Losing Milk Supply

I had this same problem when I was breast feeding and I gave up. I feel really bad that I gave up too. Drink lots and lots of liquids and quit stressing. Dehydration and stress are 2 things that can slow down the supply. Some breast milk is better than none!

Hello, I know this is gonna sound crazy but, when I was breastfeeding my doctor told me to drink a beer, It can be a non achoholic one, he said that the yeast in the beer would help my milk supply go up. Hey, it is worth a try,
Good luck!

K., call your OB and express your concerns to her - she will likely be open to prescribing you Reglan which is a natural milk stimulant medication that is generally used to treat acid reflux - but works to stimulate milk production in mommies - it's also safe for the baby. I have lupus and relacatated 2 x's after loosing 100% of my milk supply because of having to do med treatment with my lupus. I also went to GNC and bought fenugreek which is another milk stimulant agent. You have to be very agressive right now. Start pumping every 2 hours - NO MATTER WHAT. Pump, it will stimulate your milk to increase. Adding the fenugreek and the Reglan will help - and oddly - drinking more whole milk yourself will aide too; and by more I mean drinking 8oz about 4,5 times a day. Call your local le leche, you can find them at www.lalecheleague.org; you will have unlimited resources and support that you need to make this happen. Your body will respond :) you must be diligent though!!! I ended up giving up all together when my son was about 5 months old, it was too confusing to him with my Lupus reactions and having to stop and then restart with the breast feeding. I wish that I'd have been more consistant and just stuck with it. Your husband may not understand the bond and emotion attached to breastfeeding, so be patient with yourself and him. You can do it!!! feel free to contact me if you need anything, even encouragement! Here's another interesting resource to encourage you - adoptive moms (never pregnant) have successfully lactated with medically induced lactation methods that are completely safe for mommy and baby :) http://www.fourfriends.com/abrw/forum/index.php

Try Brewers Yeast. You can get it at GNC. Take 2 pills right before dinner w/8 oz water. Your supply should increase w/in 48 hrs. If you haven't noticed any difference at all w/in 24 hrs, take 2 more that night at dinner w/ 8 oz water. Do not take too many though or you will engorge yourself. Also, what is your calorie intake every day? I know you want to lose the baby weight, but you need a minimum of 2300 calories a day to keep your milk supply up, more if you are working out regularly.

I used Healthy Nursing Tea by secrets of tea when I had in trouble of low milk supply. I suggested it for all breastfeeding moms, because I was really successful at keeping my supply up....

Hi K.,

My name is N.. Don't feel like a failure, it's not anything your doing wrong. I tried breatfeeding my 2 year old when he was born and he didn't even want to take it, so after 12 hours of him not wanting to latch on I gave up and gave him formula. This may sound crazy but I worked for an ob-gyn who is so down to earth, he would tell patients on the d/l (down low) to drink a beer and all the patients that tried this never complained about not getting enough milk supply.I actually, tried the beer method and it worked for me, but again since the baby didn't want to take it I would pump and mix it with the formula until one day I got tired of pumping and I dried them out.Don't get mad at your husband, they can not possibly imagine all the changes your body is going thru,they don't understand the closeness you feel with your baby when your breastfeeding.

Hi! I just read through the previous posts and wanted to add my 2 cents worth. I also have breastfed my four children. It is an amazing bond to have with your child. And the others are right...your mom and husband just don't get it. My husband came around more and more with each child. I would print off that list of 100 benefits someone gave you the link to and hand it to each of them. And then just know you may need to do this without their 100% support. That is just how it goes sometimes! :) No one else mentioned the first thing that popped into my head as I read your post. Your son has probably hit a growth spurt. All of a sudden he wants to eat more because he is growing. Your body was making milk based on how much he had been eating and therefore you were running a little short. But since your body is supply and demand, it would fix itself very quickly. Within a day of you allowing your son to nurse more than usual, your body should respond and start making more milk. I would try to avoid supplementing as much as possible. You really need to allow his to nurse as often as he wants. Your milk supply replenishes pretty quickly and the more he tries, the more your body will make. I bet he has hit a growth spurt and soon your milk supply will match his new growing appetite. I remember right about the same age my kids did this also. And again at about 6 months. It might help to increase your own fluid intake (not soda though!) When I had my oldest I could occasionally pump and get 4 oz. But with the other three, if I pumped and got more than 1/2 oz. I was happy. My body just didn't respond to the pump at all. But none of my kids ever used formula. I always had plenty for them. Don't use the pump as a judge of your milk supply. Your body knows that plastic thing isn't your baby and it just won't respond the same!! About the let down sensation...that also dies off too. I believe someone else mentioned that. After a few months you don't feel it so strongly. And as the baby gets older, the feeling goes away completely. I don't remember at exactly what point I stopped feeling my milk let down, but I know I didn't feel it the entire time I nursed. So that is perfectly normal and nothing to worry about. I think the biggest thing is for you to try to stop worrying. I know ....easier said than done. The more you worry, the harder it is for your body to relax and it makes it hard for your body to do what it needs to do. Sometimes when my second child was a baby I would be so stressed out (from marriage problems) that I couldn't get my body to relax and release any milk. I would have to calm myself down before she could get anything. I would do anything you can to relax while feeding him. I would close my eyes, do deep breathing, whatever works. If you relax and are able to feel confident that you CAN feed your baby, you might find that everything falls into place. Good luck and I am sure you will be a breastfeeding combo for months to come!!

First off, don't get down on yourself because of this. It will consume you to no end if you do. It isn't anything you are doing wrong. As for your hubby, guys don't understand that there is much more to nursing a baby than what they see. There is a very strong emotional connection that goes with it. Your mom may not understand if she never BF either. My mom didn't with me and couldn't understand why I was so upset when I had to stop with my daughter when she was 3 months old.

Ok, pumping is no was to judge what you've got in the supply department. I could pump till I was blue in the face and get a few drops but my kids could be on them like a never ending faucet!! Is your son taking himself off the breast or just stops sucking like he is full? Falling asleep on it? If he is falling asleep, wake him up and see if you can get him to take on the other side even if he has already been on that side. If he stops sucking then giggle your boob a bit and see if he starts up again. BF is a supply and demand thing. Just keep switching him back and forth between the two sides. If you start on the right, leave him there till he pulls off then put him on the left. If he starts to loose interest or pulls off try putting him back on the right again. Then the next feeding start on the left side and do the same thing. Also remember, breast milk is lighter in their tummys so it's not going to fill him up as fast as formula will. 2 oz of formula might be equal to 4 oz of BM. Keep check of his diapers while you do this. Make sure he is at least getting 4+ wet diapers a day. I know at his age it will be hard cause he is still pooping all the time too.

Just hang in there and don't give up!!! You might also want to find a local LeLeche League or if you are on WIC see if they have a certified lactation consultant. Good luck to the both of you:) HUGS

S.

Whatever you do, don't give up! Call a lactation consultant. Visit La Leche Leauge online and also kellymom.com. Those sites help me alot. I am still nursing my five month old. And most importantly, take some time out for yourself! Keeping you healthy is very important. Make sure you take in all the needed calories, a multi-vitamin, and, you already know, lots of fluids! Be encouraged! Your doing a great job because your working on giving your baby your best! And if someone isn't supportive, let them know that they can keep negative comments to themselves, help you, or kindly remain quiet! Keep up the excellent work!

Hi K.!

You sound very worried!

Remember that breastfeeding is a supply and demand relationship. If baby still wants to nurse after a feeding and you let him continue to nurse (maybe switching sides again) you will build your supply. If you offer a supplement, he will be satisfied, but your breasts won't know they need to make more.

A pump is not going to be as effecient at removing milk as your baby is. The amount of milk you can pump is not an indication of the level of your milk supply.

It is common for women to experience the sensation of letdown less intensely as their babies get older.

Watch your baby. Is he gaining weight? Can you watch his jaw as he is breastfeeding and hear him swallowing?

Fenugreek capsules are more potent than teas. Most women find that they need to take enough so that their sweat & urine begin to smell like maple syrup.

I'm sorry to hear that you aren't getting much support from the important people in your life.

La Leche League of Jacksonville meets the first Friday of every month (next meeting April 6th) at the Lutheran Church of Our Saviour at 9 am.

It is wonderful that you are so dedicated to breastfeeding your son!

sounds like it did with mine...but mine was only 2 weeks...it is normal...don't beat yourself up with it...I would just go to formula....it might be a combination of the pumping and him breastfeeding....but since you aren't getting enough supply for him formula is the best..

Hi K.,
I couldnt see from your message if you were a stay at home mom or not. But if you are I would give him less of the formula and let him breast feed way more often. Your baby has the best sucking power and will be able to increase your supply better than a pump. I would also try brewers yeast or some other supplements that help increase milk supply. That really worked well for my sister. Have you contacted the la leche league where you are? They will be able to give you better support and more answers. I hope this has helped. Hang in there and congratulations on making it this far! Also, my supply decreased when my son was that age. I think it is natural but there are always options to increase it. Good luck!

A little about me - I have been breastfeeding for a year and and starting to wean - I have had many ups and downs with supply so I have plenty of experience here (had a stint where antibiotics reduced supply heavily and I had to work it back up).

Congrats on breastfeeding this long already! It is the greatest gift that you can give to your little one. This part can be really had work, but if you get over this hump you should have smooth sailing ahead. It is around this 3.5/4 mth mark that your body really starts to listen to your little one. Breast feeding is all about supply and demand. When you supplement with formula it is a downward slippery sloap because you are sending a clear message to your body that it is making enough and that it does not need to do more. You continue to do this - your body continues to make less.

You need to undo these messages that you have been sending to your body. Here are a few suggestions.
1. Your baby is your best trigger to make your body produce more milk. Any time I have had supply issues I have just nursed for longer. Your body produces milk as your little one feeds so, if you feed long enough (and if you have a patient little one), the supply will come (just keep switching sides every few minutes). During downtimes of supply, I sometimes fed for an hour at a time. I have never supplimented with formula and never supplimented with my stash if I were present to feed.
2. Insert more feeding sesssions. If you are feeding every 4 hours, try every 2 or 3 hours for a few days until supply improves.
3. Any time you suppliment with formula always pump immediately for at least 10 minutes on each side. You might not get anything and that is okay. You are not pumping to get a stash - you are pumping to artificially send a message to your body that it is not making enough and that it needs to produce more.
4. I have heard that the combination of fenugeek and blessed thistle (both herbs that can be found at any health food store) can increase supply. These herbs are also found in "Mothers Milk" tea that can be found sometimes at the grocery store. They don't work when used alone. Also, I have heard that they will cause your little one a bit of gas.

Are you still feeding at night? If not, insert a pumping session at night.

In general, following any of these recommendations, it will take about three days before you start seeing and increase and 1 to 2 weeks before supply is back to normal.

Couple of other things - remember that your little one is the best thing for your supply so feeding longer and more often are the best suggestions. Also, drink lots of water and get lots of sleep. There are also perscription drugs you can take to up supply but I don't think that you need that.

I am so sorry that your husband and mother are not giving you more support. I encountered a bit of this (especially after the 6mth mark). Unfortunately in our parent generation there was a huge push for women to stop breastfeeding with the women's lib movement. Thankfully bfing is making a comeback in great part because so many (even formula companies) understand how much better it is for babies. Here is a list of 101 reasons to breastfeed. If either your mother your your husband has not seen this before, maybe you could show it to them and maybe it could help them understand http://www.promom.org/101/

Also, it is nearly impossible to do this without support. The hopital I had my son at (Trident hospital in Summerville) has a breastfeeding support group once a week with a free lactation consultant. It was such a HUGE help for me when I had any questions. If there is such a group anywhere around you, I would highly recommend going.

Sorry this post was so long! Good luck!

I've had similar problems in nursing my 4 month old. Make sure you're drinking enough water and of course try not to stress about it, because that doesn't help either. What my mother told me is to take about a teaspoon-tablespoon of Panela (it's Brown sugar cane put out by Goya) and dissolve it in 8oz of water-then add milk to it and drink it. It tastes like sweet tea and sounds weird-but it's worked every time.

Stress isn't helping your supply. Good for you for sticking with it if that is important to you and it sounds like it is. Try drinking a LOT more water and reducing stress as much as possible. I know that hot showers and stimulation are supposed to help as well. End the end, your baby will grow up to be strong and healthy and no one will know if he is bottle or breast fed. So, if you have to quit don't feel guilty. Your little one is only little once so enjoy him and don't worry too much. You're a good mom! You care!

Ok K. first you need to calm down. Your milk is reacting to your frustration. I had the same problem. It was stress. You also may be pumping TOO much. A pump will make your milk leave sometimes. What I did was stop pumping all together for a while just let him eat from me. I know it is hard but sometimes you have to. And sometimes the milk will just go and you will have to give him formula completely. I would say call a lactation consultant from your local hospital and ask for help. I see you arent getting anything form home so that is what I can tell you to do. I hope you fix the problem and good luck

Hang in there and keep trying. Nothing is more frustrating and heartbreaking than not being able to breast feed when you really want to. I had a similar experience with both my children. If your period is just returning, that sometimes decreases your milk supply around that time of the month. Try nursing more frequently and lay off the formula for a while. Your body will make it if your baby demands it.

Good luck and you are not a failure.

S. H

The dr put me on Reglan (metoclopramide)...they give it to pregnant women for nausea.

I had the same problem with my two youngest and right at about 3 months. I just supplemented with formula and tried to drink more water. It is stressful I know, but try not to let it get to you because stress is not helpful to your milk supply.

First off...stressing out about the situation is not going to help your milk supply at all. So please try to relax. Building your supply up is going to be hard but it is very important to do it because your little one is so young and it is the what he needs. Pump as often as you can...same with nursing. I would drop the formula as soon as you can...supplementing is not going to do anything except decrease your supply. And about the let-down...many women do not even experience the let-down reflex...and for many it disapears. I hope this info will help you. I know it is going to be hard work...but it will be totally worth it. Best of luck of you and your little one.

~L.

Kim,

I had the same problem when my twins were around 3 months old. I supplemented formula for about 2 weeks and i pumped around 4-6 times a day, whatever i got for the day i would give it to them at night, after that trial period...i started produceing enough to feed them. you also may need to up the amount of calories u eat by 500 a day...i hope this helps you....and don't let anyone make u feel bad about the situation...brestfeeding is great but it does have it trials...if it is somethig u want to continue to do..don't stress about it because this can also affect you production.

J.

My only suggestion for you is to take in A LOT of fluids, I remember it helping me. I don't think you should give up either but stressing about it can have adverse affects on your supply also. Good Luck!

I drank plenty of water. Ecspecially a glass of whole milk in the morning, afternoon, night. The milk really helps. Think of it like this: liquid needs liquid. Also eat like your still pregnant you need the calories. Don't excercise or diet as long as your nursing or it will decrease your milk supply. Pump for 30mins every two hours. Yes it will get tidious but it's well worth it.
Don't let anyone make you feel like a failure, your not, atleast your tring. If it doesn't work out just look you have done it for 3 1/2 mths and thats more then most babies get now a days. Talk to your husband about being more supportive b/c your spouse has alot to do with your success or failure, we all need a support system.
As for the baby getting enough milk. If the baby is gaining weight, you are doing just fine. You only need to be concerned if the baby starts losing weight. When their this young they go through periods of eating a lot and eating a little. If the baby is falling asleep while nursing that may mean he's not actually sucking but just moving his mouth on your nipple and he's not getting anything out. If this is happening do your best to keep the baby awake during every feeding. That will help increase it also, b/c it ensures he's actually sucking the whole time.

Be sure to drink lots of water!!! Also I visited an herb shop and bought some herbal supplement spec. for nursing mothers. It really helped me! I can't remember the name, but it's something like "mothers helper"?? lactating aid?? I can't be sure, but someone working there could certainly help you.

Are you getting enough rest? I also agree with the others about the stress - that only makes it worse - try to find ways to relax. This is totally unscientific, but I think drinking soy milk helps - maybe because it's to estrogenic. You're doing great. Congrats on your precious baby. God bless you.

hey, they say when you breastfeed it will increase your milk supply based on your sons need for milk. The lactation told me that its different when you express milk then the natural sucking of infant to the breast. I nursed my twins until 15 months old. they are almost 16 months and that was my concern being that it is two. The more I nursed the more my milk increased. there is tea called yogi tea for nursing mothers you take it every three hours or when needed you will fill the increase. That helped me, it taste pretty good too. You can find it in the organic section at farm fresh for around $4. Let me know if it helped or you can email me I still have some left that you can try. ____@____.com