Feel like milksupply is almost gone

[gsm]

My baby is almost 6 months old and I have always only fed breastmilk to my baby. He used to be a great feeder, almost drinking milk every 2 hours. However, about a tad over a month ago we all, including the baby, came down with the stomach bug. He still continued to nurse while he was sick but not as much.

I also work and even before he got sick he would take the bottle of expressed milk fine. Since he has gotten sick, it is extremely difficult for him to take a bottle. He used to drink 4-6oz of milk every 2-4 hours while I was at work. Now its 2-3 oz at a time every 3-4 hours only. Because of this, we started to feed him cereal to increase his milk intake. He eats cereal with 1.5 - 2oz of milk for breakfast lunch and dinner now.

However nursing is every 1-2 hours but he barely nurses for a few minutes. Ive tries so hard, quiet rooms etc and he will not nurse for long. He seems content but a tad fussy. I try to give him a bottle to make sure he is full and he refuses it. He also used to sleep the night from 8pm-8am but since he started teething (has 2 teeth now) and he got sick, now he wakes up 3-5 times every night and nurses back to sleep.

Sometimes i squish after he nurses and seems like milk drops come out, sometimes not as much but still some there.

I used to pump about 3-4 ounces at work every 4 hours total. Since I got sick I've gotten 1.5-2 oz every 4 hours. I've tried power pumping, pumping every 2 hours etc and nothing increases it. I've tried natural pills with fenugreek etc as well as lots of oatmeal and nothing increases my supply. Lately I sometimes get only a few drops every 4 hours I pump.

I'm borderline on giving up on breastfeeding and starting slowly starting to mix formula in his milk because I want to be sure my baby is getting enough nutrients he needs from milk.

When he was only months old I was even able to pump 10oz at a time. I still have a small stash of frozen milk supply but its going really fast as I mainly use that every day im at work (Im gone 8-9 hours every day) since I dont pump as much anymore.

Any suggestions or is this the end of breastfeeding for my baby ? I dont want to but i've tried everything I can. Similar with my 3 year old daughter, I had an excellent supply until I got on antibiotics when she was around 7 months old and didnt matter what I tried my supply almost all dried up and had to start her on formula.

 

[noon_child]

Firstly, if your baby is happy, I don't think much needs to be done right now.

If the problem is that he won't drink much from a bottle, I don't think adding in formula is going to help at all. Its less nutritious so he'd have to drink more formula to get what he would have got from your breastmilk.

If the cereal has increased his overall milk in take then thats great, just be aware that filling up on too much food at his age could decrease his appetite for milk (the more room taken up by cereal, the less room there is for milk) however if he's drinking the same number of bottles and cereal is on top then that sounds fine.

I think it is very common for teething babies to refuse bottles - the teat just doesn't feel right. It can be stressful for mums when teeth come one after another, but most babies do it and come out the other side perfectly healthy. Just keep an eye on his weight gain if you are really worried.

The night waking might just be his way of increasing your supply after it dipped when you were all ill. Or maybe he just wants to be close to you after feeling so ill, or maybe its because he's refusing the bottle in the day and wants to make up for it, or maybe its a growth spurt/developmental leap, or just teething! So many things can cause this and although its exhausting I don't think it necessarily means something is wrong.

It may be that as you've experienced something similar with your daughter, that pumping just doesn't quite stimulate your breasts enough to keep your supply going, however at the moment you are pumping and there is milk there, not just drops. So I don't think there is a need to give up until you need to give up - if that makes sense. Maybe the stress of being ill, and waking up at night lots etc. is stressing you out which is affecting your letdown? I know it is hard to stay relaxed but if you could maybe listen to a podcast you find hilarious, or read a funny book while you pump, you may relax enough to get more letdowns.

 

[allforthegirl]

Agreed ^^^^ if baby is happy then there is nothing to worry about. He may just be really good at getting milk from you that he only need to feed for short periods. As long as he is continuing to to thrive, there is no worries. (loads of wet nappies and poos regularly)

Around 6 months it didn't feel like I had much of any milk either. Even my bbs seemed a lot smaller.