Increasing My Milk

I swear by Fenugreek&!!! Worked for me! I think I took it a little bit more than it said to, but it was great!! I could let my son feed all he wanted and still pump 6-8 ounces!!

More pumping would be the most effective, but mother's tea works as does Fenugreek. The lactation consultant told me to take three times the amount recommended on the bottle. Also, drink and eat consistently.

L., if you really can only pump once in a 10 hour day the outlook isn't good for supply, tea or no tea. Is there no way to sneak in another session? Get a car adaptor for your pump (or a hand pump) so you can pump in the car right before you go into work and right after you leave. The frequency is critical, tea or no tea.

I love the mothers milk tea. I had a slight issue with my milk when i put in the mirena and then when she hit the growth spurts. I will say the tea worked wonders for me. The taste is not bad and i came to enjoy drinking it at night at my quiet time and in the am before everyone wakes. So to say YES it does work!

It worked pretty well for me....and I also took fenugreek supplements (you can find them at whole foods). Good luck!

I never tried the tea, but Fenugreek worked well for me. Oatmeal also works well to help increase supply.

I would ask if you can take extended bathroom brakes for the sake of pumping. I'm sure you have to pee a few times a day, and if people take smoking breaks, you can darn well have pumping breaks.

Fenugreek capsules can also help (as suggested by my lactation consultant) - I believe you can get them at a healthfood store.

It may be worth contacting a lactation consultant for more suggestions.

Good luck!

i agree that the more you allow your child to nurse at home the more milk you will have. my baby is turning one at the end of the month and i have not had to supplement by the grace of God. there have been several close calls and panics about my milk running low but we have pulled it off. i did drink the tea twice daily a few days each time i started running low. i did notice an increase but at that same time i drank tonzzzzzz of water and so i am not sure which helped more. Probably the water! i also used my pumped milk. hang in there and dont give up! your doing great

I never used the tea or fenugreek throughout a year of nursing my son and 3 months with my daughter (had to stop because of starting chemo).

The BEST way to increase supply is to have your child suckle more often. If possible, on the weekends, resort only to nursing to help make up for the lack of stimulation while at work.

I worked while nursing both kids. I'd pump at 6am when I got up, at 10am, at 2pm, at 5 pm and again at 11pm to try to keep my supply as good as possible. At my peak, I was getting almost 42 oz/day.....that was right around the 4-6 month mark.

Drink Healthy nursing tea to increase your breast milk production. It's an organic supplement to boost breast milk production.

I went to GNC and bought Blessed Thistle...natural herb. I breast-fed each of my 3 children for 15 mths. each and always had a full milk supply. GOOD LUCK :)

I used it and it worked for me, I followed the exact instructions though. I think you have to be religious about it or it won't work.
good luck!

I've heard it works great. My lactation consultant recommended either the tea or another supplement to me when my milk dropped temporarily. I went with the supplement, since I knew it would be easier to take a pill than to remember to drink the tea, just for me personally. The supplement I used was called More Milk Plus, by the company Mother's Milk. I got it at Whole Foods, but they have it at places like GNC too.

I've also heard oatmeal works great. I didn't know about that one at the time I needed. Also, make sure you are drinking tons of water. I did so good with water consumption in the beginning, but then I'd slack off and just drink my usual amount. I had keep reminding myself about it.

It's pretty nasty stuff, but I found I actually liked it, when I mixed it with apple juice.

I drank it a lot and liked it (I also mixed it with apple juice). Not sure if it actually worked, but I never supplemented, went back to work at 6 months and nursed 19 months altogether...

Whatever you take, nothing will work unless you increase the frequency of pumping or nursing. Not sure about NV but some state do have laws that require that you be given time to breastfeed/pump. Have you talked to your current employer/client? You could ask to split your break into 2 - 15 minute breaks and possibly request an additional 15 minutes... also make nursing right before and right after work part of your routine.

Good luck!

i liked the tea and i thought it worked in addition to eating oatmeal for breakfast. but the absolute BEST thing would be to try to fit at least 1 if not 2 more pumping sessions in during the day. the body works on supply & demand and if you don't pump but once during the day, your body is going to think that it doesn't need to produce milk during the day anymore.

At 4 month of age, you have established your milk supply and it can "ramp up or down" depending on how much you nurse on a day to day basis. If you were working 2 to 3 days a week and pumping right before you left for work, during your lunch break and as soon as you got home (and then frequently when you are home with her) I wouldn't worry too much.

If, however, this is a full time job (5 days a week), you really need to pump every 4 hours (at least).

Let's say your daughter nurses at 4 am - you should pump around 8 am, then on your lunch break, then again at 4pm. Then, nurse her when you get home and through the night. You would have plenty of milk.
Think of it this way: people take cigarette breaks, bathroom breaks, etc. You can take a 15 minute break to pump. Fight for the right!

I would also drink the Fenugreek to up your milk, but ultimately, how much milk you have is determined by how much you nurse (and pump). Many moms have lower pumping amounts after starting work (especially at the end of the week). This is fine as long as you nurse your son whenever possible at the breast. Remember - your breasts will change day to day the amount of milk you make.

Peace-Love-Boobies
K. (leader, Cape Cod Breastfeeding Moms and http://www.mymammasmilk.com)

Thats tough, because since you aren't able to pump or breastfeed during the day at work, your milk will naturally go down a bit.
You can buy the tea- I found that it helped- but so does just drinking a lot of water.
It will kind of be an uphill battle though since you go so long between feedings and pumpings- but its totally worth it for your little guy! :)
Keep doing what you're doing, it sounds like you're doing a great job. :)

I'm so glad that the tea worked for you...I couldn't stand the taste, so I did the fenugreek. I would also eat oatmeal in the mornings, and increase water. If you have time during your drive, I would suggest pumping while you drive too. I got a double electric pump, a pumping bra, and the nipple stimulators actually helped keep them suctioned, and a hooter hider. When I was done, I pulled over fixed everything up, and went on my way. I haven't had to do it as often as you may have too, but it wasn't bad and you would probably get a lot better skilled at it than I was.