[diana_of_the_dunes]

(x-posted in Breastfeeding)

I've been back to work since my LO was 3 months old; he'll be 5 months next week. When I first went back, he was sleeping from about 9 pm til 3:30 am, getting up to eat, then sleeping again til about 7:30 am. Life was good

I was pumping 3 times a day and getting about 12 oz total. A week after going back I switched shifts, from first shift to seconds. I can now only pump twice in a shift, plus when I get home, since Ethan is in bed. I get about 10 oz.

Since I've gone back to work, Ethan has been getting up 3 to 4 times per night to nurse. At first I thought the regression was due to him not getting enough to eat, especially since his weight gain slowed way down. I started taking fenugreek, then started supplementing with formula. Originally I just added 2 or 3 ounces to the days bottles (4 3-ounce bottles). Then, on the advice of my ped (who is very natural-minded), upped his bottles to 5 oz each. He still gets up at night, but now only takes 3 bottles (~16 oz total). I feel it's important to mention that he weighs 20 lbs and 28" long... He's really big for his age.

The big problem (as I now see it) is that he's nursing less in the morning. My boobs seem less full, and he almost always fusses when I feed him. Our feeding sessions have gone from 15-10 minutes to 10 minutes at most. Unless it's in the middle of the night, he only nurses to eat. He won't suck on an empty breast, so he's not much help if I'm trying to build supply. I had a nursing marathon last week and nursed him every hour, but all it did was upset him. I've also tried pumping after I feed him, but it doesn't seem to do anything to stimulate my supply.

I wish I could pump more at work, but I just can't. I work in law enforcement, and it's hard to get in the 2 sessions I do. Some days I can only pump once at work. In the summer, I'm not sure I'll be able to manage at all, since we're much busier then. Thankfully I have a good relationship with my co-workers and supervisors, so it's not been an issue so far.

Here's what I think I need to do. Since the bigger bottles didn't help him sleep at night, I know he's not nursing at night cause he's starving (maybe he misses me?). In fact, it seems to have hurt my supply and not helped anything. He poops more and wants to nurse less. My gut feeling tells me that I need to cut back his formula supplement to what it was initially (2 or 3 oz). This should help him want to nurse more and rebuild my supply. Right?

Any other suggestions? TIA!

 

[tzs]

teething???
try hylands teething tabs b4 bed??????

(a friend of mine had a similar sleep situation minus the bf'ing issues, teh lactation consultant recommended the tabs)

 

[faeriebeauty22]

Your thoughts parallel mine. I would cut back on the supplement and nurse more in exchange. Maybe he is getting fussy at the breast because he knows it flows more easily from the bottle. Mine did the same thing on ocassion and it's hard, but stick to your guns and cling to patience. There's always formula to fall back on if worse comes to worse, but if you can nurture that precious supply then do so<3

 

[ShwarmaQueen]

I seem to remember it being pretty common for weight gain to slow (or plateau) after 5 or 6 months of age.

I agree with you, cut back on formula and see

 

[christophersmom]

It has been a long time so bear with me, but maybe he is *trying* to switch his nursing pattern. DS was a reverse cycler, he only ever took up to 12 ounces at daycare until past 1 and that was usually anywhere from 8-12 ounces breastmilk and the remainder in formula,if needed that day. But he nursed a lot at night and nursed for eating, also not a comfort nurser. So, maybe that is it, he is trying to reverse cycle to get it more when he is with you. Try to tank him up right before drop off and right at pick-up (or when you get home, do a dream feed at 10:00 pm). Also, the pumping after nursing for me took several weeks to see even a slight increase in output, so try to stick with it if you can. Good luck!

 

[diana_of_the_dunes]

Thanks for your thoughts.

I had thought about the teething tabs when he was getting up 4 times per night, but never actually picked them up. I should probably get some, just to try. He sticks everything in his mouth and has been drooling like crazy for the past 2 months, but no sign of teeth yet. The only thing that makes me think it might no be teething is that he doesn't want his pacifier in the middle of the night. It's boobs or nothing. We've experimented with DH taking him, but he just freaks out until he gets to eat.

I'm not sure that the bottles are much easier/faster than my breasts. We're still using preemie nipples, since I was afraid of him developing a bottle preference!

Today we're trying smaller bottles. We're doing 4 3.5 oz bottles instead of 2 5 oz and 1 6 oz. Tomorrow we'll go to 4 3 oz. I didn't want to cut him off all in one day. I'm also trying to nurse every 90 minutes in the morning. Hopefully I'll notice a jump in supply within a few days...