Milk supply when baby sleeps through the night
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@GMF I’m breastfeeding and occasionally pumping. when I brought her home from the hospital it took about 5 days for my milk to come in and she lost too much weight. They had me start supplementing with formula and I think it did my supply a disservice. I’ve met with a lactation consultant and checked her latch and everything. We did a weighted feed and she only got about an ounce from me. She told me to start triple feeding (breastfeeding, bottle and pumping) and I did that for a week and a half and didn’t see any change. My boobs just felt hot and uncomfortable but no increase. If she misses a feed and I pump I only l get about 2oz.
Basically that exact same thing happened to me with my first child. Supplementing with formula is totally fine, we did it as well but I felt sort of uniformed as to the best way to go about it while also preserving my milk supply. With the triple feeding did she gain weight? 2oz is actually within average output when pumping to replace a feed - average is 2-4oz combined. Pumping after a feed, average is .5-2oz combined. Have you changed pump parts yet? You may need to change duckbill valves depending on how much you’ve pumped. Change once a month if you pump 3x/day and adjust based on how much you pump. Did you double check flange size? You could also try power pumping. It’s a supply and demand thing so if you’re wanting to protect or increase your supply make sure you’re removing milk as often as possible. And staying really well hydrated.
What pump are you using? I’ve noticed I get different amounts depending on what pump I’m using
@GMF yes she gained weight with the triple feeding. She started gaining normal weight as soon as we started supplementing. Sometimes if she wakes up early in the morning (like 4-5am) she’ll breastfeed and be satisfied without formula. Most of her daytime feeds tho she’ll act hungry and fussy after breastfeeding so I supplement and she’ll drink 2-3oz of formula after breastfeeding. I have new pump parts and I’ve changed them out. The LC measured me and I’m a 17mm on both sides. I’ve been using a 17mm flange and it’s been more comfy than the 21mm flange I think I’m supposed to use. 21mm was giving me a ring around my nipple like a bruise. I’ve also tried a few different pumps and I get about .5 after a feed. Maybe my perception of a normal output is skewed bc I always see the “pump and pour with me” videos on TikTok and they’re making 12+ oz. I wish I could EBF tho. It would make my life 10x easier instead of breastfeeding and having to make and feed a bottle every feed. For
@Katie I have the spectra, lansinoh manual pump, momcozy m5 and I usually get the same output with all of them
Have you tried foods that help with milk supply? I got lactation cookies in the baby aisle and actually enjoyed them but not sure if it truly helped or not with the supply
Are you pace feeding her when she has bottles? Are you wanting to stop the formula, like is that your goal? With my 7 week old we supplemented with formula in the hospital but then our pediatrician just wanted me to give 2-3 bottles per day until she got back to her birth weight. So I just did breast milk bottles but I’ve gone back to mostly nursing since she’s been gaining fine now. If you keep switching back and forth between sides when nursing does she seem more satisfied? Sometimes my baby looks like she’s rooting when she actually just needs to burp or has gas pain.
your supply will tank if you don’t pump overnight i didn’t with my first and fed her for the first 6mo breast milk and on my second he’s 1 mo and producing almost 60 oz a day
Your body actually produces the most milk between like 1-4am (cruel fact of biology, right?!). If you’re concerned about your supply I would add in an overnight pump for sure. But what makes you think your supply is low? Your supply regulates around 6 weeks postpartum. Are you exclusively pumping or also nursing?