milk going... dont know what to do...

[sam#3]

it seems that my milk is drying up

harry has always been quite a frequent feeder but these days hes never satisfied and hes always grumpy, its so hard to keep him content even after a long feed

he cries for a feed so ill put him on but he will only stay on for a few mins so i wind him then he refuses to go back on and then he will be ok for about half hour then he will be grumpy again and so the procedure starts again....
even if this doesnt happen and he has a good long feed he still isnt happy for long
i spoke to the HV and she said it sems like he is hungry all the time and that i need to alternate bf, ff, bf, ff.....

thing is i dont understand how this is going to help, of course i know he will be more full but surely it will make me have even less milk??
i feed him all the time, at least 3 hourly DAY & NIGHT so i dont know how this has happened.

the HV said hes obviously a hungry baby and i cant meet his demands

i dont know what to do........ help!!

 

[marley2580]

How long has he been like this? could it be that he's having a growth spurt? You're right that you need to keep feeding him as often as possible for your supply to keep up. How would you feel about having a Guinness? It can help to boost your supply.

 

[sam's mum]

I completely agree with marley - we had times where Sam seemed to feed constantly and then he'd be hungry again not long after he'd finished, and it really felt as if I didn't have enough milk. But a week or two later it would all settle down again so I assume they were just growth spurts. You're right that supplementing with formula will reduce the amount of milk you are producing even more.

Guinness is definitely worth a try though If I had to pump in the morning to freeze some milk I'd have a can the night before and it definitely helps!

There are other ways to increase your supply as well - pumping after each feed (even if you get nothing out, just to stimulate milk production), but obviously that's very time consuming. There are supplements you can buy that naturally stimulate milk production too - you can get Fenugreek in health food shops. You can also get Domperidone (an anti-sickness drug, but as a side effect it massively increases milk supply) on prescription, although most doctors will only give it as a last resort. It really works though - a friend of mine had some left over after his chemotherapy and I tried it

You might find that things go back to normal after a few days anyway if it is just a growth spurt though x

 

[nellbellie]

I thought my milk was drying up last week so I did a lot of research on this. Turns out it wasn't. First, https://www.kellymom.com/ really helped me... I also remember reading about a similar situation in the "What to Expect - The First Year" book.

You'll know your baby is still getting enough to eat based on wet and poopy diapers. I think I remember reading that as long as the baby has 4-6 really wet diapers a day they're getting enough to eat/drink.

Maybe you're trying to feed him when he's not actually hungry and the fussiness is stemming from an upset, full belly. (I know it took me a few months to really master my baby's hunger signs vs. upset tummy, overly tired, etc. At 2 months I was feeding him at least once an hour based on crying and when the doctor told me that was too often I was surprised at how easy it was to get him to every 2-3 - because I'd been feeding him too often.)

 

[sam#3]

hes been like it for a couple of weeks now. i cant express with a pump soi have to hand express which i do do sometimes but i dont want too often because of my other 2 kids, i think they prob think my life revolves around my boobs at the minute bless them
i have given him a couple of formula feeds and to be honest hes no better on that so im going to stick with the breastfeeding, if formula isnt helping then theres no point me giving him it.
I do think sometimes he wants to feed for comfort because sometimes he sicks up where hes overfed.
he has lots of wet nappies, not as many pooey ones as he did when he was younger but i think thats normal?????
do you think i should wean him???
Im at my wits end with it i have such a difficult grumpy boy!!! xx

 

[greenkat]

I've found that eating alot of nuts and cereals helps my milk production and the quality of my milk so out of experience I'd recommend maybe a dietary change?

I've read that fenugreek really helps but I haven't tried it. I express when my supply seems to be decreasing aswell.

I hope things improve .

 

[marley2580]

To be honest feeding every three hours is pretty normal at this age - Kaya was even more frequent than that! What about taking him out for a walk or something to try and distract him for a bit so that he has a nice long feed after? Remember as well that as they get older they get faster at feeding - my sister's LO never fed for any longer than 10 mins at a time, but he was still getting loads. If he's no different on formula, then it's nothing to do with your milk.

 

[sam#3]

Yes someone else said he could be a really effective feeder, the longest he will ever feed for is about 15mins but thats the absolute max and rare!
Even if im really full he empties me within 5-10 mins and wil refuse to go back on, and i offer him the other side and he doesnt want that either so maybe hes getting enough in that short feeding time??

 

[sam's mum]

It does sound like he's just filling himself up quickly then - they do reduce the time they take quite quickly and a feed will last 5-10 minutes unless they like to take their time or suck for comfort. Sam always fed every 2 hours during the day (until he was on 3 meaks a day at 6 months) x

 

[sam#3]

So do you think it is just one of those things i have to perservere wth and hope it will improve in time?
I am getting used to the fact of no proper sleep at night but i wish he wasnt so grumpy all day to!!!!

 

[princessellie]

is he falling asleep on ur boob? thats what leyla does and it means she doesnt get a full feed and then wakes up starving again after about half an hour

if hes falling asleep then i was told to change their nappy or clothes to wake them up and then try to feed again to give them better chance of reaching the hind milk

x

ETA: he could be having a growth spurt so it might be an idea like the HV said to give him some formula aswell for the time being and maybe try and express a few times a day aswell to try and get ur milk supply up, i express every day now aswell as feeding 8(ish) times a day because last week my milk supply went right down and leyla was proper clawing at my boobs trying to get more milk but it seemed like there just wasnt any! its gone back up now quite a lot so it does work

x

 

[pennysbored]

Try a pacifier if you think they are feeding for comfort.

 

[sam#3]

I have tried giving him a dummy since he was really young but he hates them and will not take them, no matter what shape size and brand they are!!

Well the last two days we have been giving hima bit of baby rice lunchtime and evening and he has been much happier so i think it must have been hunger that was making him grumpy.
He been more content and more settled in the day and at night so fingers crossed there is light at the end of the tunnel!
Im hoping if i am more relaxed and sleeping a bit better then i will be eating better and less stressed so my supply should right itself again, hopefully!!!