Determined to dry up???

[Me]

I have had supply issues since the day dot... well ok since DD was a few weeks old. everytime my supply is good it drops dramatically. I have been taking Fenugreek for just over a week and i thought things were going great then i noticed DD wanting feeds more often, which i of course offered. i thought she was going through a growth spurt but days later it is getting more frequent. she went 4hrs this morning then only 2 hrs and was very unsettled after the feed so i decided to offer formula as a top up - she guzzled the first 50mls so i made up another 50mls and she has all but guzzled that too and is now quite content and went to bed without a peep.
what more can i do? she is now 4.5mths old and i want to continue to bf but it just seems my body is determined to dry up. any suggestions?
thanks in advance!
ps i'm taking fenugreek 3-4times a day...

[jaimie]

I was determined to bf too and my supply kept dwindling. I would recommend you get in contact with a lactation consulant or gp and see if they will give you Domperidone. Obviously its not for everyone , i dont think people with kidney issues can take it, but that worked for me and i was able to get in a few more mnths of bf. hope this helps. pm me if you need to:)

[InSaneOne]

my aunty said to eat lots of raw peanuts. they are supposed to help with increasing your supply.

[Goosie22]

These pages from ABA might be helpful, another thing is not to time between or length of feeds as it can cause you to focus on the ammount of time you spend feeding. The time spent breastfeeding a baby will be different for each person as you are an individual and so is your baby. Out put and general hydration are better indicators.

?Not enough milk (http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/lowsupply.html)

Increasing Supply (http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/supply.html)

Drugs to help boost (http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinfo/galact.html)

[Me]

Thanks for the suggestions - Jazzy's Mum - my GP has recommended me not to take Domperidone - but thanks for that. I will investigate the LC.

[Funkychicken]

Oh, JRmumma, I'm sorry to hear you are having problems with this again. I know just where you are at. The fenugreek and extra feeding is doing wonders for Hamish and I. My letdown is stronger and faster and he seems happier. I have also started offering a little bit of food-rice cereal and a bit of apple. You should see him gobble it down!
I have to agree with the other replies about seeing a lactation consultant. I rang ABA and had a good talk with them too. I don't know about your council but ours has recently introduced a lactation consultant for free help to all of the community. And she comes to you. Might pay to check with them or give ABA a ring as they have lactation consultants available and maybe even the maternity section of your local hospital.
All the best. :hugs:

[munchkin05]

hi i had all the same problems and from when ben was still in hospital i was topping him up with formula
but he his now 11mths and breast feeding without any top ups
he stopped having a bottle around 12 wks he chose not to have it any more

i spoke to 2 lactations consultants one was very helpful the other was a *****
one told me that becasue i had started to give him a bottle then within a few weeks he would rufuse the boob all together i wish i could go back and see her now

the other one was wonderful she works at king edward hospital (i got the number from my health nurse ) and she told me to go to doc and get them to give me motillum (its used to treat reflux but also helps milk supply) i think it was a couple of tablets aday and within 2-3 days i could feel my milk supply grow

ive still got some in the cuboard and every so often if i feel its getting low ill just take them for a week and im back to normal

hope you get back on track and everythings going good

[mikaelasmum]

Hi. I only formula fed and expressed during the first five weeks of my daughters life as i couldn't get my daughter to feed. I got help from a lactation consutant who came to my house and she was fantastic!! She recomended motillium too. my doctor hadn't heard of it being used for this purpose but prescribed it on advise from my lactation consultant. It worked really well for us, though it did give my daughter wind. This wasn't a problem though as the use of the motillium was short lived and the problem disappeared as soon as i stopped the medication. It didn't affect her in any other way. Good luck with it all.

[yackysmum]

DO NOT TAKE ANY OF THE DRUGS !!!!!!!!!
i guess my problem was the complete opposite, i had way way too much milk and fed my son until he was 13months and it took me 2 weeks of going cold turkey to dry the milk up but i went to the gp cause i was told they could give me something to help. Anyway:ecomcity:
After 3 days it wasnt helping and it made me so sick and i had no idea what i was doing so i called a midwife who told me to stop taking them ASAP cause they would send me pyscotic in less then two days:eek:
She told me that they use the exact same medication for lacktation as they do for parcansons disease(??sorry bout the spelling)
But they are directed to only give it to the mothers for no more the 3 days.
But definatly do alot of research and see a few docs before you decide your next step.The doctor i saw was obviosly as educated as i was on the topic(NOT AT ALL)
Apparently drinking heaps of milk helps as well.
But best of luck

[Me]

Don't worry Yackysmum - I won't be taking the drugs - my gp has already told me he doesn't feel comfortable prescribing me the drugs due to their controversal nature and I've been seeing him for years so i trust him. i know if i really wanted to get them prescribed that i could see another gp and they probably would but as i said i trust my gp and his opinion not to prescribe them to me.
i'm not saying that it is a bad thing for others to take them as they may feel comfortable with it, but I am not, not without 100% support from my gp... after all he will be thinking of the whole situation not just the bf issue and might have suspisions on other ways they could affect me.
after a stint of hrly feeds last night and both dd and i being extremely overtired i again resorted to a ff top up. (but only after multiple times at the breast).
my prob with seeing a lc is that i know my daughter is properly attached and sucking efficiently - she usually empties the breast in under 10mins each and i try to put her back on but she pulls off because she's not getting anything out. i offer both breast multiple times at each feed. so i'm not sure what more an lc can tell me appart from the helpful advice i am recieving here. i must be too closed minded to it - i will ring ABA and talk it through with them.
thanks so much all for you advice.. and sorry for rambling on:ecomcity: :ecomcity: :ecomcity:

[Goosie22]

The drug information I posted is for boosting your supply. The parkinsons disease drug is for suppressing lactation its called Parlodel and if you take it you are at risk of rebound lactation once you stop using the drug.

Domperidone is not contraversial at all and has been studied for the purposes suggested it is quite safe, however with any drug therapy it wont work for everyone.


Adding:- giving the formula in a bottle is going to reduce the desire for your baby to suck at the breast,that is why I would suggested using a cup instead. It is too easy for the baby to drink the formula, there is no work involved, if your baby is thirsty she will drink from the cup, otherwise she will take the breast.