Just one breast...

[@llli*irishlake]

Ok, so we have surpassed the 12 week mark! This is my Baby #3, and with the first two, I started supplementing at 4 weeks and quit BFing completely at 10 weeks. #3 is still strictly a BM baby! Woohoo! We've both done so awesoem with it that I'm not ready to give it up yet (even though my husband is pushing me to go to pumping only ).

Now, I've been back to work since she was 6 weeks. Pumping at work has been no problem, and I was producing more than enough for her bottles for the following day. She usually takes three or four 4-5 ounce bottles when at home with my husband or when with the babysitter, that is usually over a 10-12 hour period. She usually gets 3 feedings direct from the boob on my work days, one in the morning, one in the evening, and one I usually have to wake her for around 11pm when I go to bed. She is sleeping through the night about 5 out of 7 days a week. She has lots and lots of wet diapers and poops about twice a day. I only work Mon-Thursday, so when I'm home with her the other 3 days, we pretty much strictly BF and she eats 6 times a day, sometimes 7 if she wakes up in the middle of the night.

For the past week or 10 days though, my left breast is NOT producing much milk at all. For example, at my first pumping at 9:30 at work this morning, my right breast produced 3.5 ounces, and my left produced just under 2 ounces. I just pumped again at 1pm, and my right breast produced almost 4 ounces, but my left breast only produced 1.5 ounces. (I am double pumping with a Medela Pump in Style). In the past, I was producing 4-5 ounces per breast, which helped me stock my freezer because I made double what she ate. But we've burned through most of the freezer supply.

I will probably pump again at 4:30 before leaving for the day. Hopefully I'll get a little more.

I've done all sorts of reading on here, and am reading about oatmeal and fenugreek to help increase supply. (I'll have to do a google search on fenugreek though, I have no clue what it is). I've done all the massaging I've read about. I reposition my body and my breasts while pumping to make sure I'm getting out every last drop. Is there anything else I should be doing? Is it normal to have just one breast decrease? I am on a Progesterin only BC pill. I REALLY don't want to stop taking it, I'm a Fertile Myrtle and my oven is closed for business! Should I pump after every actual breastfeeding? Please don't tell me to get up in the middle of the night to pump, I'll cry. I don't mind if she wakes up on her own, because I bring her in bed with me and I doze while side laying feeding her, it's not too disruptive.

Thank you ladies!

[@llli*sassypants]

Firstly, your husband is pushing you to pump only? Yeah, he needs a good bop in the head with that rolling pin.

Regarding your low producing breast, are you sure it is a low production issue and not a difficult pumping issue? I ask because I had one breast that was always hard to pump and it became more and more resistant until I switched to a larger shield size.

[@llli*mommy2lilah]

That sounds like my production. You're saying that you pumped 5.5 ounces total for your morning pump? That's pretty good. And it's normal to get more out of one side than the other.

Good job making it to 12 weeks!

[@llli*amysmom]

Congratulations on making it to week 12!

I just wanted to second the "what the $#! is your husband thinking?" Pumping is WAY more work than breast feeding. It never ceases to amaze me when men have expectations that make MORE work for us, with no thought as to how it affects us, our relationship with baby or our combined emotions.

Baby is much more efficient than a pump so nursing as much as you can, when you can, will help your production to keep up in the long run as well. I'd probably pump the left side after nursing a little more often to 'encourage' it along a bit.

[@llli*irishlake]

Firstly, your husband is pushing you to pump only? Yeah, he needs a good bop in the head with that rolling pin.

Regarding your low producing breast, are you sure it is a low production issue and not a difficult pumping issue? I ask because I had one breast that was always hard to pump and it became more and more resistant until I switched to a larger shield size.

Yeah you're telling me! I think it's because he's jealous. She's happier when I'm feeding her, whether it be boob or bottle. She just fusses soemtimes when he feeds her, so it's easy to blame me. (insert eyeroll here).

That sounds like my production. You're saying that you pumped 5.5 ounces total for your morning pump? That's pretty good. And it's normal to get more out of one side than the other.

Good job making it to 12 weeks!

Thanks! Yes, total 5.5 for both pumpings, for a total of 11 ounces. Enough for 2 bottles for tomorrow. Hopefully I get the same when I pump at 4:30.

I guess I'm just panicking about losing the freezer supply. For a while it was no big deal to just grab some and thaw it out if needed. But now that i'm down to about five 8 ounce bags, I'm worried! I want to go back to 4 or more ounces from each side per pumping event!

[@llli*littleturtlelove]

Just as an FYI my left always produced half as much as my right. I would get 4 oz off my right and 1 1/2- 2 oz on my left. I never really worried about the amount, as long as I had enough for when I was gone. Totally normal

[@llli*mommy2lilah]

Ok, so maybe now I see what you're saying. Babies need about 1 to 1.5 ounces per hour away from mom. How much is your baby getting per day?

8 ounces each time you pump, 3 times a day, is a bit unrealistic unless you have oversupply. Babies typically need around 24 ounces per day. You're saying that you are away for 12 hours at most, so you should be figuring on 12 to 18 ounces AT THE MOST.

Have you thought about adding a pumping session in at night (it would suck, I know), or on your days off?

That's the problem with using the freezer stash. It's not supposed to be used to supplement what you're pumping, but more of an in case of emergency or if you're a little low some days and a little high other days. When you consistently use more ounces than you are pumping you are telling your body to make less milk and then your baby gets too full and doesn't nurse as much when you are together.

[@llli*amysmom]

She usually takes three or four 4-5 ounce bottles when at home with my husband or when with the babysitter, that is usually over a 10-12 hour period.

So that's 12-15oz or 16-20oz, making it 1oz per hour or up to 2oz per hour. So you're either right on or over feeding a bit, depending on your day. Try to make sure that you're using a low-flow nipple, that your husband isn't 'encouraging' baby to finish the bottle when babe is full and that he's only putting the minimum in the bottle rather than extra. You may want to make sure that you only put 4oz per bag / bottle. That way, it's easier for him to see that she's done, without encouraging that extra ounce here and there. It may only be an extra ounce, but it adds up.

[@llli*irishlake]

Technically yes, 12 hours is about the max she is at the sitters (I work 10 hour days). For example today - I breastfed her at 6:30, she ate for about 10 minutes. I dropped her off at 7:15. She likely ate again around 10, then again around 1, then again at 4:30 or 5. Sometimes there is a smaller 4th bottle thrown in there (sitter feeds her on demand). I'll pick her up around 6:15, but she won't be ready to eat from me again until 8ish, and then again around 11ish. So she's at the sitters for 11-12 hours but it's even longer between actual breastfeedings. So she usually gets 15 ounces total while at the sitters, but I don't think she gets that much when she BFs from me. So I'd say 24-30 ounces a day total is about what she eats.

I guess I just need to stay on a more strict pumping schedule! Sometimes I will skip that 3rd pumping event at work, because it's around the time I need to leave to round up all the kids. But then once we get home, I'm too busy to pump so I just wait until that 8ish feeding.

[@llli*mommy2lilah]

I would work on making sure she's hungry when you pick her up too. Can you nurse her at the sitter's house at 6:15?