Should I throw in the towel?

[king26]

I need some honest advice. I don't think I have enough breast milk to satisfy my child. I feel like my supply is really low. He will refuse one breast each feeding. He will feed on and off foe 30 minutes from the other one. However, he often cries and sucks his fingers when he stops feeding. Last week when I was pumping I was getting 5ml on each side. Yesterday when I pumped I got just a few drops per side. Shouldn't I be making more not less at this point? I try pumping after feeding or when DH gives him formula but still get little to no milk.

My baby is 10 days old. We are supplementing with formula at night because he can't sleep. We are giving an ounce before bed and an ounce during the night and it helps a bit.

I'm seeing a lactation consultant this week but I want to make sure my child is well fed and that I have enough milk. What should it feel like? My breasts get a little heavy and hot but not hard or full. I need some advice because it's stressing me, baby, and my husband out not knowing if I should continue breast feeding or go to all formula.

[loony]

The major measure is output. Baby should be having 6-8 wet and/or soiled diapers a day. Is baby gaining weight?

Pump output is NOT at all a measure of what baby is getting. I have been BF for almost 4 years and even when my baby was in the NICU and not actively nursing, I could only pump about an ounce out of both sides combined.

Has baby been evaluated for a lip or tongue tie? That can affect how much he can transfer at a time. Also, spend as much time skin to skin as possible and feed on demand, any time baby news, feed. If he's not transferring much each feed, he may need to feed more often. I have low storage, (which correlates to the low pump output) and had to feed more frequently.

Kellymom was a great resource for me in addition to lactation consultants and lots and lots of nursing.

Good luck. I hope things settle for you soon.

kellymom.com/hot-topics/low-supply/

[yourpaceormine]

My LO wasn't transferring (weighted feeding she only transferred .4 oz my first visit with the LC.) she put me on a schedule of nurse, bottle feed and pump. So I nursed both sides for 10-15 minutes (also doing breast compressions while nursing.) then would offer a 2oz bottle (either formula or BM depending if I had enough pumped.) then pump for 20 minutes, again doing compressions while pumping. This helped keep my supply up, while my LO worked on a good transfer. The supplementing was to work on her gaining properly. In 3.5 weeks we went from .4 oz transfer to 1.1oz.
I was also trying to get one power pump session a day in.
I wouldn't throw in the towel until after your visit with the LC.

[gimmesugar]

I'm so sorry king26. You obviously have to do what's best for you and your baby. As a FTM, I was stressed about being able to breastfeed because I REALLY wanted it to work. H and I went to BF classes together, and we agreed that we would give it 2 weeks and do whatever we could to make it work before making any major decisions. I told him that I would work with a LC before throwing in the towel. It never came to that, but I'm glad that we had an agreement. Your body and your baby are still trying to figure this out, and you may need some additional assistance....and that's ok. Definitely monitor output and understand that frequent and long nursing sessions are normal, especially since baby goes through a growth spurt and needs to cluster feed shortly after you get home.

Very little pumping output between feedings is normal...sometimes just .5 oz total. (Per Kellymom: kellymom.com/hot-topics/pumping_decrease/)

[sunfrogger]

I also want to point out in addition to what PPs have said your baby is 10 days old. At that age we clusterfed for hours and I was ready to throw in the towel. Is baby giving you 6-8 wets? If so then don't be too alarmed.

Also i found compressions while actively nursing helped a LOT. Help baby get that let down started.

Finally take advantage of the LC. Don't let her leave until you are fully comfortable.

Let us know how you make out!!

[gimmesugar]

I just remembered that the LC at the hospital specifically told me not to freak out and warned me that I will doubt myself when baby cluster feeds during the growth spurt that occurs at around 7-10 days old.

[king26]

Thank you all, this is very helpful. Apparently the LC's weren't in today because of the holiday. I've had a call in since Friday and hope to be able to see them at some point tomorrow just to have an idea of how I'm doing. I've continued to supplement with formula but I'm feeling a little better about nursing. When he pulls off he has a milky smile, first thing in the morning I'm at least pumping some breastmilk (less then an ounce but something), and he's nursing for anywhere between 20-40 minutes so I figure he must be getting something. Yes I am supplementing several times a day but even so we are getting anywhere between 7-8 wet diapers plus 1-2 dirty diapers.

[piratecat]

king26 it can take some time to get your supply up to where it needs to be. 5 ml per side was about the average amount I pumped for the first couple of weeks as well, so you are certainly not alone. Your supply varies throughout the day, too, so just because you pump less at any given time doesn't mean much. The primary purpose of pumping is to empty your breasts more frequently to signal to your body that it needs to produce more milk to meet the demand. So while not seeing much output can be discouraging, it is the best thing you could be doing right now to increase your supply.

And it doesn't have to be all or nothing. If your baby is not gaining enough weight, you could continue supplement with formula while your supply catches up, and you can decrease the amount of formula as your baby gets more of what she needs from you. I hope that the LC can come up with a good plan for you going forward. Good luck!

[Dramaphile]

My daughter would feed on one side and then fuss and try to latch and unlatch after, and I figured out she wanted to comfort nurse, but didn't want the milk that kept coming. Offering a pacifier helped to calm her after she was done nursing. He may be getting enough from just one breast and simply wants to suck to comfort herself.

Sounds like you're on the right track, and hopefully a visit with a LC will help you even more. New motherhood is a lot of second-guessing yourself!

[yourpaceormine]

king26, have you made it in to see the LC yet? How did it go?