Hello everyone,
I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions about increasing breastmilk supply. I feel like mine has gone down!! I have an 8 month old son. I am also pumping twice a day(which I have been doing since he was 2 months old), and drinking lots of water, but it seems like my supply has been cut in half in the past week or so. My son only says latched on for a few minutes at a time (max 5 min.) and he is done and ready to play! When I pump I am only getting 2 to 3 ounces from each breast. Just wondering if anyone had any ideas and something else I could try. Thanks so much!!
Raspberry tea and brewers yeast are my two suggestions. As the other moms said it is normal to decrease when the baby becomes more active and less dependent on the breast. Stress is a big milk limiter. Take time to relax have a glass of warm milk or a glass of white or blush wine.
Back in the day, we drank beer inbetween feedings. the yeasr builds the milk up, try a alcohol free beer, the lever of alcohol is really low
I had the same problem when my first son was this age. Except it was because I was pregnant, but just didn't know it yet. But, something I did take that REALLY helped increase my supply was fenugreek - it's an herb that comes in capsule form and you can get it at a whole foods or wild oats or herbal store. I think I took two capsules in morning, two at night, or something, but it really worked and is all natural and safe to baby in breastmilk. The only draw back is that is makes your sweat smell like maple syrup.
Good luck!
Another thing you might try is a cup or two of raspberry tea, it helps increase the milk supply, and for all the moms who are 8 and a half months pregnant, or who just had a baby, (i've read and it seemed to work with me) raspberry tea strengthens uterine muscles, which helps make delivery easier, and helps the uteris "shrink" down quickly. Make sure you aren't allergic first!!
I had this happen around nine months, and it was because I was pregnant and didnt know it... fortunately my son began teething at this time... and he increased his two feedings a day to almost all night long. My milk came back for him. I am weening him down again to about once a day.
Good Luck!
fennal greek you can get it at GNC When you start to small like maple you can takeing enough!! heheeh For real...
Their is also a pill you can take.. I forgot the name.. Contacat a Lactation consultant.. they can give you the name of it... It will help too.. and it is cheap...
Good luck.. Glad things are working out for you.. It did not work for us.. boo hooo
It sounds like your getting a decent amount as is - 2-3 ounces per breast is good. But, if it feels like it is decreasing, eat oatmeal, drink plenty of water, and nurse more often. My youngest (5 months) has always only nursed about 5 min on each breast and she gets plenty. She just eats fast. My oldest (2) took a long time to nurse, but by the time she was 6 mo or so, she nursed about 10 min, too. If it doesn't seem like he's getting enough, though, just nurse more often and that will take care of it. You'll notice your milk supply increase within a couple of days. Hope this helps! :)
I had this happen around 5 months and wasn't pregnant. My pediatrician said this was normal as the baby gets to be a "pro" at nursing. She said to make sure she has plenty of wet diapers, consistent bowels, and normal weight gain. My daughter is still a marathon nurser (7 1/2 months old now).
If you want to increase your milk supply naturally you can try these few things. First make sure you are consuming enough healthy calories. Second try pumping each breast right after the each nursing session to "empty" each breast. If this increases it too much you can do every other session.
Good luck.
I nurseed my 2nd child til he was 2. And my oldest until 10 months because ofthe same problem. They say the more you nurse the more milk you will produce. Always pump after nursing it will increase it also. Beer is another option. I always drank tea with my 2nd son. I had so much milk I probably could have sold it on ebay.(jk) Just keep in mind the MORE you nurse the MORE milk you produce. Just offer it more frequent. My child nursed every 45 mins.
Hello, M.!
I nursed both my children for 15 mos and was never able to pump more than 2-3 oz at a time. A child will be able to nurse more efficiently and pull more milk than you will ever be able to pump. As he continues to nurse during a session your body continues to produce, as well.
I'd guess his disinterest is more due to his growing skills and learning (aka playing) than a lack of supply. If he is taking in table foods more, that may also attribute to his lack of interest. I'm willing to bet it is a temporary situation though. It is almost unheard of for a child to wean himself that young and lack of milk supply is just as uncommon.
I'm not a doctor or lactation consultant, but I'd suggest munching down on some oatmeal cookies and heading to www.kellymom.com to see what the experts there say.
Lots of kids go through temporary nursing strikes for a multitude of reasons and your supply may be less now because he is nursing less, but it will increase/decrease at his speed.
Good luck and hang in there!!
J.
Hi M.,
It's normal for your milk supply to decrease about now. Especially if your son is sleeping through the night, and he's playing more so he doesn't want to stop and nurse. If you are getting 2-3 oz/ per breast when pumping, I wouldn't worry. That's very good. Are you pumping and storing or pumping and feeding it directly to him? If you are feeding him the milk you pump, then you are not telling your body that you need extra. If you are pumping extra while still feeding him, and storing the milk, it tricks your body into thinking you need more milk so it produces more. There are some other things you can do too. Oatmeal is supposed to help, so you can include that in your daily routine, either by eating it for breakfast or by having some granola bars around w/ raw oatmeal. Or I have a super easy homemade granola recipe I'll send you. You can mix up a bunch and much on it for a couple of weeks. There are also herbal suppliments like Mother's Milk tea and Fenugreek that you can take which are supposed to help increase breastmilk supply. Hope this is helpful!
My sister used a product from an herbal store called fenegrek it really helped her,also your doctor can give you a prescription for Relan,it's a weekly supply but really increases your milk supply.My sister had problems because she worked alot which stress came from so she tried these products and it helped her get through my nephews first year of life. Good Luck!
Wow I think your doing great! I am guessing he is eating some sort of solids? I think its really ok but if you are nervous about it. There is Mother's Milk in tea form or drops and it really DOES help it increased mine. You can get it at health food stores.
Hi there.I had the same issue a couple of weeks ago. So I started drinking mothers milk tea and taking fenugreek pills - both available at GNC. This should help.
my supply was also low, and i took a supplement (motherlove--i think). it has fenelgrek in it which helps to boost your supply. i got it at a healthfood store--whole foods market. i have also heard that drinking a dark beer can help with the supply. good luck!
A good old beer always increases mine, but I think that may be a bad idea. If your son is not acting hungry or uncomfortable, I wouldn't worry about it. Your body naturally adjusts to need, and right now he doesn't need as much apparently. It will come back up once he realizes he is hungry again. If you are really worried about it, offer the breast more often. The type of suction created by your machine is different and the hormone trigger isn't as strong when you aren't cuddling your bundle of joy. Just be thankful he isn't biting and walking, my 8 month old is and it's misserable.
