Breastfeeding supply

Does he have oral ties? Breastfeeding is really supply and demand. The more you remove milk, the more it signals to your body to make more milk. Absolutely nothing wrong with supplementing, but you can then get caught in a cycle of removing milk less and then your supply dips further. So it sort of depends on what your goals are. You can keep supplementing but pump when baby gets a bottle. How old is baby? Make sure you’re removing milk 8-12 times a day and staying well hydrated.

He’s 12 weeks but was premature so couldn’t do it for a while so I expressed constantly. I got him tongue tie assessed and the doctor couldn’t be sure - said if he was it wasn’t severe and cutting wouldn’t likely make much difference so I didn’t do it. Drinks from bottle fine . Feeds about 10 plus times a day. When he has significant amounts of formula or expressed breast milk to then top up I express to not miss a feed …

Do you use nipple shields? We used them until My son was 3 months old then suddenly he was able to latch without them, I put it down to his mouth just getting bigger and him finally getting the hang of it

@Lisa do you have a recommendation for nipple shields? My newborn is also not latching well so I’ve been pumping but sitting to pump is really irritating my stitches so I’d love to lie down and breastfeed more effectively

https://www.facebook.com/share/1Axgp9fEpj/?mibextid=WC7FNe

https://www.emmapickettbreastfeedingsupport.com/blog/low-milk-supply-101

@Lisa is there a specific brand you tried that helped? I’m having similar issues with my 8 week old.

I joined a Facebook group called increasing milk supply and it’s helped me so much. There are so many tips there. But what worked for me, and what 99% of people in that group will say, is power pumping. I overlooked it because I tried it a few times and it didn’t work, but the key is consistency. After power pumping daily for 2 weeks I was finally able to do an evening feed without needing to top up (my supply would always tank in the evenings) and last night I froze my first bag of breast milk.

I've just seen your comment about the doctor talking about tongue tie, doctors ARE NOT QUALIFIED to diagnose a tongue tie! If you're in the UK use this link to find your local tt practitioner https://www.tongue-tie.org.uk/ or ask your local infant feeding team, they may have someone trained, but make sure they are qualified! To increase supply, lots of skin to skin with baby, breast compressions during feeds and pump immediately after feeds. Be careful using nipple shields if you already have supply difficulties as they can effect supply if baby isn't feeding properly. I'd recommend getting in touch with your local breastfeeding support group such as la Leche League https://laleche.org.uk/find-lll-support-group/

@Charlotte thanks yes he is the local tt practitioner recommended by the team too. He’s a doctor but he’s not a GP. I’ve done everything else you’ve said too :( not tried power pumping though yet as expressing has driven me to the brink doing it 8 times a day for two and a half months but maybe that’s my final thing to try!

@Kiera I used mam shields as I also used mam bottles. I started off with medela but the shape wasn’t right for me and they felt like they were pinching. They come in different shapes and sizes so you might have to experiment until you find what’s right for you.