Can I get my milk back?

[alfiemama]

Lo is coming up to 10 weeks old.
I bf until she was 4 weeks old but then got an infection, was very poorly, and well just couldn't manage it. Throughout all this time, I have pumped once in the evening to keep my milk going (ha ha daft I know), but it has dwindled. I am lucky if I get 1oz a day.

Lo has now been diagnosed with reflux and is struggling on ff, I now have got into my head that she was much better when bf and want to put her back on bm. Hubby is supportive and I have explained it will be a long haul, he is happy as long as we give ebm, as we had weight issues when she was first born, but I know A) I still have to put her to the breast and B) He will come round to my way of thinking

Lo is happy to latch on and I have been putting her on as much as I can and supplementing her with formula, but my milk is still not increasing? How long should it be before I would see my yield increase?
Is there any tips or supplements I can take?

Ps I don't even seem to have any let down at the minute.

Also, sorry for all the questions. Lo bobs on and off the boob, but I keep putting her back on until she will stay on, but do I keep her on even with the fluttery light sucks. Will it help increase my milk if I let her comfort suck?

oo i love redbush tea, i had never heard of it being good with milk supply before... It is similar to normal tea as you can drink it with milk and sugar if you like, although it is slightly sweeter and less bitter than normal tea, so although i usually have one sugar i drink redbush with no sugar and unsweetened soya milk.

p.s. sorry about lack of capitals, using left arm to bf dd!

Apparently so Glitteryballs, it has lots of health benefits too. I quite like it black with one sugar, really couldn't drink it your way, but I'm not a tea drinker

I'm feecding too lol

I am in awe alfiemama!!

FWIW my DS reacts to me having dairy in my diet by being sick. I've never given him formula so I don't know how he'd react to that. However, I've seen a dietician at the hospital who said that it's pretty common for dairy in the mother's diet to cause reflux symptoms. No doubt therefore if he had formula he'd be much worse. His older brother is dairy intolerant, as is my dad. Note: NOT allergic, thank goodness.

Light fluttery sucks will help to build up your milk supply. Worth keeping her on through those unless you really need to get on with something!

You have done an amazing thing. Wow!

Aw thank you organiccarrotcake. I think it must be that, as too much of a coincidence, doubt the hv will ever agree, we asked her lots of times and she just said "her skin is ok and no explosive poos, so no".

Thanks for the advice, I will just let her stay on as long as she likes.

HV isn't a dietician . I haven't found it too tough to drop dairy from my diet (and it's helped my get into my jeans, too!) so it's worth a try. You need to get rid of EVERY bit of dairy so check labels carefully and follow the diet for 2 weeks. Then, if you see an improvement start to eat dairy again and see if the reflux starts again.

Thanks organic, this is what I don't get though, she seems fine on what dairy I am having. I must admit I haven't had masses, milk in brews and porridge etc.

Sorry for the confusion alfie I thought she was throwing up EBM.

Even if you don't get milk out, pumping will stimulate supply so worth doing if you have time but don't make yourself sore. Night pumping is great for building supply but don't wear yourself out! How close are you now to making enough milk yourself?

No problem organic, no its just the formula, but like japhrimel said maybe its not severe enough to show in the bm.

Well I think I am nearly there, I'm not giving any formula now and have run out of ebm, I put her to the breast as much as I can, but she is fussing, not sure if its because I don't have enough, but she is teething, found a little white dot on the top gums this morning. She is having plenty of wet nappies, we are just waiting for a poo, she's not been for 2 days.

I know they are a lot more efficient than a pump, but I think when she is bed I will pump, so I can get a rough idea.

Also I was taking milk thistle, but found some links to say you shouldnt take, so I have stopped, does any one know if its ok?

alfie that's fantastic.

But, don't use the pump "to see". It means NOTHING. I promise.

Aw thanks organic I just wish I knew if she was getting enough. I know everyone thinks this, but as I have basically re lactated, I cannot be sure she is getting enough.

I Really don't want to bring the formula back. Just wish I has a supply of ebm just in case. But don't know how to get to that stage.

I think you all may be right. Millie was sick a few times last night, but we worked out I had quite a bit of dairy, ie in porridge,hubby made it me and uses more milk, I usually use milk and water. Also had Lasagna with cheese on top, and well thinks like that.

How on earth do I give it up, eeek. Has anyone got any experience of this?

I was vegan for a while. There are really good alternatives out there that are also fortified with calcium and vitamins if you want something that resembles dairy such as cheese, cream, custard, spread etc. Soya milk is an acquired taste but once you get used to it, normal milk tastes quite rancid when you first go back to it!

I used to just "meat" up my meals by using other things that were quite protein and fat rich like nuts and oils. A lot better for you than drowning everything in cheese as all the fats are unsaturated. I've seen lasagnas topped with cashew nut puree etc. Also, if you are finding there are only significant problems if you have large amounts you may not need to cut it out completely but reduce your intake, so hopefully you won't have to be checking labels for small amounts in ready-made foods. May be worth keeping an eye on her when you introduce solids if she seems to react badly when taking dairy directly i.e. in formula.

I am thinking of cutting down on dairy. DD has been very windy and collicky, and last night I had horlicks in my night feed thermos which is way more milk than I would normally have, and this morning my stomach is really painful and crampy, so if it is having this effect on me I am wondering if dairy may be affecting dd too...

thanks MsScarlet, very good advice, thank you.
I think I will try and cut out obvious dairy and see how she gets on before analysing everything. I have also noticed that her eyes look puffy sometimes. I wonder if this is connected?

The lasagna sounds yummy.
I agree if it gives you tummy ache and you notice a link in foods, it must have an effect on lo's

Pumping at night could help supply afaik, so might be worth trying for a while anyway.

A double pump gets more IME and in less than half the time. I borrowed an Ameda Lactaline and it saved us when DD needed topping up as it was taking me so long to express enough with my single Medela.

A baby gets way more out than a pump so never use expressing to guess how much your LO gets.

I'm considering cutting down on dairy too as DD is very windy and my IBS has come back so I figure it may well be partly what I'm eating as it's giving me tummy ache & wind! I already have soy milk though - you really do get used to it. Cheese is my problem food as it's such an easy protein source and quick savoury snack base.

hmmmmm cheese, I will miss this
thanks japhrimel, me and hubby were both waiting to see if there was a difference sick wise. But I think I will hire a pump. Although I have people say manual pumping can be very effective

Op, I could have written this thread, or one very similar. Congratulations, you've done so well! I know from experience how hard you've worked at this.
I didn't start to BF DD3 until she was about 9-10 days old as I was so exhausted after having eclamptic seizures in labour. I couldn't even hold her for the first day and truly felt like I'd been hit by a train. My milk had come in and almost dried up again but we kept offering boob fist then top up with an oz of formula, till she didn't need the formula anymore. Fully BF by about 4 weeks, but I used Domperidone to boost my supply. DD also had severe gastric reflux, and is intollerant to cow's milk protein (formula or anything I eat), soya, wheat & gluten! It's been sooo hard but worth it when I look at her wonderfully chubby thighs, (melts....).
Well done!

Forgot to say when I eat dairy/soy DD is more sickly and quite a bit more forceful with it.
When I eat wheat/gluten she gets bad wind, colicky cramps and screams in pain. Two very diferent reactions to each type of intollerance though. Hopefully she'll grow out of them soon.

Re: the cheese issue, some soy/dairy free cheeses are minging, but some are ok depending how you use them. I remember having melanzane parmigiana in a vegan restaurant once and you honestly couldn't tell the difference! Forgot to ask what brand they used however...

You can get a parmesan substitute in asda that is quite nice. Otherwise you have to go to health-food shops to get a decent selection.

Wow you did amazingly well fiveisanawfullybignumber, I know what you mean about the chubby thighs lol. I asked the Dr if there was anything I could take and he said no grrrrrrrrr.

Thanks Scarlett I will check out the cheeses

Millie was sick last night and it was weird, it was like a sheet of thick sticky mucus, and lots of it, I say a sheet as it landed on my hand and top and when I pulled it away it was like a sheet, very weird, I have put it in a tub to show dr, hubby says to freeze it. When I googled it, it kept bringing up cystic fibrosis, so I now really am in a panic. Trying to be sensible and think it would have been picked up and she is thriving but I didn't have any tests done

It has been so hard trying to increase and feed her to a satisfying level, I have to admit I had to give her formula last night, my boobs are getting sore, and she is pulling and tugging on them, not sure if this is down to supply, maybe someone can advise?

Apparently reflux babies are quite mucousy(sp?)
DD was like that. Gaviscon can do that as well. I wouldn't panic.
My doc wouldn't prescribe domperidone, I bought it over the counter, Motilium (anti sickness) is the brand name, pharmacists won't sell it for that reason though. Google Dr Jack Newman Domperidone to find out more. There are small risks though so weigh up the pro's and cons, however DD ended up taking it herself for a while her reflux was so bad.
Sorry for asking for TMI, but when you say your boobs are getting sore,is that boobs or nipples? If nipples, try to aim for DD to have a deeper latch. A good trick I found was to pop your thumb in your mouth and feel the roof of your mouth. The hard palate is ridged and any nipple here is going to hurt, move your thumb further back (try not to gag) till you feel it change to the soft palate. That's what you're aiming for.
Again I think Dr Jack newman had tips for an exagerrated latch move, which helped me no end. No sore boobs here thankfully.

If she had CF she wouldn't be gaining weight and she would have foul-smelling greasy stools as the mucous affects the pancreas.

Is there any CF in the family? You and your dh would both have to be carriers for her to have it, so it would be highly likely that you would have rellies on both sides with it. x

Hi five, no thanks for asking its the nipples that hurt, she pulls and tugs on the lot and we have probably got lazy with our latch, so I will look up that chap, he's the compression chap isn't he?

I will do some research also into the Motillium thanks for the heads up. I was taking milk thistle, which is recommended on kellymom but on some websites its a defo no for breast feeding, so I stopped taking it.

She also has a really strong suck, I know this from ff as she was ok on newborn size 1 even with comfort thick milk.

I see what you mean about the palate, I had this checked on Millie, as she also struggled with teats (shape/flow) until we found MAM bottles.

Thanks MsScarlett for the info, very reassuring, no I don't think cf in the family. I know it's daft but ds1 has ASD and ds2 has a congenital heart defect, I keep waiting to see what dd3 will haveparanoia or what, Its just with all these feeding problems, that actually mirror how ds1 was (he had reflux and still has childhood reflux) I go into panic mode.

wow amazing website and info for Jack Newman, my latch doesnt look like that