Can't stop supplementing... help!

[@llli*weejen35]

I'm the first-time mom of a six week old little girl. She has been a great nurser from the start, but at her first pediatrician appt (3 days), the pediatrician recommended I supplement because she had not had a wet or dirty diaper since leaving the hospital and her weight was down (not quite down 10%, but close). I should have just trusted my body, but instead panicked and we started formula feeding that night. I'm afraid supplementing that early messed up my supply, and no matter what I do now I can't get my supply up and have continued ff ever since. I have been seeing a LC weekly, have taken fenugreek, blessed thistle, alfalfa, reglin, pump like crazy. I can only pump an ounce during a good pumping (and that's every 2 hours or so), which I know is not representative of how much she takes in, but it means I can't build up a reserve. And when I feed her, even in the mornings when my supply is higher, I nurse both sides for 30-45 minutes total and she usually wails because she is still hungry. Not sure how else to increase my supply. I know that every ounce of formula she gets is an ounce my body isn't producing, but I don't know how to increase my supply by nursing more without starving my baby. LC is sort of out of ideas. And so am I. Help!

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

Nurse. Keep switching sides. Plan to just stay in bed for some days and just nurse.

If you have to supplement, do so with an SNS instead of a bottle, so your breasts are stimulated.

Have baby checked to make sure she is actually transferring milk versus comfort sucking on you and relying on the supplement for growth; you will need to do pre and post-feeding weight checks to make sure she is taking in enough.

[@llli*weejen35]

I've tried the 24-hour cure type things, where I just nurse and nurse and nurse, switching sides. She'll usually go back and forth for about 45 minutes, getting more and more frustrated, until she finally starts showing real signs of being unsatisfied. I've used SNS for days at a time without seeing much result. I've done pre- and post- weighs, both at home with a rented scale and at the LC's office. At home, the most I ever got was about 48 ml, and that was after several feedings of 10ml or so. At the LC's office, the most I've gotten after nursing once on both sides was about 30ml, and that was after not feeding for about 2 hrs. I feel like I've tried almost everything.

[@llli*mommal]

Mama, I know supplementing stinks, especially from an emotional standpoint, but in this case I think you may have done the right thing. No wet or poopy diapers in a newborn is not necessarily a "just trust your body" situation. And since the pre- and post-feed weights you've done suggest that milk transfer is low, I have to wonder if something is going on that is hindering your supply. A poor latch in the baby would be a natural suspect- but you say everything is going well. No pain or discomfort when she feeds, she's not excessively sleepy at the breast, right? If not, then I would start looking into physical issues. Thyroid problems. PCOS. Retained placenta. Go over your birth control choices (hormonal contraception can cause issues with supply.)

Hang in there, mama! I know you are working your butt off, and it must seem like you're doing so for very little reward... But you are doing something awesome for your LO.

[@llli*tremom]

Maybe you should try Motherlove More Milk Special Blend.