How would I know if my supply was drying up? (7.5 months)

[Zinger]

I'm down to 2 feeds a day and my breasts have gone very teeny and soft lately - they don't get hard even if I miss a feed or two. Tried to express early yesterday morning, having missed the evening feed the night before, and had terrible trouble getting anything much - ended up with a measly 2.5oz, whereas a couple of months ago I'd have expressed 7oz with ease. (I was in a bit of a hurry though so might not have been as relaxed as I should've been.)

How would I know if I was drying up?

[earlygirl]

i knew when ds was 15 mnts (and i was 3 mnths pg with dd) cause i didnt see that milky trickle down the side of his face ,it didnt feel right when he sucked and he had no objections to being weaned(this made the decision for me - i would've carried on bf)

i think it happened cause i gave up tea and coffee , got sick of herbal tea and one week when i was busy didnt drink enough and the milk just disappeared -did try to get it back but to no avail

the good thing was that it made weaning a breeze -he just totally accepted ( i suppose he had to)

so id say if you want to carry on drink plenty(fennel herb tea is good for increasing milk supply)

im sure its nothing to worry about its probably your body adjusting to less feeds

hth

[hercules]

Expressing doesnt tell you how much milk you have nor does how they feel. If you continue to feed then you will continue to produce milk.
A friend of mine who just became a grandma told me that she can still get milk out even though she stopped bf her youngest 6 years ago.

[hercules]

Expressing doesnt tell you how much milk you have nor does how they feel. If you continue to feed then you will continue to produce milk.
A friend of mine who just became a grandma told me that she can still get milk out even though she stopped bf her youngest 6 years ago.

[hercules]

Expressing doesnt tell you how much milk you have nor does how they feel. If you continue to feed then you will continue to produce milk.
A friend of mine who just became a grandma told me that she can still get milk out even though she stopped bf her youngest 6 years ago.

[hercules]

sorry

[Zinger]

Apologies for double post - that pesky reload button again!

Thanks earlygirl, that's really useful - will try the fennel tea. Definitely need to keep my fluids up. There is certainly SOME milk there - I was just really alarmed at how little I was able to express yesterday: "Oh my god I'm starving my baby!!"

[Zinger]

Thanks hercules - that's reassuring

[bundle]

sucking babe much stronger than any expressing machine, i'm sure there's enough there, even if it doesn't look like it when you're trying to express. do you want to continue to express? if so, the only way to stimulate supply further is to feed more..
i don't get that full any more (dd2 is 16 mths, feeding her a couple of times a day, but a lot more during our hols and supply definitely picked up) and there are no ill effects if i miss a feed either. how long are you hoping to carry on bf for?

[LIZS]

I think your baby would soon tell you if he wasn't getting enough. Stimulation from sucking is different from expressing so would n't give an accurate indicator but no harm in keeping your fluids up. Perhaps express off a bit nearer the normal feed time if you do need to miss one rather than wait overnight, to keep the stimulation regular.

[Zinger]

Not sure, bundle. Maybe 12 months if I can? Partly depends on work.

[bundle]

i bfed dd1 till she was 22 mths and hope to do the same with dd2. i work 3 days a week and just now do a morning and evening feed & anytime she feels like it at weekend, including just before her lunchtime nap. good luck, sounds like you are doing a good job.

[Zinger]

Thanks for the encouragement

[aloha]

I never drink lots of (or even enough) fluids and had plenty of breastmilk. I certainly never drank herbal teas. If you are worried that you don't have much milk, and it bothers you, feed a bit more often for a while - ie more at weekends or if you are around during the day.

[tiktok]

Once bf is well-established, supply does go up and down quite responsively with the needs of the baby - but once you get to the age your baby is, Zinger, it takes quite a whilefor it to dry up. If you are worried about it, then feed/express more often, and you will increase the supply.

[Zinger]

Well, you were all right. Fed DS 3 times yesterday and when feeding him this morning on the left-hand side, I noticed the right breast was leaking -- surely a sign that I can't be drying up! Panic over Thanks for all the reassurance & encouragement