i am desperate! i gave birth to my beautiful daughter Sofia feb 28 2007. i have been breastfeeding her since birth. for the past week however she shows distress by fussing, crying, kicking whilst on my breast, relatching and by making noises. i noticed that my milk supply has dramatically decreased, i can only pump 3oz from both breasts (combined). when she feeds i can only hear her drink for less than a minute and then she is struggeling. i have to feed her for 5 hours in a row to stop her from being upset. i feed her frequently throughout the day and twice in the night. she has only put on 2lbs from her birth weight. however, she has frequent wet diapers and one soiled per day.

now, i don't know why my milk supply has gone down. i haven't been doing things different, still follow the same diet. i make sure i stay hydrated, drink that special bf tee, eat oatmeal and take fenugreek capsules. nothing helps. i really don't want to supplement with formula. i so enjoy bf and the bond between me and my daughter that i feel when doing so. i never bf my son. i tried but my milk dried up. now i am freaked out and fear the same thing will happen again. but i also dont want my baby to suffer and stay hungry.

i have heared of a pill that can be prescribed by your doc that should help increase the amount. does anyone know what its called?

what else can i do? why do you think i started having less? i appreciate any help and opinions from you ladies. i know i dont know anyone here but i am so desperate looking for some answers. thank you
lina

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welcome to the bf forum, you sound very frustrated. :hug

i have a couple of questions for you.

is this your first bf baby?

if so there are a couple of things you should know...

first off, there are growth spurts, lots of them. average times are 2 weeks, 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months and 6 months.. there are sometimes more depending on the baby.

the amount that you cna pump is NOT a good indicator of your supply. an effectively nursing abby gets so much more milk out than a pump can.

average weight gain is 4-7 oz per week from lowest weight. babies normally lose a few ounces withing the first coupls of days after birth, (especially if mom had a average hospital labor with an iv and lots of fluids in it)

usualy around 6 weeks, mom's milk supply does decrease a bit, usually in the weeks prior to this, her hormones are still crazy and she is making too much milk. then her body realizes exactly what amount needs to be made basedon the amount of milk removed by baby nursing.

are you on ANY medicines? cold/sinus type meds, birth control pills (or the depo shot) etc?

the prescription med you are talking about is either reglan or domperidone. if you are in the us, the only one you cna get is reglan, and it can have some nasty side effects.

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I thought Domperidone was available under a different name in the US? Too bad if it isn't.....but it's not an immediate answer anyway.....it take up to 6 weeks on the prescription to see the full effect.....you'll get a faster boost from the fenugreek as long as you're taking enough. Do you smell like syrup? That's a good indicator. With Fenugreek you should be taking at least 3, 500mg pills 3x per day....lots of people just don't take enough. Other women find that it works best when taken in combination with blessed thistle (also taken 3 pills/3x per day)

As for your supply.....you're doing the right thing (nursing constantly). I know it's exhausting but breastfeeding is a supply and demand system...if you're supply is down (or more likely, the baby's requirements have jumped beyond your current supply level because of a growth spurt), baby with have to nurse and nurse and nurse so that enough "demand" is placed on your body to produce more.....things really should go back to normal within a few days if you let her nurse as much as she wants too....and Mama bear is right, what you're describing is normal growth-spurt behaviour....perfect timing too - don't panic!

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this is my second baby but my first bf baby. i don't take any medicines. i did some research about that prescription drug and the side effects are just too serious. i decided to start pumping after each feeding last night and also changed the hold when nursing in case she didn't latch on properly. sometimes she won't open her mouth at all and she swallows alot of air. i thought she was going through a growth spurt but it lasted for too long (over a week). people asked me if she was sick because she cried so much whenever she was not on my breast. i refuse to give up. bf is a natural thing and i should get the hang of it as long as i stay calm. thank you for all the advice given. i feel alot better now that i know more about the whole subject.

i am sorry for not appropriately introducing myself before but i was so stressed out about all these bf issues i was (am) having. i have been a member from DIM, noe JAB march and someone mentioned this board. as i have been struggeling with bf'ing i am glad to have found a board and some lovely ladies i can ask for advice. thank you so much. lina

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~mbdiamond - Shannon~ i take the correct amount of fenugreek but it does not seem to be enough because i don't smell of syrup: 610mg, 2 capsules 3 times a day. i will go and buy the blessed thistle today. how much am i suppose to take of that? by you saying this sounds like a typical growth spurt gives me some hope. your reply has helped me alot (i feel reassurd and know that noy everything i'm doing is wrong). also the blessed thistle and of course the frequent bf'ing might help. i will see ina few days. thank you

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i would also recommend you seek info/support fmr someone local to you, either a llll or a ibclc.

where are you located? I'll help you find someone you can talk to in perosn.

i agree with shannon as well, you'll know you're taking enough fenugreek if you wlak by someone and they think you just had a stack of pancakes

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I just want to say...you've gotten great advice and good for you for being so persistent! It does get easier as you go along and you will be so glad you kept trying!

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Suzanne

Proud mommy to Katie and Rob

Lina - I know it can be frustrating. you are doing the right thing by constantly nursing. It sounds like she's getting enough - plenty of wet diapers is a good indicator. Hang in there!

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Jen (36) David (43)
Mommy to Megan, DOB 6/25/2003 (My baby is 5!)
and Cameron, 12/29/06
Megan and Cameron's blog
Tons of Megan pics

Lina, our babies are only a couple days apart in age and Ella is definitely going through a growthspurt right now and it does make breastfeeding feel a little more challenging. I feel empty all the time right now but I know she's getting enough and is boosting my supply. I usually see a difference in just a few days. I don't take any supplements (besides my prenatal and a calcium) to increase supply. I just make sure I'm eating well, drinking a ton of water before each nursing session, and nurse her as often as she desires during these spurts. I hope things improve quickly for you!

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i live in NYC but i am at my mothers house until the may 4th. Sofia has gained some weight in the last couple of days so thats good. i got myself the blessed thistle tee and drink it in the morning anf at night together with the fenugreek and it seems to work. she is calmer and more relaxed and i can pump a 1 1/2 oz more than a few days ago. i think we should be ok for now and hope i can nurse for many more months to come.
thanks

:wtg

glad things are levelling out. i too went through some panics during growth spurts when Joey only wanted to eat eat eat and I would see less output during work hours (I am pumping 8-5 and bf'ing the rest of the time) but the ladies are right -- the pumping won't really show you what you are producing. some women can never produce as much by pump. Others just never meet the right pump. (And I've tried a few......) Anyway, glad things are going better. I would suggest the www.kellymom.com website. In addition to Mama Bear's advice (which is always great) it is an excellence resource for those nights when you are researching frantically why baby suddenly doesn't want to nurse or whether you can take Robitussin for your cough, and so on........

All the best!

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i'm so glad that you feel better about your supply.

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Just my two cents...and I'm no expert.

Also, I should tell you that I've had a prior breast surgery that I think has affected me.

My Addi started doing the same thing a few weeks ago, fussing, pulling at the breast, I would squeeze my nipples and nothing would come out. I tried all the things you're supposed to do, fenugreek (I smelled of syrup), blessed thistle, nursed constantly, took her to bed with me and let her nurse all night long, tried pumping and got nothing. I started Reglan and after almost one week on the drug my supply was getting better about the same time I had a severe allergic reaction that sent me to the ER. NOT GOOD! I do not recommend that drug. Since then I've started domperidone, you can get it from some compounding pharmacists in the US and it's working well. I'm finally able to feed her again and she's been bottle free for five days. I was so worried about the latching as well b/c when I was trying to bf her she was so lazy sucking. I now know that she was like that b/c nothing was coming out. As soon as I had milk flowing again she was back nursing like a champ. I'm all for natural methods to get your milk supply back but be proactive. I went through a terrible time of depression when my supply got so low I could not feed her. I know that if I'd been more agressive I could have prevented all of it. I totally understand your frustration as I too am desparate to keep bf my baby.

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