Supplementing with Formula - Kalamazoo,MI

I am always able to get some milk right before I got to bed. It is my routine and allows me to always have a fresh supply going into the fridge/freezer.

Also, I get much more mlik when I hand express into a bowl, compared to pumping. It takes some practice, but it'll allows you to get every drop, instead of 70-80% with pumping.

You do what you need to do, so that the baby gets enough intake, daily.
Some will say never supplement.
Some do.
It is up to you.

I breastfed both my kids and had lots of milk production.
But when pumping, I did not get much, though I tried different pumps.
Then, my daughter would not take a bottle at all.
My son would.

Just beware, that some babies will NOT take a bottle.
Or, some will but then may only want a bottle and then refuse to nurse from breast. Because, nursing is more difficult, than just drinking from a bottle via gravity. They don't have to "work" at getting the milk out.

The thing is, you do not have enough stored milk.
And at each growth-spurt, a baby naturally needs more intake and they get hungrier, more frequently and want more.
3 months old was a growth-spurt, and then there will other growth-spurt periods at 6 months, 9 months, 12 months and every 3 months.
So, in order for baby to get more intake and adequate intake everyday, you need to make sure, he is getting enough intake.
And if you don't have enough stored breastmilk, he will not be getting, enough intake. And babies need to feed, on-demand.

Or ask a Lactation Consultant, per pumping.

For me, with my son, though I had enough milk production, he'd drink me dry... (I used both breasts) and he'd want MORE. Per our Pediatrician, I supplemented. But only AFTER... a nursing session. If/when needed. (never to replace a nursing). My son had a GINORMOUS appetite and nursed every 2 hours and every hour when going through "cluster feeding." I nursed on-demand.
However, at about 1 year old, my son started to HATE nursing and only wanted a bottle. Then he weaned, from breast.

The bottom line is: a baby needs to get adequate intake daily. And if not, this is not good. Or, some babies will not nurse at all, until Mommy comes home. But, then the baby is hungry ALL day and they are not getting intake during the day. And you do not want a baby to get dehydrated as well.
So do what you need to do.

When you are only gone for 4 hours, 5-6 ounces seems pretty normal to me.

When I went back to work for six hours a day, I was able to feed my daughter right before work and right after, so she only needed one feeding while I was gone. I started supplementing with a bottle of formula a day, five days a week. Because while I was able to pump some (with a small hand pump) when I was at work but was unable to save the milk.

The little pumping I was able to do at work made me able to feed her completely on weekends. She grew up strong and healthy.

When my girls were babies and I went back to work, I had a LOT of trouble getting enough milk pumped while I was at work. (I didn't have as much trouble while pumping at home, so I think trying to pump at work was just not that productive for me - something about having people knock on the bathroom door while I was trying to pump - just doesn't make for the best letdown, ya know?) Anyway, as long as your baby is getting breast milk at home, and even a little when you're not there, feeding the baby a little formula from time to time is really not a big deal. It does not mean you're less of a mom, or that you are somehow failing at breastfeeding. Just do what you can with pumping, and if you need to supplement with formula, it will be okay. Your baby is still getting all the benefits of breastfeeding at other times of the day! I know that wasn't exactly your question, but I remember going through that exact thing myself, twice... it's just so hard to pump productively while at work (at least for me, it was). Hang in there, you are doing a great job!

I have a hard time getting enough milk pumping too. I pump after nursing and before I leave for work, 3x at work and nurse at night,but I just don't produce enough. I figure any breast milk is better than none, so I keep at it. We do give him formula at daycare.

Can you time the nursing so that you nurse your baby just before you leave, and nurse right when you get back? That way, he doesn't need a FULL feeding while you are gone, but just a few ounces to get him through until you get home. With you being gone just a short while (rather than a full 8 hour shift), he should be ok.

When he is going through a growth spurt, try not to give him extra from a bottle.... it is the increased frequency of his nursing that increases your milk production... if you can get through it, (usually a couple of days, if I remember correctly, of MUCH more frequent nursing), the growth spurt will be done with and you can go back to a more normal schedule.

My experience. When i pumped (hospital grade pump) for long periods i made less milk. Maybe on your 4 hour shift if possible try to pump twice for shorter time. There's over the counter supplements to increase milk supply, i never tried them so not sure if they work. I supplemented for some most of kids...not without issues.

There are also lots of different lactaction suipportive foods you can incorporate into your diet to increase your supply so you can pump more/more often...
When I was lactating, I supported my body's milk production by eating oatmeal each morning, and trying to incorporate other foods that are supportive...carrots, esp carrot juice, almonds, avocados to name a few. Also, be sure to stay well hydrated.

When I got nervous about having enough supply to pump for our time apart, I would incorporate more pumping times to build up my stock in the freezer. Sometimes I would even feed on one side while pumping on the other...and this seemed pretty successful. I am proud to say that although I went back to work fulltime when my 1st child was 3 months old...I was able to nurse long term, and did pump for the 1st full year. She only had a bottle of formula once...and spit up the entire thing.

I worked parttime after my son, was able to manage the pumping at work, and he never had formula.

But you have to do what works best for you, and if incorporating formula is what fits best for you, don't beat yourself up about it. It's a big commitment to continue nursing when you return to work. Possible...but definitely challenging. Good luck! :-)

U may have to go every two hrs pump instead of every four hrs. Also remember when r doing that u need to give ur body at least 7 days to get into the groove. When ur home do the same. If u think about it he would be on u more if u was home so have the pump on u more which means ur drinking goes up. Otherwise ur gonna supple ment him n u need to relax too. Plus if u supplement u can mess with his tummy. May lead to spit ups. But u can't starve him n unfortunately u have a boy there piggies!

You have to schedule time in your work day for it. Not just when your not busy and get around to it.