Anemic and milk supply. Uneven sides 5 days pp

[SaraVO]

So I feel like my milk is coming in on my right but not so much on my left. My c-section was about as bad as it could get and I lost a lot of blood. Enough for two rounds of blood transfusion and taking iron supplements. I'm worried I'm not supplying him with enough. I put him on every couple of hours and he latches but I don't always hear him swallowing anything. Help. I'm calling a lactation consultant tomorrow but I'm worried about my baby.

 

[noon_child]

Blood loss can affect milk supply but it does't always. The best way you can tell if LO is getting milk is whether his poo has turned from black to dark green to brown to yellow. Ideally you want yellow poo by day 5, and it is a concern if it isn't yellow by day 7. It can go back to being occasionally green, that's normal, but you don't want it to have stayed at the dark green stage and not progressed.

As he gets a few days older, you can also start to be confident of your supply if baby is gaining weight well.

Regarding a better supply on one side than the other, that is pretty common. Sometimes it is due to less milk making cells on one side, sometimes it is that LO can't latch as well on that side so doesn't stimulate it enough. You don't need both sides to feed a child really; ask ladies with twins!

 

[SaraVO]

I've started supplementing with formula. Having trouble pumping but I have another lactation appointment. He gained weight this week and the doctor said he looks good. I just never anticipated my taking so long to recover and it impacting him. I wasn't prepared for that. My mind was obsessed with his health and well-being. I never really thought about my own.