How can you tell if supply is drying up??

[hellywelly]

After all our difficulties breastfeeding I have been expressing and bottle feeding my LO. Last weekend when she was a week old I was getting approx 100ml per express (50ml/one and a half oz of each breast) but this has slowly dwindled to 20ml per breast this weekend (two weeks old). Does this mean my supply is slowly drying up? My pumping times have been fairly consistent.

It's so silly as I know I've tried really hard with the breast feeding and expressing but I just feel so disappointed with myself and my body, like I've let my LO down. Ridiculous as she seems perfectly happy and healthy on a mix of EBM and formula, and I'm sure she'll be fine on formula alone as are lots of babies.

Just wondered what it felt like to have your supply dry up and if anyone else felt this way when it happened?

 

[BevG]

i feel the same, i dont feel full and sore when i wake up anymore and Alyssa is fussing and messing around instead of suckling properly a lot now so i cnt even use her reliably to up my supply, shes fair ripping herself off my nipple at times ow! seems annoyed that my bobs arent as fast as a bottle. i feel bad but tbh it would be such a relief to just give up and ff her alone what with the thrush and her behaviour my nips have not stopped being sore since day 1 really and it seems to just be 1 thing after another but still i just cant give up just like that lol.
daft really as i should be proud i made it this far but i feel like im failing at it now

 

[l_maclean]

Helly - can I ask why you are expressing instead of bf'ing?

Bev - I'm having those kinda issues with G - not feeling hugely full this few days - after feeling ready to burst. I assume it just means your at a point where your producing exactly what she needs.

Xxx

 

[BevG]

yeah but shes not taking it really, she never swallows for more than 10 mins and more often than not comfort sucks n falls asleep until i unlatch her then she cries. im losing the will to live as i pretty much have to hold her constantly attatched to my boob or listen to her cry

 

[Sarah13]

Not sure if you have been on the website but it's got some great breastfeeding advice (it's my bible lol) so could be worth reading to reasure you that your body is making enough milk. Its very rare for a woman actually not make enough but we all worry about this as you just don't know how much they are having, I still worry now and wonder how he gets enough when most of the time my boobs seem empty!
Here's a couple of articles from the site I found for you
http://kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supply-worries/breast-fullness/
http://kellymom.com/bf/normal/newborn-nursing/

Just another thought, do you need to express yet? It's very hard the first few weeks and most advice suggests waiting 4-6 weeks until your supplies have settled so I wouldn't worry about how much you can express just yet x

 

[Maria1977]

I could never express much at all, even when it was the early days and I was engorged in the mornings, but Oz always gained after his initial loss so obviously he was getting enough!

Best way is to put baby to boob, body can't be fooled by a pump!

After a short while you won't feel engorged anymore anyways, as your body as established supply, but baby will always get milk out xxxx

 

[hellywelly]

We never managed to establish breastfeeding. Evie was a very mucousy jaundiced baby who didn't feed for the first 24 hours, and then after 30 hours I was getting concerned about dehydration, and despite numerous attempts to get her to latch on with the help of midwives and support workers in the hospital I was so worried I said they could cup feed with my expressed milk. My notes in the hospital repeatedly read 'baby not interested', 'baby won't latch', 'baby falling asleep at breast'.

We continued to try and breastfeed for a week with the help of numerous midwives, MSWs and breastfeeding support workers but she either wouldn't latch on or would fall off after only a couple of sucks. She mystified everyone who came to help us!! I decided to express and bottle feed with formula top ups as I didn't want my supply to dry up.

I came to dread feeding time as I would spend half an hour trying to get her to feed off me, during this time she would get more and more irate and worked up, and I would end up distressed and in tears, and end up giving her my milk in a bottle anyway, so after a week and a particularly fraught night my OH said enough was enough and we decided that she was perfectly happy being fed my milk in a bottle so continued expressing with formula top ups.

I'm pretty sure you are right and my boobs are no longer being fooled by the pump!! So formula feeding it is. I'm disappointed but figure that motherhood will give me plenty of things to feel guilty about anyway so I need to just get over this and concentrate on the lovely relationship I have with my daughter (who I have to say is an angel baby who sleeps really well and is very content on all accounts!)

Bev, I think you will have to decide whether or not to continue with the exclusive BF, but the midwife I saw last week helped my decision by looking me square in the eye and saying at the end of the day, I need to enjoy my baby and crying everytime I needed to feed her was not enjoying her!! I now look forward to feeding time and we have a lovely chat and cuddle as neither she nor I are distressed. Also my OH has been doing lots of feeds and loving the company of his little girl. It is so difficult and I am disappointed but my milk drying up has forced my hand, and all that matters is that she is happy.

 

[Mrs. KM]

I have to agree with your midwife! You have done a great job and any amount of breastmilk has its benefits. The main thing is that you need to be happy. Don't feel guilty. You're a great Mom!

 

[Sarah13]

Sounds like you had a really hard time of it. Your mw is right you want to enjoy this precious time with your baby it goes far too quickly and def don't feel guilty about it these things just happen sometimes and are beyond our control and a little breast in those first few days is great x

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