My supply has taken a pretty drastic dip recently. I suspect it is primarily due to stress. I have no control over the situation that is stressing me, so until it gets better, it is what it is.
I told myself I would set a goal of six months for EBF, but would not take any extreme measures to increase my supply (extreme being eating only oatmeal 24/7, power pumping, etc.), but my supply has dropped and I am all of a sudden doing these things.
One half of me wants to do this and get my supply up. It's mostly guilt. The other half wants to throw in the towel and switch to formula completely. I'm pretty all or nothing about this. I have no interest in pumping several times a day to get enough for only one feed. If I switch to formula, I think we'll be done with breastfeeding within a month.
So, I guess I'm looking for two things: 1) give me your tips for increasing supply and tell me how long you would keep it up before throwing in the towel, and 2) help me feel less guilty about switching to formula, because I'm pretty sure that's where we're headed whether I like it or not.
Post by icedcoffee on Aug 28, 2017 10:44:04 GMT -5
My best tips for increasing supply was to add pumping sessions on the weekend. First thing in the AM I feed one side and pump the other and then pump before bed. Not pumping on the weekends tanks my supply by Monday. This way on the weekends I am able to actually get a big of a cushion for the week.
I'm not one to talk about the guilt with formula so I'll stay quiet there.
If you can get past the "all of nothing" I would probably just pump as much as you get and fill in the gaps with formula. I wish I would have done this a long time ago instead of pumping 1 Million times a week.
I had a big dip around 5 mos when I had a stomach bug. I drank some fenugreek supplement a few times a day, ate oatmeal for breakfast, made sure to drink more water, and added in a pumping session at work (from 2 to 3 times per work day). I also nursed whenever baby woke at night. I got my supply back after a few days of this
Good luck - switching to formula is a totally acceptable move too!
Man, what a mindfuck it is. I think you'll just know when you're done. I think in general you hear a lot more stories of people saying they wished they stopped sooner than they did, than people saying they wished they had tried harder to make EBF happen.
Tbh, I didn't find power pumping to be a huge strain. When I did it, it was after E was in bed for the first half of the night. I would eat my dinner on the couch while hooked up to the pump and watch tv or read a book. And I think that provides a huge boost since it increases demand. I would see a increase after about 3 days.
I do agree with water, Gatorade, adding oatmeal (I would stop by Starbucks and get their hearty blueberry oatmeal) or flaxseed. Drink a dark beer.
That being said, you don't have to be all or nothing. You can fill in that gaps with formula. Or baby can get formula bottles at daycare and nurse at home.
Post by Velar Fricative on Aug 28, 2017 11:38:41 GMT -5
I BFed DD1 for almost 9 months and BFed DD2 for...3 days, lol. Once I got home from the hospital and sat down to start my "pump every 2-3 hours" routine since she wouldn't latch, one futile pumping session was enough for me to say fuck it and go straight to formula exclusively. I have felt zero guilt even though I felt obligated to BF DD2 like I did with DD1; deep down I realized I just didn't want to BF this time and when DD2 wouldn't latch on and my milk was taking forever to come in (longer than with DD1), it gave me another reason to just stop.
One thing I quickly realized is that if it were DD1 who had these same issues, I would have pumped as much as I needed to pick my supply up and waited until the last possible moment to go to formula. But since it happened with DD2, I simply could not justify taking additional time away from DD1 to pump when she herself thrived on formula for those months when she needed it. I tell you all this not to dissuade you from pumping and BFing as long as possible, but to tell you to not feel guilty at all if you're considering just stopping completely. Good luck with whatever you decide!
pooh8402, how long were you power pumping? I did 20 on/10 off/10 on both Saturday and Sunday. No difference in supply today. I'll keep it up a couple more days this week.
Velar Fricative, I think that's basically where I am right now. I'm not even sure I really *want* to breastfeed anymore. I don't enjoy it. My kids aren't comfort nursers, so it's not like it's a nice lovey experience. DS2 is done in a few minutes and sometimes thrashes around because he's gassy. It's just annoying and means I'm always the one stuck feeding him (that kind of sounds bad, but it would be nice if H could give him a bottle). Typing this is making me realize that I really might just be done with all of this. Thank you for your perspective. I'm not sure I realized quite how strongly I feel.
pooh8402 , how long were you power pumping? I did 20 on/10 off/10 on both Saturday and Sunday. No difference in supply today. I'll keep it up a couple more days this week.
Velar Fricative , I think that's basically where I am right now. I'm not even sure I really *want* to breastfeed anymore. I don't enjoy it. My kids aren't comfort nursers, so it's not like it's a nice lovey experience. DS2 is done in a few minutes and sometimes thrashes around because he's gassy. It's just annoying and means I'm always the one stuck feeding him (that kind of sounds bad, but it would be nice if H could give him a bottle). Typing this is making me realize that I really might just be done with all of this. Thank you for your perspective. I'm not sure I realized quite how strongly I feel.
like I said, I typically saw an increase after 3 consecutive days of power pumping. I will add that my boobs loved pumping, and I know not everyone responds as well as I do. I think the wider recommendation is 5 consecutive days of power pumping (just one session a day) to see an increase. I did 20 on/10 off for an hour.
with the info that you don't enjoy breastfeeding, and your kid doesn't enjoy it, I say stop if you want to. do what is best for you and your family.
I also told myself I would never go to extreme measures (aside from delicious oatmeal cookies). I can see how easy it is to fall into just doing a tiny bit more (look at many of the posts in this thread so far!)
What we did when my supply dropped is just start supplementing with formula when convenient (for us that was the evenings feeding - because she sleeps longer if that is formula). I found it so freeing mentally not to have to count ounces so closely anymore. BFing overnight is still more convenient, so I do that. I also don't mind pumping when at work - but I want to do very little of it the rest of the time.
If you don't enjoy nursing and it's not making your life easier...formula is awesome!
I FF after having no supply at all, and I loved it so much I plan to do it from the get-go this time. I love not worrying about how much he was eating since I knew exactly, I loved being on a really good schedule (I didn't try for one, he was just satisfied for exactly the same number of hours every time), and I loved having freedom to just pack a bottle when we went anywhere (since I am super shy and NIP would be challenging for me).
If you want to nurse, you should! Or if you want to EFF, you should. Either way, your baby will be well-nourished, happy and healthy.
y4m , it's the "just a little more" that I will push myself into.
I would like to continue nursing overnight as that seems easier, but then I worry with a supply drop whether he's getting enough.
I think I need to just bite the bullet and go get some formula at CostCo. I'll feel fine about it once it's in the house.
Why is this such a mindfuck for me? I know formula isn't poison and is a perfectly legitimate way to feed him. The mom guilt is something else.
I think maybe it would help if you get our of your all or nothing mindset? Do some formula for now and see how it feels. It doesn't have to mean the end of your BFing relationship unless it works great and feels amazing, and then it should all be very straightforward!
In other words... the decision to give a bottle of formula is just that. A decision to give a bottle of formula.
Of course it's a lot harder to pull the trigger on that if the decision to give a bottle of formula = a decision to give up on BFing completely forever. But it's not that - it's just a bottle of formula...after which you can make dozens more binary decisions about that, based on more data about how you feel and how things are going. Reframe it that way.
y4m , it's the "just a little more" that I will push myself into.
I would like to continue nursing overnight as that seems easier, but then I worry with a supply drop whether he's getting enough.
I think I need to just bite the bullet and go get some formula at CostCo. I'll feel fine about it once it's in the house.
Why is this such a mindfuck for me? I know formula isn't poison and is a perfectly legitimate way to feed him. The mom guilt is something else.
I think maybe it would help if you get our of your all or nothing mindset? Do some formula for now and see how it feels. It doesn't have to mean the end of your BFing relationship unless it works great and feels amazing, and then it should all be very straightforward!
I get this. But I'm out of the house 12 hours a day. I wasn't able to nurse DS1 more than a couple weeks after I quit pumping with him and my supply was great at that time.
It doesn't feel worth it to pump 4 times a day and only get half of what he needs.
We combo DS from the beginning. I stopped BFing at 2 months and stopped pumping at 3.75 months. Man was it freeing. DS was a crappy nurser, BFing & pumping hurt. I felt like I got my life back when we switched to EFF. IF we ever have another I already told H we're EFF from the beginning. Do whatever is right for you & your family. (hugs)
I think maybe it would help if you get our of your all or nothing mindset? Do some formula for now and see how it feels. It doesn't have to mean the end of your BFing relationship unless it works great and feels amazing, and then it should all be very straightforward!
I get this. But I'm out of the house 12 hours a day. I wasn't able to nurse DS1 more than a couple weeks after I quit pumping with him and my supply was great at that time.
It doesn't feel worth it to pump 4 times a day and only get half of what he needs.
For what it's worth, if I were in this situation I would probably FF and not look back!
I think this is also hard because, while I hated it, my supply was great with DS1. I had zero issues pumping enough. I was able to store up enough to feed him from my freezer stash for a month after I quit pumping. My supply was great in the beginning and I froze 150 ounces before going back to work, but that has dwindled and I'm probably going to have to supplement anyway in the next couple of weeks if something doesn't change.
I can tell DH isn't thrilled with the idea of me stopping, but he also said my well-being is important and he is ok with me stopping.
I had horrible supply issues with my daughter. When I found out I was pregnant with my son the plan was initially to pump and combo feed with formula. When I got to the hospital I felt the desire rearing its head to try to breast-feed again.
Only my son lost over a pound in less than five days at his very first appointment with the pediatrician. I knew I was having supply issues again and it broke my spirit yet again.
With my daughter, I made myself really crazy trying to increase my supply. Moving straight to combo feeding this time made me feel like I would be able to be there for my son a little bit more emotionally this time. I'm not pumping near as much as I need to. He's getting about 40% breastmilk and 60% formula. He doesn't like straight breastmilk. So I have to get him a combination of breast milk and formula. I plan on stopping the pump at 9 weeks. Because he doesn't like my straight breastmilk, I have built up a small supply in the freezer. We will continue to supplement his bottleswith 40% breastmilk and 60% formula until the breast milk runs out. Then we will be straight formula.
i'm sending you lots of hugs. I know this is hard mentally and emotionally.
I think this is also hard because, while I hated it, my supply was great with DS1. I had zero issues pumping enough. I was able to store up enough to feed him from my freezer stash for a month after I quit pumping. My supply was great in the beginning and I froze 150 ounces before going back to work, but that has dwindled and I'm probably going to have to supplement anyway in the next couple of weeks if something doesn't change.
I can tell DH isn't thrilled with the idea of me stopping, but he also said my well-being is important and he is ok with me stopping.
I'm mostly just rambling at this point.
Why? If you're going to have to supplement anyways then what's the issue? Cost of formula?
I completely understand. I told myself I wouldn't put too much pressure on myself to EBF but I did. I don't know if it is horomones or what, but I put myself through a lot of stress and pain for it. I have already told myself I won't push it if we have a second. It wasn't worth how miserable I was. Of course, it is easy to say that now.
If you are ready to switch to formula, do it! So many people have told me it is so much easier. And I know many kids who were formula fed from day 1 and they are healthy and happy kids. Any amount of BFing you have already done is great! Two years from now it won't seem as big a deal as it probably feels now. Do what makes your life easier with no guilt.
Things that worked for my supply were lactation cookies, ice cream, and Gatorade.
Honestly though, combo feeding is what worked for my sanity. We topped off bottles with formula for daycare. The guilt was strong at first, but this place got me over it. No way would my supply keep up with his consumption once we sorted out his reflux and he started to gain weight.
I'm sorry you're struggling with this. I BFed DD (Now 4) for 8 months, and really did not enjoy it. I always worried she wasn't getting enough. When I was pregnant with DS, I was dreading BFing, and wishing I could bring myself to EFF from the get go, but I felt guilty not trying. So far things are going well. In your position, I'd be hesitant to switch to EFF, but I think deep down, that's what I would want. And, I truly believe that once I got over the guilt and made the switch, I'd feel nothing but relief. I hope you reach a decision that works for you soon. There is no wrong answer!
I had PPA, which made me anxious to feed my baby, and pumped for 2 months after having tons of issues BFing. I then combo fed from my stash for an additional 2 months before switching completely to formula. I know that at the time it was important for me to feel like I did everything I could to give her breast milk, but looking back I wish I had EFF from the start. My DD thrived on formula, never had issues with any brand, and even kept drinking it until past her first birthday.
I'm sorry you're struggling. As pps said, there's no right way to do this, but you are doing an amazing job no matter what.
I realize now that I had undiagnosed PPA, and pumping/nursing was a huge trigger for me. So for me, I regret it. I know I would have been much happier with switching to formula. I EPed for 3 months and we were able to get back to exclusive breast feeding, but I wasted a lot of time, energy, and sanity being obsessed with it all. FF would have been upsetting, but I know I would have gotten over it very quickly and been much happier overall.
That said, what increased my supply - MOTN/early morning pumps, eating a lot more calories/fat, and drinking like 10 times more than I wanted to. Change flanges on the pump often.
Whatever you choose, your baby will be happy and fed. I'd really suggest doing whatever makes you happiest.