Increasing Milk Supply.?

Question

My baby is 6 months (in a few days) and I'm finding that my milk supply is decreasing as she is getting older. I most definately don't want to stop breast feeding I love it. I decide to stop for a week and just pump and feed her I am hoping that this will help as I will do it every 4 hours for 10 minutes (on a duel) pump. I'm thinking that at least this way I can see how much she is getting.
My husband is home from work due to medical reasons so he is able to feed her so it doesn't make it to much work.
So the morning I breastfed her and then at 12 I pumped (only 3 ounces) I fed her at 1:30 (the pumped milk and 2 ounces of formula) is this going to work. Or does anyone has any other suggestions?

Answer 1

First of all RELAX... and make sure you are drinking plenty of water/juice atleast an extra 8-10 glasses a day... That will help your milk supply... If you can pump in between AWESOME...Don't worry about getting a full 6-8oz. at a time you will find it gets wasted.and you will cry over spilled milk.!! I got freezer safe baggies for breastmilk and froze mine for sitters and such. I found it much easier to give smaller quantities than I big bottle. Since, if they don't drink it all at once it goes bad... You can always defrost more, if necessary... If she seems underweight, I would consult your doctor... However, she's probably doing just fine... Just make sure that you are eating/drinking enough to help your milk supply and drinking beer is an old wives tale.... I hope that helps and congrats on your new addition... Don't do formula unless you have to, it's too expensive and not necessary

Answer 2

I wouldn't stop nursing AT ALL, that really will cut your supply.

Your baby is better at getting milk out than the pump. How much you pump is NEVER a good indication of how much you're actually producing. She's getting way more out of you than a pump.

How do you know your supply is low? If you're going by how let down feels or how much you're pumping, those aren't accurate. 3 ounces is a fine amount to pump.

Like the previous answer said, relax. You are making plenty for your baby. Your baby is SMART, you can't fool her. If she's hungry, she'll 'ask' to nurse more. All babies go through growth spurts where they "ask" to nurse more to increase your supply naturally.

Now, to get more out of pumping:
You should pump first thing in the morning when you have the most milk. If you can, pump one side while the baby is nursing from the other. That kind of 'tricks' your body into thinking the baby is nursing from both sides. You'll see a lot more milk let down. I found that if I pumped first thing everyday of the week, even on the weekend, I built up a freezer supply pretty quickly.

When my supply was lower with my first child I remembered to drink more water. I also have used fenugreek (available at health food stores.) Eating oatmeal is a natural milk stimulant!

Good for you for nursing your baby, it truly is the most perfect food for your perfect baby. Keep going! You are such a great mom!

Answer 3

Having similar problems now that I've returned to work. And nothing expresses your milk from your breast better than baby. A pump actually will not get all the milk therefore making your body think it needs to make less and less. Breast feed every chance you get to maintain your milk supply and pump after each feeding. Also, to help stimulate your supply your child should be getting all its suckling needs from your breast when you can...that includes pacifying.
I know easier said than done.

Answer 4

i also did this (pumped instead of actually breastfeeding thinking it would up my supply) well i was so wrong. it turns out that i was very wrong. the stimulation that the pump gives you is different from the stim that the baby's mouth gives you....your body knows when it's the baby and when it's not.....some chemical thing i guess. so i was also using a nipple guard b/c she was a preemie and so she got used to it and i couldn't feed her w/o it. so this barrier even though it's paper thin, still kept her mouth away from the stimulation my breasts needed. i went on reglan perscribed by my doc and that helped a tiny bit but my milk just slowly went away. i would suggest feeding her every chance you get....even if she's not ready for a full feeding! just let her suck and suck! this will make your breasts realize that they need to do more for your baby. remember demand=supply! good luck!

also fenagreek tea or capsules helps. and when you pump the amount you get is nothing like what you get when you actually breastfeed.

Answer 5

My son was a preemie and due to latching issues I had to pump and no matter what herb I took, fluids, massaging, compresses. It didn't matter what I did, after numerous visits from 2 lactation consultants we figured out that my body with this baby nursing to maintain my milk production. This was not an issue with my first child as every baby is different.

This could be the case with you or maybe her feeding are decreasing as she gets older.

I guess what I am trying to say is breast feed her. Pump only one bottle a day for your husband to feed if that is what she would like. If she is growing and developing you know that she is getting enough.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Your milk supply will increase the more you "empty" your breasts. Believe it or not, the more she eats, the more you will produce. If she isn't wanting to nurse every 3-4 hours, I would go ahead and pump like you're doing so that your body will continue to produce enough milk. However, if you are exclusively breastfeeding her, your body will know how much to produce. Your milk supply will decrease as you introduce other foods to her as she will not demand as much breastmilk. Drink plenty of fluids, make sure you're getting plenty of calories each day as well and you should be fine.

Answer 7

Drink plenty of fluids, instead of expressing the milk, get the baby to latch and suck because it is the most effective way to stimulate the milk supply. In a breastfed baby, you measure how much the baby is getting by the output - wet and dirty diapers.