pumped for 30 min this morning and got so little... (I forgot to mention that i pumped 30 min in the first post). I guess they figured if I normally was getting 60cc, if I only got 10cc pumping in 7 minutes that they thought the baby would get 50cc. I don't know. It seems so simple when I am at the LC but I get home and it doesn't make sense to me anymore. *sigh*

[myjulybabes]

Yeah, an hour does seem like a really long time, but my LC said start at 10 min, and work up to 15-20, which is why I say 7 doesn't sound like enough. But like I said, I'm no lactation professional.

I'm sorry you're going through such a rough time with this.

[Curlita]

Sorry this is short... two children fussing at me. First, from what I understand, you have a lot of leeway to build your supply up until 3 months post partum. Second, when I was pumping the Lac Con told me that 15 minutes is plenty per sitting... it was my instinct to pump for longer also. Lots of other good advice here... esp. the piece about how as long as you are nursing her you pretty much can't dry up. Keep working with the lactation consultant and HANG IN THERE!

Are you sure she is still hungry after nursing or just wanting to comfort nurse? Conrad wants to keep sucking to lull himself to sleep...

Also, keep in mind that your milk supply varies depending on what time of day it is... and sometimes your boobs just don't want to give it up for the pump.

Hope this helps a bit... you're doing great, just keep seeking help from the LC, that's what they are there for!

[VijayOwens]

I have always hated pumping, and never got much. To increase supply I was told 30 minutes every 2 hours. Took every supplement known to man, but with older DD who had low tone and wasn't efficient, nor did we have a good latch, the only solution was a Lact-Aid supplementer.

LMK if you want more info. Had to use it again for 3 months with younger DD when I had a dairy sensitivity mis-diagnosed as foremilk/hindmilk imbalance and started feeding on same side for several feedings which made my supply plummet. We bounced back and are still going strong at 2.5.

Hugs,

-Vijay

[lisarussell]

I think you've gotten some great advice here, Namely tons of H2O, stay in bed, eat well, and don't stress about how much you've been able to pump.

Is she peeing plenty? Is she gaining weight? Is she content?

You are made for this, you will adjust.

You have no idea what amazing things your body is capable of, look what you've done already. You can do this.

There are herbal supplements to increase milk supply, fenugreek and.... anise? look it up I"m not sure about the anise.

Mostly rest and TONS of water, like a 32 ounce cup of it every time you nurse the baby. Baby drinks and you drink.

[thekimballs]

I have been lurking forever, not posting, but your issues definitely caught my eye.

1) Yes, it is always possible to influence supply. Every bit of stimulation you can give is important. So hold her as much as you can, keep her on your bare breast as much as you can, and feed her pretty much constantly. Don't count the hours--three strikes me as a very long interval for a normal newborn--if she'll latch every fifteen minutes, even for just a few sucks, do that. Have her sleep on you and with her mouth near your breast if you can. I have had the most success with brewer's yeast tablets--in my experience they are better than any other supplement. Take at least 20 per day, more if you need to. Drink CONSTANTLY.

2) If she hasn't eaten in three hours and you're not full/engorged in at least one breast, I think you DO have low supply, and it's not just the pump. You should be fuller than that. So fine--you have low supply. Even if that doesn't change, every drop she gets is going to be great, and thank God we have SNSs and formula to keep her happy and healthy. Be vigilant about wet/poop counts and weight gain, and however you need to get her there, do it.

3) Forgive yourself, love your babe. You are doing and have done absolutely everything right. You're expressing and pumping and seeing an LC and you're an example to every mom out there. There is absolutely nothing you need to feel bad about; you haven't skipped anything or bailed on even a single step. If you need to keep supplementing or even go entirely to formula (and I certainly don't think you're there yet, but just in case), you can still find a great deal of joy in that--you're feeding your baby. Your love and care are helping her grow and thrive.

[maisiedotes]

Originally Posted by thekimballs

3) Forgive yourself, love your babe. You are doing and have done absolutely everything right. You're expressing and pumping and seeing an LC and you're an example to every mom out there. There is absolutely nothing you need to feel bad about; you haven't skipped anything or bailed on even a single step. If you need to keep supplementing or even go entirely to formula (and I certainly don't think you're there yet, but just in case), you can still find a great deal of joy in that--you're feeding your baby. Your love and care are helping her grow and thrive.

Thank you! I needed that. I feel like such crap about the whole thing. My breasts are definitely not full after 3 hours. Not even feeling slightly heavy. I am so disappointed in myself even though I am doing everything I can. It is just a slap in the face!

Thank you all.

[Isaac'sMa]

How are things going, Kerri?

[De-lovely]

Originally Posted by Isaac'sMa

How are things going, Kerri?

Yes....how are you?

[maisiedotes]

Ehhhh... things are OK. Still working on building up my supply... I am going on the domperidone. It is worth a try. I also finally realized I am eating HORRIBLY so I made a big trip to the grocery store today for lots of fruits and veggies (hopefully nothing that will make DD too gassy). I am a carb junkie and tend to avoid fruits and veggies so THAT has to come to a screeching halt.

Thanks for asking! I will get this figured out. Even if I can only get an ounce into her, I know she will benefit.

[melissakc]

Kudos and hugs to you, mama! You are doing an AWESOME job. Try to relax as much as you can--it will help your milk flow.

[woaters]

domperidone

I had success with it, I was never gushing like a geyser, but I had enough. It took some work...pump pump pump. As I recall, I reduced my dose before going off it completely.

Good Luck!

[renaissanceed]

Kerri, you are right about any ounce giving her a boost & I'm so impressed with your perseverance. Glad to hear you are taking care of yourself & hope the dom works for you.