[ksera05]

Our daughter hasn't been doing very well and we've been really stressed.

Is it normal for my milk supply to be dropping in response?

 

[ApplePieBaby]

My supply has been dropping too... due to stress I am sure.
I also notice a big difference when I'm well hydrated... when I stress I forget to eat/drink and that really affects my supply.

I have lots of other stuff going on besides Elora stressing me right now and that doesn't help either.

 

[munkeesmama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ksera05 Our daughter hasn't been doing very well and we've been really stressed. Is it normal for my milk supply to be dropping in response?

This is very normal. My guess is you have not been drinking as much or eating as healthy or getting as much sleep as well as the stress. Up your water intake TONS and try to get enough rest. Both of these things will boost supply in no time. Also eating oatmeal or ice cream will help. If those don't work you can take fenugreek which can be found at health food stores. They might make you smell a bit like maple syrup or your breastmilk anyways and this is normal for it. Good luck!

 

[kondonis]

totally normal. I don't think I got more than 4oz total each session (out of both boobs!) the entire time will was in the NICU.

I took reglan and while it totally upped my supply (fenugreek did nothing) it made me a moody bitch that had to sleep all the time. but, I was able to get enough bm for will to last through the winter, and that was worth it to me.

drink a lot of water (I would always forget), keep taking your vitamins, and rest as much as you can.

I always found I got more bm when I pumped at the hospital- bc at least will was close, and wasn't stressed about not being with him.

 

[boscopup]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kondonis I always found I got more bm when I pumped at the hospital- bc at least will was close, and wasn't stressed about not being with him.

Yeah, if you can pump either next to baby or just after seeing baby (don't know if you are holding yet - when you do get to, pump right afterward), that can help. Think flowing thoughts, sing a song about water flowing, have a picture of your baby in front of you if you can't be next to baby at the time, etc. And make sure you are taking care of yourself food/drink-wise. Pumping exclusively is not easy, especially when you've got the stress of having a baby in the NICU.

Also, remember that short, frequent pumping sessions are better than long, infrequent ones. So don't try to pump for 1 hour. Just do 15-20 minutes and then stop. Come back a couple hours later. Also, make sure you're getting *some* sleep. I usually pumped once at night, and then did a 3 hour schedule during the day, more often if I needed to boost my supply.

 

[sehbub]

I did a three hour schedule during the day too, but was only sleeping 5 hours a night, so I skipped the nighttime pumping altogether while Sam was in the NICU.

Something that helped me regulate my fluid intake was that I kept a one liter water bottle with me, and drank the entire liter in between pumping. So every three hours, I was drinking a liter of water. It really helped, and I stayed really well hydrated. The nurses did have to remind me to eat though. I was terrified that if I left to eat (which takes longer than the 15 minutes pumping takes!) I would miss something and Sam would be hurt, or sick, or in danger. I did take advantage of that time though to call DH and give him updates because if he went more than three or four hours without a phone call, he'd start calling me constantly and leave a dozen messages.

 

[Amys1st]

Its normal for you supply to go down after about 4 weeks. You might also need to switch to a more powerful pump if you havent already. I was getting 20 oz daily for 4 weeks and then it started dropping weekly. You do need to get enough fluids and if possible pump at night.

On a different note- we just used the LAST bottle of frozen breastmilk last week. At one point we had an entire freezer full in a second freezer!

 

[twinvillageiowa]

I totally agree that stress could be causing it. I know that when I get stressed out, it is like a cork is in there. It doesn't even matter if I am engorged, nothing seems to come out. Try and invision your baby while you pump and just ignore everything else. Also, I was told to drink half a gallon of milk a day to make sure I get enough calcium because BM takes a ton of it, and to drink at least a gallon of water a day. And for every soda, drink two glasses of water.

Sidenote: Amys1st, I hit that mark a few weeks ago and totally freaked. We came home from the NICU with a HUGE box of milk and then suddenly it was gone.

 

[ksera05]

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. It's nice to know it's not just me

I've upped my water intake, started trying to pump more, and hopefully that will help. Oh and Sydney is now doing better which helps haha

I currently pump with the Avent Isis IQ Duo. For some reason I respond to it better than the hospital pumps

I'm still not getting much when I pump at the hospital but oh well!