[hnybee]

My son has finally started sleeping thru the night. It's been hard but i have totally enjoyed our special time in the middle of the night. It has helped keep up my milk supply as I tend to under produce milk.

So he started sleeping thru the night this week and...big surprise... my suppy has slipped to almost nil. I almost feel like he's trying to wean. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. I'm not ready to wean. I REALLY want to keep nursing. He's only 15 months old. Is it wrong to start encouraging him to nurse more during the daytime? he's usually too busy for anything more than a sip (unless he gets hurt).

My BF has OODLES of milk. Her son is the same age and they co sleep. So sometimes he nurses all night long. I am coveting her milk supply. I don't want to be done yet.

Any suggestions???

-Melissa

 

[Rainbow]

My initial thought is that it is nature- your body will provide as it shoudl for him. As he nurses and as he needs. I would guess around 16-18 months he'll hit a growth spurt and build your supply back up nursing.
I wouldn't encourage or discourage but let him lead the way and watch your amazing body follow his commands

 

[Tiacsophno]

How do you know your supply is almost nil? Is he nursing during the day?

 

[hnybee]

in the beginning i could feel the letdown and i could feel when my breasts were full. if i missed a feeding they would get full and there would be pressure.

since Edward has started sleeping through the night i rarely feel the letdown. he only nurses a couple of times during the day. he is too busy playing and tagging along with his sisters to nurse. This is my 3rd baby to nurse, but only my 1st one to nurse past 11 months. i guess maybe i am just doubting myself. i don't want my milk to dry up. i don't want to be done yet. he doesn't seem interested in it very much during the daytime. how to you EBF when the baby is so interesting in exploring and only nurses a handful of times a day??

-Melissa

 

[Tiacsophno]

Many babies go through phases when they are less interested in nursing during the day, because they are easily distracted by their surroundings. Some typical ages for this are around 8 months, and also around 1 year. People who want to wean find it easier to do so at these ages. Some people say their child self-weaned at this age. On the other hand, if you don't want to wean, you can recognize this phase, keep alert, and perhaps change your nursing habits to keep baby interested. This might mean nursing alone in a quiet room for a while instead of where the action is. Encourage frequent nursing, but don't worry too much about how long the nursing sessions last. When my baby started nursing less during the day, he made up for it by nursing more at night. I know some people who are truly worried their baby is weaning prematurely will wake up their baby at night to nurse, but this is usually a last resort.

The good news is that they DO become less distractable over time.

It can be completely normal not to feel 'full', but still have milk. Your body has figured out how much milk to produce, and likely your baby is more efficient at extracting milk, too. By the time my baby was a year old, my breasts were darn floppy, but they still had milk.

It can be completely normal not to feel a let down. Some women NEVER feel a letdown. Some do at first, but then don't feel it when the baby gets older. I haven't felt a letdown in over a year, but I know my toddler is still getting milk.

I hope this helps!

 

[DaryLLL]

Lots of kids continue to nurse for yrs only doing it a few times a day. But if you tend to underproduce, and need to boost your hormones, try this.

Co-sleep and co-nap. Nursing lying down increases nursing hormones.

Are you drinking and eating enough? Have you been using herbs to boost milk producion? Does he let you wear him in a sling? If he does, hint: take your top off. Bathe together.

read this, it's great:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/weaning/babyselfwean.html

 

[Rainbow]

How old is your DS? In the beginning I always have heavy breasts and sometimes i feel letdown. After awhile though I feel nothing. I don't feel letdown, I don't feel full, nothing. It could just be that your milk is regulating and you know longer have "over supply".

 

[DaryLLL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rainbow How old is your DS? In the beginning I always have heavy breasts and sometimes i feel letdown. After awhile though I feel nothing. I don't feel letdown, I don't feel full, nothing. It could just be that your milk is regulating and you know longer have "over supply".

She said he's 15 mos, Rainbow!

 

[Tiacsophno]

Great link, DaryLLL! I know so many people who say their babies "self-weaned" at 8 months and it drives me nuts. I've bookmarked it.

 

[hnybee]

Thank you ladies SO much for taking the time to help me. It really encourages me. He does let me wear him in a sling. I know that i'm eatibng plenty, but maybe I could be drinking more water. I have some More Milk from MotherLove herbal that is supposed to increase your supply. Maybe i will try that.

You know the funny thing is everytime we go out (shopping, etc) he always wants to nurse. Like today we went out to breakfast and he was arching his back and trying to position himself so that he could nurse. This time of day he usually has no interest in nursing. but not today! So I let him nurse three times while we were in the restaurant.

I can't tell you how encouraging it is to know that babies go thru phases where they temorarily loose interest in nursing. I thought it was a permanent thing. I have a friend that swears her son weaned himself at 10 months. I never really bought it and now i know that he was probably going thru a phase. This gives me the added boost to get thru it and to continue nursing.

*Melissa*

 

[Rainbow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaryLLL She said he's 15 mos, Rainbow!

I knew that... I was just testing you

:

:LOL