relactating

[frippgirl]

My 8 month old was nursed up until 4 wks ago when I saw a drastic drop - reluctantly went to formula and gave up. I want to start to relactate now. Any experienced mom with that? Advice? Time frame to expect milk back?

[amyz247]

same porblem here lv they just tell u to pump often if u have any more advice let me know plz x amyz247@yahoo.co.uk

[TigerMom]

I'm in a similar situation. I'm trying to boost my bedtime-only supply to meet the needs of an adopted newborn. Here's the advice I've gotten so far.

1. Pump. After every feeding.
2. Minimize bottle feeding -- use a nursing supplementer instead. See Medela SNS or Lact-Aid. Get baby to the breast as often as possible. Even if you are supplementing with formula, baby is still sucking and giving good nipple stimulation.
3. Hand express after each pumping session or nursing session.
4. These are also supposed to increase supply: eating oatmeal, mother's milk tea, fenugreek.
5. Make sure your nutritional needs are met too: healthy meals and lots of water.
6. Look for a certified lactation consultant -- your LC may be able to provide other tools, advice, etc.

[BrandiJR]

Oatmeal did work for me! I thought my supply was going down so I ate oatmeal 3 days in a row and when I pumped that 3rd day after each feeding I was able to get about 5 ounces! And the normal amount to get is about 1/2-2 ounces total.

[Lorraine76]

Try lots and lots of skin to skin contact to get the breast milk producing hormones going. With an older child, bathing together can help and maybe see if they are happy to feed whilst in the bath with you. The easier it is for you to have a let down (milk ejection reflex) the more milk your baby will remove from your breast and in turn the more milk your body will make.

Also sometimes with an 8 month old its easy to over look attachment, you know you get so used to breastfeeding that its easy to do. But good attachment will help your baby empty your breast (even though its never truly empty) and this in turn should help your body make more milk.

Also when you are expressing are you getting a let down? If not again try things which will relax you or help you feel loving towards your baby. So you can smell their clothing, look at a photo, or just take your mind off expressing.

Get lots of rest and don't be hard on yourself, give it time and maybe if pumping doesn't work then try feeding more frequently.

Good luck with it.

Lorraine.
_______________
"Spend some time with me and discover the essence of breastfeeding."
http://www.the-essence-of-breastfeeding.com

[devoted]

I am going through the same thing. I have been bfing for 10 weeks and decided I could not do it anymore this past monday. My three year old is terribly jealous and hinders my time nursing. I just could not take it anymore and just quit cold turkey Monday night. I cried for three days because I missed nursing, and felt like I was letting my baby down. I began to pump again Thursday afternoon. I am still getting a let down but my milk supply has diminished a lot. Is it possible to get it back?? Will I ever be able to nurse as much as I was before quiting?

[LoganAndKeelysMom]

Oatmeal?? That's interesting. I can tell that my supply has decreased a lot since my baby started sleeping through the night. I pump 2 times a day in addition to nursing. I want to pump after every feeding like I did with my son, but I just can't seem to make that practical. Any suggestions? It hasn't gotten to the point of having to supplement, but it scares me!!
Anyways- about the let down you guys were talking about, what works really well for me while I'm pumping, is for my 2 year old to come up to me and kiss my cheek. He did it one day and my let down was immediate, so now I have him come kiss my cheek. I guess it's that loving feeling yall were talking about.

[vhiolin]

hi...i have the same prob...i gave birth 4mos ago that's why i was'nt able to breastfeed my baby..but now im back and i really want to breastfeed her...i really felt so guilty leaving her..can i still produce milk eventhough its been four months? pls....help

[chaosKOSMOS]

I think a higher traffic section of this board is the "General Breastfeeding". A lot of the questions being asked here in this thread can be answered there (most of them have already been answered with some very good refferences) and the more experienced ladies that have been able to answer questions and provide support are very quick with very good answers!

Good luck to all of you ladies :)

Grace