Do many mums find that there milk supply dwindles at the 6 month mark?

[Again]

My ds is 6.5 months and feeding every 1 or 2 hours including at night(!!). I often find that there is noyhing there. It all started about the same time I started weaning him onto solids.

I will be absolutely devastated if I cant continue.

Does it often happen?

you may think there is nothing there.. but i bet there is... just not when you squeeze.. your boobs have learnt to only empty when your child is latched on... i would guess hes having a growth spurt & that the extra feeding is cos hes hungry & thirsty... not that you havent got any milk.. after all... im sure if nothing was coming out.. he'd let u know ??I had the exact same worry at about 9 mths in to bf my son.. got all worried my let down wasent working & my milk had gone... im pleased to say i have only just stopped bf him at the grand age of 2 years 3 mths... please dont worry... im sure your boobs are doing a fine job... just keep an eye on his weight.. mayeb take him t clinic every 2 weeks for next couple of months.. just to make sure gaining (your milk will slow down naturally anyway once he's on solids as he will be getting alot of calories from the food & not relying 100% on your boobs anymore... but it will never go.. not all the time hes sucking )

Hope this helps? xxxxxx

I woke up one morning when ds was 6 motnhs and there seemed to be no milk when he was trying to feed. I assumed my milk had finished, went out and bought bottles and formula and convinced myself it was time to finish anyway. By the next morning I was in agony with massive, swollen boobs and tonnes of milk. Must have just been a weird day. I would bear with it and wait and see if it changes back again in the next week or two, I really wish I had kept going for longer.

see... if your milk had gone.. your boobs wouldnt have hurt the next day..the more sucking he does.. the more milk that will come... thats what boobs do best... i did find that as my son got older my let down took longer & longer.. sometimes 3-4minutes.. & if you are worried or tense.. this makes it worse.. just try to relax in a nice warm dark room & im 100% your milk will be there.. it dosent just dry up if your son is still latching & sucking... not unless you have taken medication from gp that affects lactation etc....so please trust your boobs- you have still got milk.. & trust your son.. if he isent getting any milk he will soon let u know.. just keep an eye on his weight

to what age would u like to feed till?
xx

Hmmm...this kind of happened with ds at six mo, but he was on solids and formula too - he would still be hngry after he bf so by 7 mo there didn't seem much point continuing. It felt like I was dragging it out more than he wanted to if you know what I mean. And I never got sore or swollen breasts so maybe there wasn#t much there .Glad I got that far but wud have liked a bit longer

Again, what do you mean when you say you often find there is nothing there?

It works on supply and demand and doesnt 'run out' by a certain date unless the demand isnt there.

Don't panic! Your supply will be fine but the 'full' feeling dwindles at around this time (well it did for me), without the supply actually drying up.

Just keep on feeding and the demand will keep the supply up.

I mean when I give a squeeze it's empty. It is weird that both gp and hv suggested that the milk might be dwindling, so that's why I thought it was common.

I'd love to continue until he was one, or at lease until I return to work when he's 10 months. All I know is that I was filled with worry about going to the hv to get him weighed today. He has dropped off the curve a bit.

I'm glad to hear that the full feeling left you also teaandcake. I was quite disheartened after the doc yesterday!

Their weight gain drops/ levels out a bit after 6 months.

Also you don't get that heavy "full" feeling, and sometimes don't feel the let down, once they are 6 months, but it doesn't mean there is nothing there. Also they do feed more often when they are having a growth spurt or being particularly active. (My DD is 10 months and still BF)

bugger the DOc.. mine told me once to give my child some PROPER milk...(when he was 1) I said "i beg your pardon.. he said he needed some proper milk.... now how wrong is that!!?? both nasty & factually wrong!! these old gimmers are mostly wrong... rinf LLL & discuss this with them.... im sure they will reasure you & give U CORRECT info... my health visitors are rubbish too by the way... when my ds was born.. they didnt even know what infacol was !!!????!!!! told me my latch was all wrong.. then ds went on to gain 13ounces that week????
Chim up love... do NOT give up cos of what they say... xxxxxxxx

Hello Again, don't worry about the amount you are able to express, it bears no relation to the amount your baby is able to get out.

Even in the early days when I regularly had zepellin boobs, I rarely had any leakage and never had to use breast pads.

My DS is 10 months old now and BF is still going very well. I hardly ever have the 'full' feeling these days (except when I forgot to bring the vital part of my breast pump to work with me) but I know he is getting enough because he has plenty of wet and dirty nappies also his weight gain is very steady.