Probably been asked a million times before but how do I up my milk production????

[squidgeymiller]

I know this has probably been asked a million times before but....
DD (7.5 wks) seems to be feeding constantly recently but keeps draining my breasts and I sometimes have to swap 2 or 3 times per feed (she sometimes feeds for up to an hour). She's also feeding very frequently (sometimes every hour) which means she's almost permanently attached. I have read various other threads that say this is normal for her age so I'm not too concerned at how often she's feeding and for how long, however, I am concerned that my milk production doesn't seem to be increasing in line with her needs.

Is there anything I can do to up my prouction??

I've tried expressing to find out how much she's getting per feed and it seems to be about 2.5 - 3oz max.

My mum said she used to donate 1 pint of ebm per day to the premie unit AND feed my sister (!!).

There must be something I can do - any suggestions would be great!

Thanks in advance

MY SIL was sent to bed for a week by her MW to increase her milk supply. Her already small baby was losing weight but SIL was adamant that she wouldnt substitute feeds with bottles. Good for her! Her milk came in big time and her daughter thrived!

I expressed twice a day to stimilate the milk production. Sometimes felt like all I did was bf or express but it worked & I felt it was worth it. Although on a 2nd reading of your message it souns as if you are bfing alot anyway...I always did 1 express 45 mins after DS's 1st morning feed, and another once he was in bed - around 11pm. Good luck!

Hugs to you and the baby Squidgy. It is such hard work having a little baby, in every way.
It sounds as if you are doing a great job and of course it seems endless, but it will end so don't worry about that.
Nettle tea is a very good tonic and I have seen articles linking it to breast milk production, but it might make you feel more perky, especially if you are up and down all night.
The main thing is to make sure you are comfy and have the phone, a cup of tea and the remote control to hand during all this feeding.
It is difficult to remember to drink enough, especially when you don't get a minute to yourself, I find filling a water bottle and keeping it handy is a good way of monitoring how much I am having. Enlist a slave to keep your bottle topped up.

Squidgy - well done on breastfeeding this long!!

On the milk production, I boosted mine after a stomach bug where it had all but dried up after managing 3 and a half months - my hv told me to eat lots of high sugar / high carb foods and have a few sofa days in front of the tv!! Sounds fab, eh?

Anyway, it worked!! And I'm still breast feeding my 5 month old!!!

Good luck!!

Thanks for all the fab advice everyone! - I've been eating bournville chocolate (it's better for you and apparently boosts iron) and drinking Guinness (only 1 pint per day) on your advice and it seems to be working - she's feeding for longer but less often (I actually managed to hoover today!!!) and I managed to express 4oz in one sitting, on Saturday evening!

I'm so pleased things are settling and my milk production is coming in line, Thanks for all your help!

Hi Squidgey
I breastfed both Dds to a year- found it very tough especially towards the end but persevered as neither took to bottles well. I found that expressing while breastfeeding babe really upped supply in the early stages- and the electronic medela breastpump used to draw 8ozs from me if she was feeding at the same time which gives you a bit of a break later in the day if you need it if your babe will take it from a bottle (get her on that NOW if you haven't already or it'll be too late!!) - also found that doing this at first morning feed was most productive- never worth bothering by the evening as I was so exhausted I wouldn't even get an ounce out...good luck