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Breastfeeding tales

Soooo, something strange is going on with my supply.  I’m trying to decide if it is drying up, or if I just can’t keep up with my 20 pound boy.  I’ve started him on solids of course, and maybe that is messing with my supply. But really, he doesn’t get them consistently.  I’ve started trying to get in two meals a day, but he barely wants to eat.  The only food that he seems consistently interested in are Pears, Peas, Carrots and sometimes Bananas.  And sometimes Prunes.  I can get him to eat some oatmeal in the morning as long as it’s mixed with a fruit( either the prunes or the pears).  He will drink water from his sippy cup( but not the actual sippy cup, it has to have the lid off.  He will drink straight from my glass if I let him.)

But anyway, I realized that I need milk for him when he starts going to day care and that my freezer supply is down to ONE bag of frozen milk.(WTF?)  I eat Oatmeal every morning.  I drink PLENTY of water.  I try to eat healthy.  I’ve tried Mother’s Milk Tea.  The taste takes some getting used to, but it didn’t really boost my supply.  I then moved on to the Mother Love More Milk Tincture.  IT IS SO NASTY.  But at first, it worked like a charm.  But I didn’t take advantage and pump like crazy.  Now, it seems to have stopped working at all.  So yesterday, I got some straight Ferugreek tablets.  I am also trying to pump or put the Pookah to the breast at least every two hours.  I’m hoping that something works, because the boy simply REFUSED formula.  I tried both Enfamil and Good Start.  I still have the Similac and all the soy formula’s left. 

But my boy knows the deal. 

And my body is making it hard for me to send him to daycare dammit!

This is like the nightmare of when I first went back to work.  Jeez.

I’m at work, and I’ve pumped out about 10 or 11 oz.  In two pumping sessions.  That’s what I used to get out at one session.

And of course, the Pookah is noticing that it takes longer for the milk to let down, and there seems to be less of it.

I know I can’t stress out about it because it that too affects my supply…….

But I’m stressed.  

And I still have to wean him off of the swaddle this month……..

Damn Damn DAMN!!!

HFH

Tuesday 8th of June 2010

I've taken fenugreek twice now when my supply went down drastically from being sick. If you have any sort of infection your supply will go down.

It takes about 48-72 hours after starting the herb (or longer in some) to see a difference in supply. If you don't take enough you won't have an increase.

KellyMom: "Dosages of less than 6 capsules/day (approx 3500 mg/day) produce no effect in many women. One way to determine if you're taking the correct dosage is to slowly increase the amount of fenugreek until your sweat and urine begin to smell like maple syrup."

I did start to smell like syrup when it started working. Also, once my son started eating solids I noticed my supply went way down. I used to pump much more when at work. I have actually been decreasing the amount of milk I send to school with him rather than increasing it as he has gotten older. I used to send him 6 oz bottles and now were down to 4 oz. I have to assume I am making what he wants/needs and if I weren't pumping I wouldn't even know how much he was eating.

Also, from what i've read, fenugreek is used to increase supply, but not needed to maintain it. So, take it, breastfeed/pump to keep your supply up, and slowly taper off (stopping suddenly can hurt your supply).

Natalie @ Hope Springs Eternal

Tuesday 8th of June 2010

My friend Michelle said that she takes SIXTEEN Fenugreek tablets a day. She also takes something else that I can't recall the name of right now but she said she can tell a DRAMATIC difference in her supply in when she takes it vs. when she doesn't. I'll try and remember to ask her tonight what it is.

Christina

Tuesday 8th of June 2010

Oh no! *hugs* The fenugreek can take a couple of days sometimes. How many capsules are you taking? The capsules that I have are 640mg's each, and i have to take 8-9 a day to get an increase!

Also, could your pump be the culprit? Sometimes the motors can start to wear, the tubing could have moisture in it, etc, etc. Are you using the highest setting? For me, using the highest setting actually made me yield less, because it was so uncomfortable that i was tensed up the whole time!

In any case though, don't beat yourself up about it. If Pookah's biggest "problem" is that his mom "only"(insert sarcasm) breastfed for 6 months, he is one lucky child, lol.