Nursing/milk Supply Question

you'll be fine...I think she is storing it up for the nighttime and you deserve a break. i would say pump if you can stand it and if not, don't stress about it. you need to do what works for all involved. (and I agree that it's good for dad to get that time/give you a break. We did this for a while without supply issues because it eventually tapered off. good luck!

Supplementing with formula and giving bottles before your milk is completely established will ALWAYS mess up your milk production.

Baby will never be able to empty your breasts completely, tho it may feel that way. Her nursing often like that is usually to make your body up it's production, but if you alter that by giving her formula instead of suckling, then your body will not get the stimuli to produce more milk.

She's almost a month... she will be feeding, sleeping, needing skin to skin constantly - that is normal for a newborn. Stop giving formula, nurse on demand, sleep often together and start down the road to a happy and successful breastfeeding relationship. It starts getting much easier by month 4, but the hardest time is the first 1.5 months.

You can do it!! Congrats!!

yes,(and you probably already have started the "messing up" process) if you sub with formula you will mess with your milk production. To keep up with the demand your body must be given a chance to readjust based on supply and demand. So many women make the mistake of thinking they dont have enough milk because they start giving into the ease of bottles and quickly mixed powder. If a baby isnt put to the breast during the times she is hungry, your body will not get a cue to feed and will not keep up with the demand.

Keep putting her to your breast upon demand, also to help things "fill up"( so to speak) get a water delivery service and a cooler so that you will always have great tasting water available, fenugreek supplements have worked on me, but i prefer the tea, its a little treat in and of itself. "Mothers milk tea" is a compilation of ingredients, it tastes better. Smaller meals throughout the day will keep up your calories without adding too much weight to your body and stay away from decongestants, they can dry up the supply.

This is *perfectly normal* and extremely common!!! I can't stress that enough. Both of my exclusively breastfed babies did this and exactly the same times!

She is doing what is called cluster feeding. Does 2 things-calms baby during that "colicy" time in the evening and helps her load up on hindmilk and that is what is helping her sleep. I never gave either of my champ nursers formula during this time. And neither would take a paci during this time. Breastfed babies are very adept at telling you what they want and need.

It probably won't mess with your milk production as long as you are nursing on demand all the other times but she probably doesn't even really need the formula. You might test drive it and let daddy put her down for sleep without it.

The short answer is yes. lol Any time that you give your baby milk that doesn't come from you, it's telling your body to produce less. It can quickly lead to a cycle of reducing production.
It's really normal for babies to nurse more during about that time of day (5 or 6 in the evening). It's one of the ways that they are trying to get extra nourishment in before the night and to connect w/ mom after a busy day & during a time of lots of transitions (usually daddy coming home from work, cooking dinner, etc....)
Do you have a good sling? If you can learn to nurse in a sling, it can make this challenging time of day so much easier! Her needs are being met by snuggling & nursing & YOUR needs are being met by being able to get other things done. I'd be happy to suggest a few great carriers if you'd like.
Good luck, mama! Just remember: this too shall pass.

I am a pragmatic nurser. My son got one bottle of formula a day, at night. He was also a cluster feeder and was pretty much on the breast from 4-8 at night, which, frankly, sucked. (no pun intended!) While I wanted my son to be breastfed, I also wanted him to be flexible about what he took. I've seen so many moms whose babies wouldn't take a bottle or wouldn't take formula that him getting that one bottle a day was important to me so I had the option of having someone else to feed him. And, as you say, it is good Daddy bonding time.

The lactivists are going to tell you that this is going to mess with your milk supply, but exhaustion messes with your milk supply too-- and everything else. I'm all for getting as much sleep as possible...it is the best thing for you and your baby.

Nursing doesn't have to look any one way. If she's gaining and your happy, then go with it. We nursed for a year because it worked for me and worked for baby-- if I had exclusively nursed, we probably wouldn't have made it 3 months.

Maybe.

I think that she may either be nursing because she's hungry or she's nursing because she wants comfort. Momma is the original pacifier.

I would try not to get sucked down the garden path of formula if you want to nurse most of the time. Any time you give formula you are taking away a nursing session and your body needs demand to create supply. I like the idea of pumping for that bottle if possible. Not that I think one bottle is the end of the world, but I've seen people hurt their supply with "just a few more ounces" and before you know it, they're dried up before they want to be. So I'm suggesting that if you give one bottle, you don't unnecessarily give 2 or 3. She will learn to sleep longer. :)

It may also be that she's gearing up for a growth spurt (6 weeks is common) so you may find that she nurses more then.

If you are sore, you can also try a different hold or checking her latch. Our LC also said that you can break a latch after a while to get dinner, or a shower, etc.

You are lucky to have husband so involved! Nice for you. I think pretty baby just wants comfort of Mama's breast. I think you have milk as long as you nurse when needs. She and you will learn when is comfort and when is hunger. Mama's milk and love is best.

Oh my, I actually called the lactation nurse yesterday with a similar scenario. Our little angel is four months old now, and is sleeping through the night. By morning, I am quite full and then my supply diminishes as she nurses all day. When it's time for her to "bulk up" before bed, she isn't getting enough to eat anymore. What the nurse said is that supply is based on frequency of emptying - the longer you go between nursing/pumping, the less your body makes. So our schedule is great for sleeping but not for making gallons of milk :) She suggested that I pump right before I go to bed (assuming that it's more than an hour after she last nurses). I'm also trying to pump after her first AM feeding to get things going for the day. Now we just have to get her to take a bottle - argh!

In your case, it doesn't sound like the formula is causing the decreased supply. Rather a few nights of 8:00 - 3:00 will trigger your body to ease up on production. Your call on what, if anything, you want to do about that. Regardless of what you decide, best of luck~

I would just try to pump for about 5 minutes after your morning feedings (when you'll probably have the most milk of the day). Store that milk for your husband's nighttime bottle feeding, and also you'll be signaling to your body that you actually do need those extra few ounces per day.

And I think it's awesome that you guys have found a schedule that can work with this difficult evening time. Great job!!

nah, you'll be fine... You might try some different types of pacifiers tho, she sounds like she's just comfort nursing and that can cause you to get some pretty sore nips. I always found if I put the paci in the mouth and sort of held it there with my thumb and rubbed the baby's cheek with my fingers it helped them to latch to the paci and they'd fall asleep.
Sounds like you have a pretty alert little daughter and she's gonna keep you on your toes :)

She's cluster feeding. They do that to fill themselves up so they can sleep for a longer stretch. It's also related to growth spurts, and sometimes to colic as well. Although babies who aren't colicky will cluster feed as well.

Although you may feel "dried up", you aren't. Your baby's nursing stimulates milk production. So, as long as baby is suckling, you are producing.

Are you going to mess with your milk production? Yes. Any time you supplement you reduce the amount you produce. Milk production is supply and demand. The more baby demands the more you produce. Supplementation is a slippery slope. If you are honestly not producing enough (you'll know this by a lack of wet and poopy diapers and by baby not gaining weight) then supplementing is a good option.

However, sine what you describe is normal, and she's gaining weight, you don't have a reason to supplement. If you nipples are getting sore, you can use a Lanolin cream on them. Also, if you let them air dry in between feedings they'll fair better.

One of the best online resources for breastfeeding is http://www.kellymom.com/ go check her out for more info. Or you can contact me http://www.shininglightprenatal.com I'm a Lamaze instructor, and I teach breastfeeding classes too.

My daughter did basically the same thing, to the point where I just couldn't bear it. We did the same thing you have done. It turned out fine, I nursed until she was 12 months old.

But...consider that she might really be tired and trying to nurse to sleep. Try putting her down a little earlier. In the end, that was the story with my daughter.

Good luck.

You will be fine, as long as you are nursing all the rest of the time. I did this with both my babies - DH did one formula bottle a day (he actually took one of the middle of the night shifts, but same concept). It was good bonding for them, and gave me a little break. I nursed my first baby for a year, and I'm on 13 months with my 2nd, so it obviously didn't create any long term problems with my supply.

Breast feeding is the original supply and demand proposition so if you can pump throughout the day to get that couple extra ounces of milk for those evening bottles...you will be able to get a break from the nursing in the evenings...you hubby can give your little girl that evening bottle, and you will be ramping up your supply.
That would be my solution to the situation.

After a few days of this, your milk production should increase to meet her demands. It just takes your body a little time to catch up to the cues that she needs more. Also, there's definitely a growth spurt at this time (it seems like one every other week at that age!). If you find your milk supply going down during the day (i.e. your daughter is fussy and can't seem to get enough), then you might want to cut out the formula at night and just keep your body in sync with baby. Also, make sure you are drinking lots of water to help with production. I have also read that all babies go through a night colic around 5-6 weeks. Maybe your first wasn't as affected by it, but things should improve in a few weeks. Some women aren't as sensitive in their milk production, but I know that I am. So just pay attention. Lucky you getting the extra sleep! My 5 month old with extra tummy issues had me up every 2.5 hours last night!

I agree with Kansasmom...if you simply need a break, then do some pumping during the day and give that milk to hubby to feed in the evening. BUT when he is doing that, you still would need to pump to keep that supply going...your production will suffer if you don't. supplements are great, but it really does come down to the whole supply/demand concept. Could be that growth spurt too...it'll get better! keep at it!

I'm not sure why she's doing the cluster feeding, but if you're all dried up, the only thing you can do is give formula or breastmilk out of a bottle. A baby that young can have inconsistent patterns. Just keep nursing each time and she will eventually move to a more patterned schedule. Congrats on the new baby!

Nope your body will adjust to that one missed feeding but otherwise you should be fine. Not to mention having the baby on your breast so much in the evening will likely up your supply due to the constant stimulation. My 3 month old does the same thing, but I pump a bottle first thing in the morning before he gets up so DH can give him that.

She may have hit her first growth spurt, they happen around 3 weeks, 6 weeks, and 9 weeks. It will seem like she wants to nurse 24/7 but it will pass in a couple days. Any formula she gets can mess with your supply, but if you pump when your husband gives her a bottle it will help balance things out. Good luck - you'll get through it!