Breastfeeding Help, Please - Prospect Heights,IL

Google Lactation Cookies...I eat those everytime I get a slump in my milk supply. When I returned to work, I was only pumping maybe 9 oz but while I was on maternity leave, I could get up to 16 oz a day! I started eating those cookies and now I'm back up to 16 oz (if I pump 3 times during 9 hour day)...

If he is growing fine, then you are fine. My 7 month old is the same way, wants to nurse EVERY time he sees me, but I think it is due to seperation anxiety.

YOu got some good suggestions here too, but try having oatmeal for breakfast (oatmeal is a key ingredient in the lactation cookies), lots of water, rest, More Milk Plus (sold at whole food stores or vitamin shops), milkmaid tea...if all fails, see a lactation consultant, but I seriously doubt you need one.

Happy Breastfeeding! And you're doing great!

It's probably not a supply problem-- I once knew a mom who entirely breastfeed twins in tandem with their older sister without problems-- but couldn't pump more than an ounce.

For the rest it sounds pretty normal, but I HIGHLY reccomend going to a La Leche League meeting. It will save your sanity and you can find one here:

http://www.llli.org/webus.html

Some people don't respond well to a pump. Stress and watching the ounces drip in can wreck your output.

As for nursing all the time, he's still a growing kid. I think that some of it is nutrition and some of it is comfort. To this day my 3 yr old will put her hand on my bare belly if she's sick. Do any sorts of distractions work? Is he going through any new milestones? Teething?

Your supply is probably fine (there were times I would pump nothing and DD would be satisfied by nursing within the hour).

I also agree to find a La Leache League group or certified lactation consultant to talk to.

Hang in there.

How long has he had this pattern of nursing so frequently when you're together? If it's a new thing, it is very likely that he's going through a growth spurt, and this will increase your milk supply. Does he do this for a while and then go a long time before another cluster?

Have you tried offering him something else when he wants to nurse? Like a snack, or some water, or something?

Perhaps a lactation consultant could help. Good luck!

I am going through this exact thing with my 9 month old son. Im sure your supply is absolutely fine if your little guy is growing so well!

At this age they are going through a lot and nurse for nurishment and for comfort. I believe in attachment parenting and nursing on demand no matter what the reason if you're there and can do it. My LO just started the separation anxiety stage, is about to cut a third tooth and is going through a growth spurt (2 inches in one month). He also started really crawling last month and has began babbling more distinctively. Add it all together and you get the need for mommy and comfort, ie boobies :)

If you have sore nipples ask your doctor for an rx for Dr. Newmans nipple cream, the pharmacy has to make it from scratch but its worth it. You can always try distracting him for a bit with play or a walk, sometimes it just doesnt work. Distracting with solids may only decrease your supply by lowering his demand.

I also BF exclusively with solids only once to twice per day. Your LO gets all he needs from you, solids are mainly to teach him how to eat. According to the World Health Organization BF is best til age 2. I've found that with all that nursing, you shouldnt expect too much from pumping. If I get 1-2 ounces from both breasts Im happy. I needed to pump for when Im away for a few hours now and then and my LO wont take formula. You said you pump while nursing, that sounds distracting since they are so interactive at this age. I used to pump while my LO played in the morning but had to stop once he started grabbing the pump. My formula for pumpling is Water + Time + Relaxation = Letdown = Milk. Try to wait at least an hour after the last feeding before pumping, I do it when the LO is napping. Keep drinking water when you wake up, we loose a lot of fluids when we sleep. Pump early in the day Ive been told and found true that your supply is best between 7-9am. Engage in a relaxing activity- listen to soothing music with eyes closed and cleansing breaths, read a magazing like "parents" with lots of pictures of babies, flip through pics of your LO. These all work for me, Ive tried reading my email and that actually has the opposite effect because Im thinking about all I have to do which isnt relaxing at all. Dont look at the pump during this time, its like watching a pot of water boil and can be stressful. The milk will flow (even if only a couple of oz's).

If you really want to increase your supply the following has worked for me:
1. massage the breasts in a warm shower before pumping
2. compress the breasts while pumping: http://www.breastfeedinginc.ca/ (type "increase supply" in the search window, this is a great resource out of Canada)
3. Keep using the fenugreek as the bottle reccommends it really is amazing stuff
4. Mothers Milk Tea is great! I would make a big pitcher of it since it needs to be steeped, add sugar and drink it cold
5. Barley Water: The recipie is at mobimotherhood.org under Lactogenic Foods and Herbs. Its amazing but very slimy and tastes horrible, the slimier the better. Make a batch and grab a swig whenever your near the fridge, have a juice chaser nearby.
6. The more you pump the more you'll get. Everytime you pump you send a message to your body that you need more milk. I lost my milk entirely at 3 and 6 months and my lactation consultant said to pump every 3-4 hours for 5-10 minutes even if you dont get anything...eventually you will and it will increase over time...it works.
**dont try all of these at once as you may become engorged, try one at a time and see what works for you.

With your love and attention to his needs your LO will grow to be a confident and secure little guy!
P.s. Im not a doctor, just a mommy who went through 2 bouts of lost milk and several decreases in supply due to thrush and mastitis.

Hang in there! XOXO

You are doing great, J.!
Sounds like your supply is fine!
My boobs hate the pump too. By nine months I pretty much gave up on pumping.
What I wanted to mention that no one else has is that he is old enough to go a few hours just fine. You said so yourself...he is happy w/ daddy...until he sees you. Which is exactly what has been playing out in my own house for the past 6 months+.
So, while he is happy, leave! Go take a break! Get coffee w/ a friend. Go to Target. Whatever your happy place is. ;)
He is getting bigger and his needs are changing. You know, in 3 months things are not going to look the same as they do now.
So, take a deep breath. Put the pump away. Maybe a lot of your stress w/ his wanting to nurse all the time is coupled w/ trying to pump and that's not working.
Take that added stress and get rid of it. :)

First of all, good for you for asking for help. It's easy to feel like you're doing something wrong or that you could be doing better - but you're doing great just by breastfeeding your baby! I STRONGLY suggest getting in touch with a Le Leche League near you right away. There are morning meetings and evening meetings, or one of the leaders will be happy just to talk you through it over the phone (the meetings are great for support though, and to hear other moms' suggestions as well). They offer a wealth of advice. If the hospital where you delivered has a lactation consultant, you might call her too. http://www.llli.org/resources/assistance.html or http://lllusa.org/
I also wonder if he is getting enough solids? Maybe he needs more snacks/meals during the day? Good luck:)

It's possible your supply is just fun, but you're one of those lucky women whose bodies do not respond to the pump!

Because he doesn't seem to be interested in nursing unless you're around, I think it's probably more of an emotional need. Has something changed recently? Did you go back to work? I think he's just going through a "needing Mommy" phase. I would try to meet his needs whenever you can (ie, allow him to nurse whenever you can), and try not to worry about it. If he's eating a lot of table food, he's probably doing just fine nutritionally. I think he's just feeling really close to mommy right now!

Yay for breastfeeding! It sounds like your baby is getting everything he needs. Building up a supply of pumped milk is a good idea for times you need to be away from your little guy.

The more you pump the more you'll get out. You body will respond to the demand to get milk out by producing more. So, if you're away from your baby, pump every 2 or 4 hours (whatever you can do) for about 15 or 20 minutes. Even if nothing is coming out, keep doing it every couple hours. Eventually you'll see an increase.

I found that Mother's Milk tea (available in most supermarkets in my area, even WalMart had it) helped with my supply immensely. You have to follow the directions for steeping it (10 minutes covered, I think) and drink a LOT of it. But I enjoyed the taste and it really helped with my production.

Good luck!

Ok - here's my advise:

He seems to be a slightly high maintanence emotional child - hence the constatnt nursing - which is probably a bit worse during the growth spurt cluster feeding times. He simply needs more reassurances from you and he WILL grow out of it - don't forget... he may be big, but he's still an infant.

The pumping - I'd give it up as a lost cause... pumping has nothing to do with your supply, and for most women, pumping past 5 months is extremely hard anyways - congrats for going on as long as you have!!

He's also old enough to start learning nursing manners... like "Wait", "Do not pull Mommy's shirt", "No biting" etc... LLL and IBCLCs can help you with teaching the nursing manners - unless you want to PM me and I'll get back to you when I can - I just had a baby and am a bit busy, but will definitely wrote back.

I'm pretty sure you do not have any supply problems! So rest easy on that one. Your little man wouldn't be growing and doing so well if that were the case. I rarely felt a let down after the first couple of months and I nursed mine for 16 and 20 months respectively.

I had to pump exclusively for my oldest for his first 12 weeks (preemie, had to learn to nurse, etc) and I could pump what he needed and keep up with him. BUT, my 2nd nursed right from the start and I could never pump much of anything *at all*! My body just would not respond to the pump.

And the nursing constantly when you are around-he may just be more high needs, having separation anxiety, teething, growth spurt. These will all make baby want to find comfort and what baby knows is comfort is mama and
nursing. Both fix everything when you are 9 months old. It's tough for you but you are raising what will be a healthy, independent and secure child.

I'm a huge pro-breastfeeding mama but if you need to get away, you need to get away and get out and about. There is no crime in giving him formula once or twice a month if your body won't pump. But you need to be able to get out of the house and relax without worrying about how he will get fed. Getting out will recharge your batteries so you can help little man thru this phase.