As I referenced in my post a couple weeks ago, I had some issues with my milk coming in, during my first month after little man arrived. We did great in the hospital and he latched so well, but for the first week home he was just crying all the time. We thought it was gas or reflux issues. At our first doctor appointment he had not gained back his birth weight and had gone down a little. So, we made trips to the doctor each of the next 4 weeks and he was slowly gaining weight until I decided to start pumping and see how much I was actually getting. The doctor had mentioned the word “supplement” in a previous appointment and I decided on a Friday while I was doing my grocery shopping to grab a small thing of formula.
At our house, we like to introduce something on a Friday when we will be home together over the weekend so my husband can help as backup and we can work out the issues together. Its be a great way for us to introduce sleeping schedules and locations. We are just really better when we partner and the pressure is not left on one parent.
As my experiment would show…the grumpy cries from little man were “hangry” cries. He was just left feeling hungry even though we would spend over an hour together nursing. So, I started doing some research and asking questions. I was committed to making this happen if we could and tried several things.
For one, I found out that my mom had issues producing and my sister and I were both formula fed at some point. And, when she was talking to my aunt about it, she found out that my grandmother had trouble producing when my mom was born. So, maybe part of my issue was just genetic. I also produce less on the left side which is where I had my radiation treatment 10 years ago and I wonder if that factors in at all.
None the less, after all my research, I decided to employ a few things:
- Brewer’s Yeast Supplements
- Fenugreek Supplements
- Lactation Cookies
- Lactation Muffins
- WATER
Each of these were super easy to mix in to my daily routine and lifestyle and have at least helped me maintain the supply I am producing to partly continue with some breast milk each day. At this point, little man is 10 weeks old and I pump 3 times a day – somewhere in the morning (9-10am), in the afternoon (3-4pm) and sometime before I go to bed (9-10pm). I pump the full 30 minutes that my pump will do. I don’t drop milk for 30 minutes, but I’m trying to keep telling my body that I need more and to keep producing.
Some people call it supply and demand, but I like to refer to it as demand and supply. If my pump (ie, the baby) demands it, then my body should supply it. And, if I drink that water, then I’m much more successful. I do notice that I produce 2 bottles worth (and sometimes a little more…water….) in the morning and then hopefully 1 bottle at each of the other 2 pumpings. His other feedings in the day are formula. The flexibility is nice and I tell myself to not stress about it because I think that makes the supply wane. As long as I can get the 3 pumpings in, then I feel like he is still getting something from me and anything is better than nothing!
I cannot claim the “making up” of these recipes. And, on Pinterest and other places, you will find lots of from-scratch recipes. But for me, I’m kind a semi-homemade baker so using bought package mixes were great for me and a nice short cut. I live in a small town, so having things I can buy at Walmart, a Dollar store, or a local grocery store are really my options. I bought the Brewer’s Yeast and Flax seed on Amazon because…small town and the UPS man comes on the daily.
I’ve made the cookies a couple times and my favorite is to use a Gingerbread or Pumpkin Spice mix. Those are usually seasonal, so you may have to look online to find them. But, Chocolate Chip are great too. Just remember by adding the oatmeal, Brewer’s Yeast, and Flax seed you are going to have a bit of a “nutty” taste so keep that in mind with your texture and flavor profiles.
As for the muffins, I usually freeze half the batch to pull out the next week after I make them and I keep them in my refrigerator so they don’t mold or dry out before I can eat them.
What else have you found to help with lactation issues? Or, to solve some of the obstacles with breastfeeding?
