Am I running out of milk???

[cailey]

My ds just turned 3 months old.  He was exclusively BF until the last few weeks as after I feed him he is still STARVING!! I know that he is still very hungry because when he is feed formula only, he eats between 4-5 oz.  When I BF him, I feed him on both sides and he is still crying and searching for more food, then he will eat 3 oz of formula. There is not even a drop of milk left in my breasts (I used to have a forceful letdown and could always hand express milk to check to see if there was milk there are he finished eating and I can no longer do that after he has been eating for 2 or 3 minutes-before this point, he would eat for about 45 min to an hour) This has been going on for about 2 weeks now.  I know that this is the time that he becomes a more efficient eater but it just really concerns me on how unsettled he is.  He is no longer sleeping through the night, his naps are very short and his diapers are no where near wet enough (unless I add a bottle after I feed him, which I try not to do). 

I have tried everything I can think of.  I even switched him from a 3 hour EASY to a 2.5 hour EASY hopping this would help, to no avail.  At first I thought he was trying to wean himself just from the crying and the frustration (I keep trying to get him to eat and he just gets more frustrated) but he still enjoyed BF so I really don;t think that this could be. 

I drink plenty of water, eat more than enough and he only has a soother at nap time.  I am not too sure what else to do.  Is there anyway that my milk supply could have just decreased or all of a sudden not been enough.  He is my third son and BF my other 2 with no issues so it just doesn't make sense to me.  Any help or suggestions would be great. 

I feel like I am starving my baby, yet I only want to give him formula if I HAVE to.  I want to try everything possible before I have to "give up." He still looks healthy and is not losing weight however he is clearly not getting enough.  He is also fussier than he ever was.  He is usually sooo happy and content and now he never seems satisfied unless I BF him then formula feed him. He will then sleep through the night and is back to his 1 1/2 hour naps 9rather than is 20 minutes that he has if I only bf).

Sorry to be so long winded but I want to include all the details and hope that someone has some suggestions.  Also, I can no longer pump any milk at all I have tried between feedings.  I also skipped 2 feedings the other day and just formula feed to see how he would be (was back to his old little self happy and content).  Then BF and he ate for 3 min on each side and had drained then both dry and still wanted more. 

Thanks in advance,
Cailey

[Samuel's mum]

Hi there Cailey. Big HUG. Let's see if we can get to the bottom of this.
Some things I don't pay attention to - feeling letdown, pumping output. Even if you get nothing at the pump it doesn't tell us much as you might not just be stimulating a letdown.
But you are describing drier nappies and a general level of discontent that is obviously not ideal.

Have you been weighing him? Any ideas about recent weight gain?

Are you taking any medications? Contraception? Ever had any problems with thyroid or hormone levels pre-pregnancy? How are your iron levels? Any history of anemia?
What about your menstrual cycle? How quickly has it returned in the past? Any chance you may be pregnant?

How much formula would you say you give in a day? It's so tough because you clearly don't want him to be hungry but if a mother starts to give formula in response to a supply problem then the supply problem is simply going to get worse.
And skipping those 2 feeds the other day will have caused the situation to worsen further. Even skipping only 1 feed tells the body to slow down milk production.

DEMAND from the breast is the key thing. Lots of stimulation.

There are a few immediate things I would suggest:
Is there any chance someone can come for a few days and help you with the other kids. Then ideally you can have a 'baby honeymoon'. Come completely off schedule and feed whenever you see hunger cues. Offer the 'third' breast after the other 2 (this is good practise anyway in your situation) and see if he can get another letdown going. Spend time skin-to-skin and really cut down on activities outside the home. Nap when he naps and relax as much as possible.
Then I would try and get hold of some fenugreek (a natural herbal galactalogue - substance which increase milk supply). It is sold in capsule form and you take 3 capsules 3x a day and it normally takes about 24hrs to see an effect.
The other crucial thing is to find some support in real life. Where do you live Cailey (town is fine) and I can try and find you someone or give you some support information.

I think I need to be honest here. You are not describing an ideal situation and we need to try and find a way so you feel able to reduce the amount of formula you are giving and give your supply a chance to increase.

[Mum of 3 + 2 stepkids]

Hi, just wanted to send some hugs.

I have had many issues with low supply and it can be done, just as Emma says. The best thing you can do is just feed feed feed. When my supply has been low i feed 1.5-2hr feeds, little and often. I find if i start it from first thing in the morning its better as they get the full feed from the night suply and then just feed every 1.5-2 hrs 10 mins each side all day till bed time. It really does work. It takes a good 3-5 days for you to see the effects and then you can slowly move on 15 mins every couple of days till you get back to 3hrs.

Stick with it your doing a fab job and you will get there.

Kate x

[cailey]

Thanks so much for the suggestions.  It is hard because my family as well as my husbands just keeps telling me to give him formula and I certainly do not want to do that unless I can not get my milk supply back up (they never really "supported" me in BF except my Grandma and hubby). 

To answer the questions:  as for weight gain, I am not to sure, I do not have a baby scale.  My MIL does so maybe I will take him over there and weigh him but I am very sure that he is not losing weight.  I am feeding him as frequently as I need.  I am really not too much concerned about this right now as I know that it is easy to "fix" after we get things sorted out.  Right now he is on EAEAS. 

I am not taking any medications or contraceptives and have never had any problems with either thyroid or hormone levels.  I did however have bad baby blues with the other two and not with this one (but I do have mood swings like crazy now with no control -wierd something I have never really had before and just realised that right now).

As for my menstral cycle, it has always and still has returned very quickly, after about a month or so of my baby being born.  I really don't think that I am pregnant.

As for formula, somedays I don't have to give him any (I do feed on 1st side, then 2nd then return to 1st) and only give him formula when he gets really frustrated.  I always hope that if I feed him long enough he will get all he needs but sometimes he can't wait that long.  When we go back to the first side, he is so frustrated and bobing off and on and screaming.  Then I would give him formula. So it is hard to say somedays he doesn't get any, other days he needs 2-3 oz after I have fed him. and then sometimes he only needs more at one or two feeds.  It is so inconsistant which is wierd to me. 

Any support would be great, as there is no way that someone would be willing to other children while I had a baby honeymoon but it would be reaaly nice for someone else to think that I am making the right choice for my baby-rather than critizing me all the time.   however not too sure that there would be any around here.  I live in Faulkner, Manitoba really small town in Canada.  (towns that are near it are Steeprock, Ashern and Eriksdale if that helps). 

Again thanks so much, I hope I have answered all the questions
Cailey

[EllenS]

Hugs!  Fenugreek is great, also make sure you are drinking LOTS of water.  I have also had good experience with adding a bowl of oatmeal to my daily diet, others report that a meal of lentils and/or chickpeas really gives them a boost.

At your lo's age, he is hitting growth spurts pretty frequently, and you will likely get a dip in your supply when your period is due -  if he hit a spurt around the same time you hit your dip, you could have gotten a gap in supply/demand.  It may not be a matter of you LOSING your supply, but that you've gotten behind the curve of his accelerating need and are having trouble catching up.  Make sense?

You are absolutely doing the best possible thing for your baby!  I'm so sorry you have family members who aren't being supportive.  I had supply issues practically from Day 1, and had to supplement for a while, and my mom was always trying to be "helpful", saying, "don't you think it would be better to just put her on a bottle?"  She thought she was trying to make my life easier, but I just had to say, "NO!  I don't think it would be better in the long run !"  It is tough when people are trying to help but it feels like they are undermining you.

Here's a great thread started by Emma about the joys of bf'ing and how lucky we are to have the option.  The first post has links to lists of all the wonderful health benefits you are giving your lo - maybe some of your family members need to hear about them - they certainly make some temporary problems and frustration seem insignificant by comparison!
https://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=56668.0

Hugs!

[Mum of 3 + 2 stepkids]

My mum was excatly the same. When she came round all she would say is 'oh i think hes hungary, i don't think YOUR milk is enough for him'. And when i came out of hospital she had put 2 cartons of formula in the cupboard, HOW F**KING RUDE. I was livid

But i showed her, i pumped and fed around the clock and Zane is now nearly 6mths old and going strong. Hes 'EBF' and im so proud that i have given him the best start to life

If your husband has said 'formula' even once, tell him how important bfing is to you and that you really want to do it.

Remember, don't dout 'THE GIRLS' they can produce everything that your lo needs.

Kate x

[Samuel's mum]

I'm sorry that your family isn't very supportive.
Can you talk to your DH about why breastfeeding is important to you and to your LO's health? Is he a reading type of guy?

In Canada you have the La Leche League:
http://groups.lllc.ca/
Click on the map. There are leaders in Manitoba. If you can't get to a group you can speak to someone by phone.

What kind of bottle do you use? As he gets older you want to ensure he doesn't start to show a preference for the faster flow of the bottle. Certain kinds of bottles can minimize this. When he gets frustrated breast compressions might help - see the FAQ page for instructions.

[cailey]

Thanks so much for all the help and advise.  I weighed him today and he only gained less than a pound in about 4 weeks.  Previous to this he was gaining over a pound a week.  I am hoping that he did not lose weight and now that I am supplementing him is just starting to gain it back.  I think that I will just give it a few more days and see what I can do.  I have been feeding him every hour and that is not even good enough anymore.  Seems like the more I try to increase, I am actually decreasing.  Thanks for the advise on the LLL.  I will look into it.  All the support has helped me just from people posting on here, it helps me to know that I am not doing the wrong thing!  As for my hubby, he always supports me but not a reader unfortunalty!!

As for a bottle, I use avent bottles.  should I use something different?? 

[EllenS]

Gaining over a pound a week is a LOT!  That had to slow down anyway. 

Here is a link from kellymom.com about average weight gains for bf babies:
http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/growth/weight-gain.html

As you will see, 5-8 oz per week is quite normal for babies under 4 months, so your lo's is a bit under that now, but no so far off as it might seem compared to his earlier growth.

[Samuel's mum]

A pound of week could not and should not be sustained.
A pound in 4 weeks - i.e. 4oz a week - is acceptable.
If you are feeding every hour though and you don't feel things are improving that's not ideal. Do seek out the LLL and have a think about fenugreek. Let us know how you get on. We're not going anywhere!

[Mum of 3 + 2 stepkids]

Like pp's say 1 pound a month seems fine.

As for the bottles if you wanted to to slow the flow down you could use a bottle called 'Breastflow by first Years. I use them and i think there great for people bfing have a look on the web.

Kate x