"Lesser" known galactagogues

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

There are various places you can order bulk herbs online. The shop I went to has a website www.smileherb.com Think I paid about $20 for the loose herbs and then some for a little mesh brewing cup. But I'm thinking of ordering more from one of several places so I can get organic.

Yeah, it's hard spending money when you might need to tweak things to find what works best for you, as meanwhile it feels like you are wasting time and money.

[@llli*tarantamom]

@aprilsmagic, how do you take the shatavari? I haven't heard of that one before.

[@llli*katia11]

Mm...that's a shame How much milk are you producing a day if you don't mind my asking?

I produce a little over 12 oz right now, which doesn't *sound* like alot but it's actually awesome as I was pumping 4oz in January I'm just getting excited now because each time I pump I get at least an oz and this morning I woke up leaking, and it was WONDERFUL. And it is now a third of what he eats.

Yeah, it's hard spending money when you might need to tweak things to find what works best for you, as meanwhile it feels like you are wasting time and money.

I guess I feel a little bad because it is all my parent's money, and they are already so generous (and the domperidone is $50/month from Canada) I'm figuring one thing at a time.

In addition, I understand that some herbs may be helpful, but I have a feeling there are a lot of products out there designed so that desperate moms pay a premium for them (I feel like I've already done that a few times). Hence my worry about the term "support breastfeeding". In my limited life experience, I've never been really into herbs because I always wondered if the effects were merely psychological.

@aprilsmagic, how do you take the shatavari? I haven't heard of that one before.

I saw it as a pill, which I actually prefer as it takes out the guesswork and takes 0.5 seconds to take.

[@llli*tarantamom]

I produce a little over 12 oz right now, which doesn't *sound* like alot but it's actually awesome as I was pumping 4oz in January I'm just getting excited now because each time I pump I get at least an oz and this morning I woke up leaking, and it was WONDERFUL. And it is now a third of what he eats.

Go you!!!! Believe me, I know the feeling...it's exciting being on the 'up and up'!

You know, there are a couple of other things that helped me, galactagogues aside and I mean REALLY helped me. I started to get creative about my 'expression'...
Breastmilk comes in on a "supply & demand" basis-right? So...
Essentially, if you keep your breasts stimulated as often as possible, you get the optimal amount of milk out of them!
Obviously you're going to break yourself if you pump 30 times a day BUT, there are so many ways to engage your breasts. What I do:
-Pump, pump, pump around the clock. Make sure you're expressing your breastmilk at *least* once every 3 hours. You should have 8 pumping sessions per day in addition to...
-Manually express in between pumpings 1-3 x every day. I put a little bit of nipple cream on my fingers to make it comfy so if my fingers accidentally slide it won't tug or stretch at my skin. Express until there's next to nothing coming out-but for me this only takes 10-15 minutes at a time, and I get 2-3 oz out every time, and this is when I've only pumped an hour ago as well
-If you have a sexual/romantic partner and it doesn't bother you/them to do so, have them nurse you sometimes. My husband and I do this, not just during intercourse but just as a means of being close and it is actually a very nice loving thing to do-snuggly and sweet. Don't worry about "wasting" your milk because the stimulation will signal your body to produce MORE for your baby so you will actually be doing them a favour.
-Massage your breasts gently while you are pumping. You will get more milk out and the emptier your breasts are, the more milk your body will produce and so on.

Hope this helps! You sound like a very loving Mama for working so hard to feed your baby the right way Good you!

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

@aprilsmagic, how do you take the shatavari? I haven't heard of that one before.

I don't take shatavari. I don't need that much support -- I actually had an OS, but now, I'm pretty much breaking even and meeting LO's needs -- but I know a couple mamas who started taking it, a couple LCs with clients who started with it, and I've read about it being as good as domperidone without the high price tag and the hassle of trying to get someone who will prescribe it and getting that script filled. They were all pretty impressed with it. I don't want to take it because I don't need that much milk, and from reading about it, I don't want to risk fertility returning before I'm ready for it!

Lots of herbs work, but some work better for some moms than others. You say fenugreek doesn't work for you, but it works really well for me, and it's definitely not psychological I have a friend who has IGT, and she says goats rue really helped her, but I didn't notice a difference if I took it alone.

[@llli*tarantamom]

IGT?

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

Insufficient glandular tissue.

[@llli*tarantamom]

Ah. I was pretty sure I had that in one of my breasts for ages as, even when I have established my milk supply now, the max I could get out of my left breast was just over an ounce. but apparently from what I read most mothers who exclusively pump are never able to extract more than 10-12oz and as I now produce nearly a quart of milk a day (my son drinks far more than a baby of any age should according to the charts, BUT he is no chubby or unhealthy baby-he is actually the UK's 75th tallest baby according to his paediatrician so that explains his appetite! Eatnig machine!) so I figure when that breast produces between .75 and 1.25 oz each time I express, and I express 10-12 x per day, that's a bare minimum of 7 and a half ounces every day which is more than half of what the average exclusively pumping mum makes in her daily career so I try not to worry myself silly anymore I feel so awful for mums really suffering from this, it must be such a terrible thing to go through...I've felt so much insecurities when I was trying to build my supply not being able to feed my son and I can only imagine never being able to do so all the way

[@llli*katia11]

I thought I had IGT too. . an LC said I did. Then again I saw at least 7 so yeah. I pump a really good amount (4-5 oz) in the morning though, so clearly my breasts are capable of storing that much.

Thanks for all the tips tarantamom- I have gotten into a good rhythm pumping 9x a day. I leave a little cup on the bathtub and hand express when I have to pee! lol. It's not gross because it's before I touch anything. I am making about 14 oz!

Made lactation cookies. Idk if they help but I'm pretty sure I don't get enough calories so it can't hurt. Tried the carrot juice- I think it did help a little! Brewer's Yeast tablets have been making me gag. More Milk Plus is helpful I think. Plan on buying alfalfa when the herb shop gets more AND thank you for the link Susan, I will see about getting herbs for homemade tea! Especially since I love taking tea with me to class.

I think I am just so impatient! HOWEVER I did pump 15 oz the other day, which means I am halfway there!!!

Tarantamom- I want to make that weird caraway aniseed dessert thing. What exactly am I buying? Aniseed and caraway seeds?

Oh and tarantamom, no sexual partner for helping with expression. Although if I did, I'd probably have a few other things I'd need him to take care of first

[@llli*tarantamom]

Oh clever you!!! That makes me so happy to hear I can help another baby get the best nutrition / his mama get (what I think is) just about the best feeling around
but remember, no matter what people, potions, tinctures and techniques help you it's you who ultimately makes it all possible by going that distance so !!!

A comment on some of the other things you tried-fresh fruits and veggies always help, I find so it is no surprise to me if the carrot juice aided you! I wonder if some V8 Juice would help too?...Now I have a craving for that, darn it... Brewers yeast is...well I haven't tried it but I avoid any form of yeast like the plague because breast thrush is unearthly painful Vit B12 has similar proponents in it I have heard, however, and I *think* it helps. I take it regularly sublingually for nerve damage and have done before lactation however so hard ot say.

More Milk Plus DEFINITELY is helpful, but follow the instructions dilligently for optimal results and then between doses drink LOADS of water because when you are making milk you are getting rid of that much more fluid so it makes sense and drinking water is another thing that helps me tons-if I don't drink enough water to have me peeing like a pregnant woman then my milk output can suffer by up to 8 oz in a day, its awful! I am taking More Milk Plus currently myself, just because I like having plenty of extra milk and it helps make a couple extra ounces. I just got my son relatched a few days ago and before that he was drinking a litre of expressed milk every day (!) and now I am able to give him all of his feeds, express another 12 or so oz for our tea/cereal/if Osrids grandparents wantto see him for a bit, whatev ect, AND have my husband nurse once a day...I am not taking any other galactagogues ATM because I like to rotate different things lest I build a tolerance (plus not be taking different things so that I can distinguish what's actually working--now I know what works so I know the couple of things to rotate between)