im abit upset... Since coming out of hospital ive been back and forth from the doctors due to my csection scar not healing what-so-ever and contracting staphylococcal infection in it...and im currently on my 4th set of antibiotics. The doctor told me it wasn't highly recommended that i breastfeed on them and so we went to mixed feeding, part formula and breast but i still persisted and she said 'well ok it is possible but it may taint the taste of your milk' at which point dom did puke a few feeds,which settled and he wasn't deterred from the breast milk, i could express 3 oz in 10 mins and all was good. I finally had a week free of drugs and decided to switch back to EBF

Which didn't go well,dom would come off unsatisfied, he throws himself off, and i'd feel like my breasts were full, i'd leak a few times too. So we had to top with formula to my annoyance - especially after tuesday i was put on ANOTHER course of antibiotics, its unfair on doms stomach and me crying because he won't feed well from me,ive cried a fair few times over this.

ive decided to express to see how much im producing,fair enough its 10 past 9 on the night...but i got not even an Oz in so much as 10 mins per side TOGETHER, im upset real upset. I know formulas have warnings saying its hard to switch back to breast, but what can i do? any ideas on how to get my supply back up? i don't get it, i breastfeed on a night (im a lazy sod ) and dom seems ok,sometimes he even chokes...and during the day hes never satisfied,throws himself off,gets teary, I AM CONFUSED

thanks ladies xxx

Oh hunni I really feel for you I can totally understand the guilt that goes with not being able to breastfeed either combi or not at all. I'm sorry I don't have much advice for you except to say just do whatever makes you and baby happy, however LO is fed. I know I should practise what I preach because I've stressed over so many things this time round, prob even more than with my first! Fingers crossed you get sorted soon (and that damn c-sec scar stops giving you gip!) xxxx

thanks hun its just upsetting as i wanted so hard to EBF till atleast 6 months,now it seems that wont happen. He isn't losing weight,well doesnt feel it anyway!! and he seems good otherwise,it just breaks my heart,its another loss of a maternal bond i intended to have for awhile longer. It's just a shame and breaks my heart is all and yea me too,im fed up with it now,it seems to be going on forever!! xxx

Hey, when I pump I pump for 30 minutes per side sometimes. Try going longer. Also so early on you really aren't making much milk because LO stomach is so tiny. Good luck!

So you pumped at 9pm and didnt get much - how long has it been since LO fed on the breast - did he feed within an hour or so before you started pumping??

If LO has been feeding from the breast during the day it is normal for you not be able to pump at night.

Also remember pumps are not as good as baby in drawing out the milk.


When you said you could pump 3 oz in 10 mins- was that after LO had just fed or was that a few hours later?? Or first thing in the morning?

the 3 oz was when i left my breasts for about 2 hours and id feel engorged so id drain them,but now since they've softened this week i barely feel full, he mainly feeds on the night so i fed him possibly an hour before that i only do formula during the day and try to alternate feeds,so one formula,one breast etc..i can kinda feel im not producing,i had one night where my left side leaked in the night,only to find it must have been a decent amount that leaked as dom wasn't satisfied the doctor did warn that the drugs i am on could effect my supply,and also taint the taste which could deter him...so maybe it is the drugs, i was on something called metrodinadzol (SP!!) and im currently on my 3rd set of flucloxicillin and the wound is still not healing so i guess i will be expecting MORE drugs coming my way.

I just feel like it was doomed from the start (not depressed but it just seems a shame) i wanted a natural birth and got 90% there, unfortunately dom was stuck and meconium was present so i had an emergency csec, which wasn't my ideal, then my scar was playing up from day 1 and in the beginning dom couldn't draw milk properly until i hand expressed with the midwives a few times. And now all of this! the only thing i really wanna know is,has anyone ever been able to come off formula and completely EBF? or is it irreversible?

or if i keep the formula and boost the breastfeeding,how can i boost my supplies other than skin to skin and expressing? xxx

EDIT: ive also invested in a sling which i am waiting for to keep him near in the hopes he'll build my supply up

How many oz of formula per day is LO having?

he takes 2oz-3oz per feed about 6-8 times a day, so say seven, but that includes at least 1/2 breastfeeds. so we'll say about 5, about 10-15oz of formula a day. Ive been reading hes meant to be more around the 5-6oz feed mark,but he just won't have it. Just done a breastfeed, and all he did every 5 seconds was throw himself off,get angry, put himself back on, id reattach, pull himself off, go back on, literally he had about 45 mins feed with continuous pulling off and was still hungry after the feed,i could feel i was empty so it does indeed feel like nothing is there.

i don't have much advice but please don't rely on pumping to show you how much milk you're producing. My LO is STTN now, and won't feed during the night. I pump each morning on a full breast and I can take up to 6oz from each. I don't pump both though; I pump one and feed from the other. But some days LO will have a tiny feed then go back to sleep, so I will pump from the breast she's fed from, and then from the full breast. Some days I only get 1oz from both breasts combined, after a 12 hour stint of not feeding. It's really not representative of the milk you have in your breasts, because my pump won't get more out, but I still feel the milk in the ducts with my hands. Pumping is never as effective as letting your baby nurse directly from you.

I guess all I can suggest (because my knowledge on lactation isn't that great), would be to stay home a few days and put LO on the breast for every feed (before formula is offered), then pump after each feed too, to show your breast that there is still a demand. You can also take things like fenugreek to up your supply, or get a doctor to prescribe domperidone. Good luck hon; I didn't manage to BF my first baby for long because I lost my milk after endless stresses after her birth, so I know how you feel

I think there may be a number of things going on and that with some persistance you should be able to drop the amount of formula he has and hopefully get to EBF. It sounds like you've had a really hard time & bad luck, but hang in there, there's nothing you've said that makes me think you can't drastically increase supply towards EBF if that is what you want

I don't have much time, but just a few points,

- the more formula you give, the less milk you make. Your supply responds to how much the baby demands by suckling. For every bit of formula given your body is not getting the message to make that milk.

- but, you still have milk, you can increase supply. Just let baby nurse, nurse, nurse. Start each feed with boob. Offer boob often throughout the day. Best not to wait till baby's really starving as he won't have patience.

- a bottle delivers milk faster than boob, so baby could be developing a preference. use slowest flow teats if you have to top up.

- This article is great on increasing milk supply http://kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supp...es/low-supply/

- is your baby in a growth spurt? see http://kellymom.com/bf/normal/growth-spurts/

- see also these links http://kellymom.com/bf/normal/frequent-nursing/ & http://kellymom.com/bf/can-i-breastfeed/meds/med-risks/

Where are you in Birmingham, there are quite a few breastfeeding support groups around.

good luck