I have been nursing my 5.5 monyth baby for a while now. I tried to pump with the Medela hand pump and got only 3 oz out total. My heart cried out to see that. My mom said all the stress with work is causing it. I freelance so have quit for now. I intended to BF for a year initially but the chances seem very slim and its making me sad. Last one week shes been consuming more formula. I never really had a electric pump since had an home office and would feed my baby when she needed me. Maybe I also thought they were expensive(darn) so didnt buy one hence saving some money.
Am wondering how do i increase my supply.
1. My options are nursing nursing till I drop dead.....but how do you do it if your breasts feel very dry...like taking a nursing vacation
2. Renting an electric pump...
3. Buying an electric pump to exercise my breasts ( is it worth investing in this late)
Ladies if you went through this please please advice. It would be nice to hear from someone who actually went through it.
2007-05-17 07:15:26 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
Betsy...i know supplementing is wrong but my breasts felt so dry and my girl seemed so hungry unsatisfied and I had to get back to work...what do you do then...let her cry...sometimes we do things even if we think its not right...
Please ladies don't tell me what I did wrong. Please tell me if I have any good chances of working on this.
Thanks for reading my huge posting
2007-05-17 07:29:37 · update #1
Supplementing was yout first mistake!!! The more you supplement the more problems you will have with your supply. Please, please, PLEASE, just nurse, nurse NURSE!!!!! The more your breasts are emptied the more it will signal your body to produce more. If the baby nurses more often, its OK!!! Your body will make more. As vfor only gettign a few ounces with your pump, that is absolutely NO indication of what your baby actually gets. Breasts are designed for babies' suckling not pumps, either electric or hand held. You may only get 3 oz but your baby might just be getting 6 or 8 or even 10 !!! Please, if it means so much to you, at ALL costs, JUST nurse! I guarantee you within a few days you WILL see the difference.
2007-05-17 07:21:28 · answer #1 · answered by Betsy 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
well, honey, first of you, you did NOTHING wrong. If you don't have enough milk then you must supplement! Many babies wont keep nursing if nothing is coming out. You did the right thing. When my son was born I was having problems and everyone was telling me not to supplement. I was nursing 24/7 and he lost a little weight! Thats not good. I should have been supplementing with formula. I felt horrible.
A medela pump in style electric pump is well worth the investment. They are about $300 new but you can buy a used one for about half that and order replacement parts if you feel uncomfortable using the same ones some one else put on their boobs. You can sterilize them, too so Its really not a big deal-whatever your comfortable with. This pump will increase your milk! It is awesome. Its electric so you just set there! I had almost no milk and starting pumping like crazy (8-12 times per day) and within a week had plenty. 2 wks later I was freezing milk every day! Formula cost about $80-$90 per month depending on what and where you get it. Your baby needs this for 6 1/2 more months (at least-longer is better) so you will still spend less if you buy a new pump for $300 (and sell it for $150 later) your baby really still needs this nutrition. Dont give up, its not too late whatsoever!
best of luck
2007-05-17 08:30:52 · answer #2 · answered by Emily 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First off, call your doctor, there are medicines that can help. Supplementing will only make matters worse. As for a pump, most insurance will buy an electric pump for you to help increase milk supply (you will need a prescription from the doctor). Keep breastfeeding. You should know this; babies can get more milk than any pump can, so don't assume that your baby wasn't getting enough. Make sure you let the baby nurse for as long as possible on each breast. Sometimes babies nurse for 30 minutes or more on each side (eating for an hour). Despite any mistakes, you can get your milk supply back up and even increase it. Nursing often (at least every two hours) and then giving the baby a bottle if she absolutely must have it will help. Drink lots of water and eat right. Check out the following websites, they can be a big help,
La Leche League (they will most likely have a group in your area)
breastfeeding.com
and don't forget to check with the local WIC office and the lactation consultant at the hospital, they will help you too.
Best wishes and keep it up, you can breastfeed, all women can.
2007-05-17 08:06:44 · answer #3 · answered by Momofthreeboys 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
First, please do NOT feel bad about supplementing. You did what was right for your baby at the time. I truly believe in breastfeeeding (and am still doing it at 10 months), but supplementing is sometimes necessary, and certainly will not hurt your baby.
If you can afford it all all, buy or rent an electric pump. The manual pumps are so hard to use. Once you get an electric one, you will see the difference.
I would suggest pumping like crazy, maybe even every 3 hours, like you would when the baby was first born. That should get your supply up, and you can still supplement in the meanwhile so that you can be sure your baby is getting enough food.
If you can find a good, caring lactation consultant, that would be valuable also. I have to say, I found quite a few of them to be condescending, so be careful of that. (If they start telling you how bad it was to supplement, I would walk out right there.) I finally found one that was very nice and patient, and she made a world of difference.
2007-05-17 08:00:18 · answer #4 · answered by pascale_65 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have 5 children and have nursed them all. The last 2 gave me problems with weight gain, so I had a strict nursing, pumping, and supplementing schedule. Let me give you a few hints.
1. The hand pumps are crap. If this is to be your only child, I recommend renting a pump. If you want other children, go ahead and buy one. Regular pumping after each feeding will help increase your supply.
2. Does your pediatrician offer a lactation consultant? They can be very hepful. They can wiegh the baby in grams before and after feedings to know exactly how much breast milk the baby is getting.
3. Make sure you are getting enough fluids, enought to eat, and ENOUGH REST.
4. With my last child, the lactation consultant put me on an herbal called fenugreek (not sure on the exact spelling). It helped too.
5. Many babies even at this age still nuse every two hours - from start of feeding to start of next feeding...even if it takes you an hour to feed them. As she eats more solids, she will nurse less and less for nutritional needs and more and more for comfort.
GOOD LUCK!!
2007-05-17 07:40:17 · answer #5 · answered by man of noble character 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't get upset. And I don't necessarily agree with supplementing, but you have to do what is right for you. If that helps you then do it.
But if you are truly interested in building your supply back up, then you need to buy an electric pump and start pumping. You need to pump every 2-3 hours even if you feel empty and make no milk. Your milk supply will only increase if you tell your brain you need more milk and that is done by stimulating your breasts. You can also massage your breasts in a warm shower.
Eat oatmeal, drink lots of water, and get plenty of rest. And you have to stop stressing over this. If you stayed stressed that will decrease your supply also. If you don't want to buy a new pump, then yes, rent one... but get one right away. Maybe with the next baby you can buy one at the beginning.
Good luck!
2007-05-17 08:12:02 · answer #6 · answered by amber 18 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you plan to keep nursing, buy a pump. It's worth it. You can also rent one from a hospital. That's a great option if you're not sure how long you want to nurse.
Some things you can try to boost supply:
Pump after nursing - makes your body think there is more demand than supply and you'll go into milkmaking overdrive.
Fenugeek
Mothers Milk Tea
Oatmeal - seriously...but not instant oats. It has to be real rolled oats.
Don't give up - it's a struggle but don't give up! You're doing a fantastic job.
2007-05-17 07:20:46 · answer #7 · answered by Cat375 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Nurse really often and start by cutting your supplement by one or two ounces every 3 days or so.
You milk supply will increase with the increased nursings.
Call your local La Leche League! They are so nice!
Good Luck!
Carla
2007-05-17 07:45:34 · answer #8 · answered by Carla R 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all I have to say that there is NOTHING wrong with supplementing! You do what you have to do! Is breast milk best yes but not everyone can do it! I would talk to a lactation specialist soon! I nursed all 5 of mine but I had trouble with a couple of them! my lactation specialist was a god send!
Good Luck and God Bless you
feel free to email me if talking will help knight_janette@yahoo.com
2007-05-21 06:23:21 · answer #9 · answered by knight_janette 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You would ask your doctor. The easiest way to up your supply would be to pump after you are done nursing, this way your body will start making more milk.
2016-05-21 21:46:13 · answer #10 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋