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Joined: Oct 2002
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OP
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Joined: Oct 2002
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I am a lurker here but in the past you have been my support system. Now I need to turn to you once again for advice. I am an adoptive bfeeding mom. I have been able to bfeed my son for 10-1/2 months now (He is 10-1/2 months old). I am also a working/pumping mom. It has always been a struggle for me being an LVP. I worked really hard to increase my supply by pumping during the night, eating oatmeal, taking domperidone and herbs, etc. I am usually able to pump 12oz at work and for his whole life I have been able to supply him w/bmilk only (I am so proud of myself) but now I am lucky if I pump 8oz at work. For the last 2 weeks I have been suffering from a cold/sinus infection. As a result I have been skipping my 10pm and 2am pumping sessions due to exhaustion. Now, my body has acclimated to it and after my son nurses at 8pm I am able to go all the way to 6am and I don?t even wake up fully engorged. I feel like I have completely ruined everything I worked so hard for. Now as a result of this, my son no longer wishes to nurse when I get home for work or at bedtime. I feel the reason is because even though I pump every 3 hours during the day, my last pump at work (for the last week) has only yielded about 2 ounces. When my son latches on after I get home from work, he is frustrated because he doesn?t get that powerful let down that he gets first thing in the morning. I just don?t know what to do. I feel that I am not ready to start the weaning process but at the same time it seems my son is not interested in nursing anymore. Can this just be a phase? Is it possible for me to build my supply back up so he is no longer frustrated? If you can offer any advice as to what I can do it would be greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Lisa
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7
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OP
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7 |
Just one more question?.
Realistically speaking, If I only pump 3 ounces total and I am empty, meaning the PIS is not pumping any milk into the collection bottles, if I was to put my son at the breast in place of the pump (hypothetically speaking) would he only get 3oz? If not how much more would you estimate? The reason I am asking is at my 9am pumping I can usually pump 5-6oz then at noon I can pump 3-4oz, then at 3pm I can pump 2-3oz. By the time I get home from work at 5pm my son has no interest in nursing because (I feel) there is no milk. I am ?floppy? and feel empty. How do I *fix this situation? I want to have a nursing relationship but I milk supply or lack of is affecting that relationship. I have never had to use a Lactaid or SNS because I have always had a full supply.
TIA
Regards,
Lisa
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Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 1,347 Canada
extra helpful experienced member
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extra helpful experienced member
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 1,347 Canada |
Hi Lisa, Welcome!! So happy to see you. Congratulations on an outstanding breastfeeding experience. Breastfeeding as a working mom is a monumental achievement and here you did that AND you induced lactation...HATS OFF!!! You're AMAZING!! <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/grin.gif" alt="" /> As you know the more you drain your breasts the more milk you will have so if you can do a 48 hour "baby honeymoon" on the weekend you can probably get back in the swing. You'll need to either breastfeed or pump every 2 hours round the clock. That should help quite a bit. And if you've stopped the domperidone you may want to get back on it. Your breastmilk supply is behaving normally. Women typically have the most milk in the morning and then less and less as the day goes on. It's due to our circadium rhythm. Our normal prolactin levels rise between 1 am and 5 am which is why it's so important to pump at least once during those hours. Babies go where the milk is. If your supply is down when you arrive home you may want to consider breastfeeding with the Lactaid or SNS supplementary feeding tube device filled with your expressed breastmilk so that you can feed your baby at the breast without either of you becoming frustrated. Baby's are the best "pumps" so typically they are able to drain the breast more thoroughly. This means that they tend to extract a larger volume than what you see coming from the pump. The reason for this is that babie's use both positive pressure (jaws and tongue action milking the breast) and negative pressure (suction due to tongue position and oral cavity). The pump only works on negative pressure (suction). Hope this helps. Thank you for posting your amazing success. You are a true inspiration! fondly,
Lenore Goldfarb, Ph.D.,CCC,IBCLC
Wife to Rob, Mom to Adam aged 13, and Ethan aged 9, both born via GS and breastfed via Regular Newman-Goldfarb Protocol.
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Lisa,
As I recall, when my nephew was around that age, he had a "nursing strike" and refused to nurse,,,my sister had and still has an abundant supply, so it was not related to this. After one week, he was back to nursing again. He is now almost 3 and is still nursing! I would say don't give up, he will get back on track. I am very encouraged by your story. I am on the regular protocol with Diane and domperidone, day 30. I am hoping to be able to be on it at least 3 months straight. I pumped and took domperidone for 5 weeks before I started the protocol, so I have been preparing my breasts since the end of August. Did you do the protocol or just domperidone and pumping? Have you tried the Whittlestone? Most women seem to be able to pump and drain the breast much more with that pump. I have one child already, and have been working full time since we returned from Peru with him 10 years ago. I know how hard it is. Keep up the great work. You are an inspiration to us!
Take care,
Cathy
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7
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OP
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Lisa,
Thanks for your encouraging story. I hope to be on the meds for 90 days at least. We thought we had a match with a birthmom , due the end of December, but we have not heard anything yet, so I am not holding my breath. I have not experienced any soreness, tingling or increase in size yet, so I am a little worried that I will be a low producer. It seems that most women have breast changes by now (30 days). I know quantitiy does not matter, but I sure would like to exclusively nurse. It seems that it would be so much more convienent than using the lactaid etc...
I am so happy for you and Ryan. Take care,
Cathy
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7
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OP
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Posts: 7 |
Cathy,
I just wanted to give you some info. After 30 days of the protocol I had absolutely NO breast changes, no tingling, no fulless, NOTHING. I was so worried that I would fall into the category of woman who are very low producers. Imagine my shock when I saw milk during my very first pumping session after being on the protocol for 42 days and still NO breast changes (and I am small to begin with). I am still wearing the same bras that I did prior to the protocol. Some women just do not experience dramatic changes like other women do.
Good luck to you.
Regards,
Lisa
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Anonymous
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Anonymous
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Lisa,
Thank you so much for letting me know you had no breast changes. I was on the protocol for 4 months last year and also had no changes. I guess I do get overly worried when I hear of other ladies going up 1-2 cup sizes etc. I also have to remember I may have had some breast changes already through the years, with my 7 pregnancies (none past 3 months) and 4 IVF attempts with all the high doses of hormones etc.
Thanks for the info...take care, Cathy
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