Super sudden dip in supply?

[@llli*bbbsmama]

Hello ladies,

My LO is 4-months. Things have generally been going well. I started to have over supply around 2-months and a fast letdown, etc. Didn't pump, just been nursing.

All of a sudden, in one day, my breast aren't getting full at all. Even when I wake up, the breast I didn't feed last, isn't feel full ... Is my supply dipping ? I knowing regulated but so suddenly?

He has been nursing like normal and so far wets are normal. Although, doesn't seem to have any more super fast let downs where he chokes...

When he was choking, I was wishing I would make just a little less milk so he wouldn't, now I'm worried my supply is tanking.... Am I just over thinking it? It's hard to tell short term (1-2days) if the wets are really obviously less. He was taking one side for the last 2 months and now suddenly wants both sides!!

The only thing I can think of is that I had a tummy ache (and some dirreaha) 2 days ago... Maybe from something I ate..

Any thoughts? Over thinking?

[@llli*lllmeg]

HI bbbsmama. I think mama knows best, so if you sense something is wrong, smart to look into it!

Here are a few things to consider.

1) Milk production is biologically normal and so does not just stop for no reason. So could there BE a reason? Sudden(ish) loss of production could be traced to pregnancy, use of hormal birth control, or use of certain cold medicines-I forget the name. The kinds that "dry you up" in general. Illness in mom MIGHT cause a very temporary drop, especially if you got dehydrated due to it.

2) Many mothers find that somewhere past or around 3 months of age, (some earlier) milk production 'regulates’ to be ENOUGH rather than TOO MUCH. If a mom had higher than average overproduction, this normal adjustment can feel more dramatic to mom (and sometimes, to baby as well.)

I am not sure how many 'wets' exactly you want to see, it depends a bit on what type of diapers you use and what your definition of “wet” is. It is normal for baby to gradually urinate less frequently over time. But breasts feeling "empty" and baby wanting both sides at a time (or even switching back and forth a few times) can be entirely normal.

This is a good article that helps moms figure out if the problem IS low production or not, and what to do about it if it is. http://kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supp...es/low-supply/

[@llli*bbbsmama]

Thanks Meg!

None of 1) above.... I've checked out the article... I don't think it's low production just a drop in supply. I'll see how the next few days or so goes. (We are on vacation visiting family now and if need be, we can have a nursing vacation day to build supply up.. Always wanted to do that

[@llli*lllmeg]

yay for nursing vacas!

[@llli*bbbsmama]

So I'm feeling weird posting about this again.

After my initial post 3 weeks ago, my supply bounced back in less than a week. Then, I was in super over supply.... I was full all the time and leaking almost all day long. My little one would went back to nursing only one side and after a while wouldn't even empty one side. LO was nursing every 2-3 hours and sometimes 4 hours. That went on for a week or so.

And now, since Monday, my supply has dipped again. I am feeling so soft and hardly full even after a while since a feed. No leaking. I'm just not sure what is happening... In ONE day, I went from super over supply to making just enough.

I wonder what it could be.... I can't think of anything special I ate or didn't eat. I drink lots of water. I've generally been getting good rest (8-10hours of combined sleep in a day) .... I am just worried that my supply seems so sensitive....

Since I noticed the dip on Monday, I've been offering to nurse more. Funny thing is, diaper output seems okay still. I was really hoping to start pumping the "extra" for my freeze stash as I'll be going back to work in September...

Perhaps I'm just looking for answers that don't exist... I just wanted to share... And see if anyone else experienced such "ups and downs" in supply.

TIA

[@llli*Aeryn]

I have definitely experienced this up-and-down type supply. My LO is 3 months and my supply is a yo-yo! Part of this was my daughter's nursing behavior, which has varied widely as she's gotten older (she is something of a difficult nurser and I'm not sure "normal" has ever applied to her or her eating habits). If you do want to bump up supply, I highly recommend a couple of extra pumping sessions, maybe one at night, esp. if your LO goes 5 or 6 hours without nursing. (I mean like 1 to 5 AM. No fun, I know! But it can help.) Be sure to pump for all 20 minutes even if milk stops coming out, and take a fenugreek supplement.

I would definitely not beat yourself up over looking for answers. My LO's nursing story is a veritable saga and if there's anything I've learned it's that milk, and nursing, is WEIRD. I went into it thinking it was going to be natural and intuitive...funny how something so natural can be so very, very strange!

[@llli*karrieperry]

So I'm feeling weird posting about this again.

After my initial post 3 weeks ago, my supply bounced back in less than a week. Then, I was in super over supply.... I was full all the time and leaking almost all day long. My little one would went back to nursing only one side and after a while wouldn't even empty one side. LO was nursing every 2-3 hours and sometimes 4 hours. That went on for a week or so.

And now, since Monday, my supply has dipped again. I am feeling so soft and hardly full even after a while since a feed. No leaking. I'm just not sure what is happening... In ONE day, I went from super over supply to making just enough.

I wonder what it could be.... I can't think of anything special I ate or didn't eat. I drink lots of water. I've generally been getting good rest (8-10hours of combined sleep in a day) .... I am just worried that my supply seems so sensitive....

Since I noticed the dip on Monday, I've been offering to nurse more. Funny thing is, diaper output seems okay still. I was really hoping to start pumping the "extra" for my freeze stash as I'll be going back to work in September...

Perhaps I'm just looking for answers that don't exist... I just wanted to share... And see if anyone else experienced such "ups and downs" in supply.

TIA

This happens to me constantly, so you're not alone! My baby is 7 months. I think it's normal, I think what has happened is that your body is so quick to regulate (how you noticed it go back down within one day).

The up and down thing is driven by one thing...your baby nursing or not. And I think it's normal for that to vary, maybe even a lot. Some days my baby gets in 8+ sessions, some days she wants 7. Some nights she's attached all night long, some nights she feeds once or twice. I have given up trying to figure it out, she's growing well, happy, content, etc. I eat the same foods every single day and drink the same amount. I think babies change so rapidly some days they are more hungry, some less. And since you had oversupply, as did I, I think our bodies are hyper responsive to making lots of milk if baby wants it. It's just that your body is faster at realizing that baby changed their mind after a few days and doesn't want all that milk anymore.

BTW the feeling soft all the time thing is actually normal after the first 6 weeks (per Kelly Mom and another IBCLC that I've heard). The full/choking/spraying breasts are not "normal" after the initial child birth hormones are gone. Since you and I had oversupply it took a lot longer for this to occur, for me it took over 5 months to really calm down. Now if I have a crazy full breast day because baby didn't eat much at night, the next day it's gone and back to soft. But of course on those off days baby is much less interested in nursing because of the fullness and fast let down.

I tried pumping too, to reassure myself or try to increase supply, but that was a lot of work and it just didn't feel right (I don't work outside my home and I'm never really apart from baby). After awhile I realized that my supply was fine, and my baby was driving it to be exactly what she wanted. So far, I've been right, everything is fine.

[@llli*bbbsmama]

Thank you ladies for responding. I guess I just needed someone to "talk to"

I'll just keep at it,,.. Nurse nurse nurse and maybe add in one pumping session each day to start my freezer stash....

Although, baby doesn't even take a bottle yet. That will prolly be my next desperate post

I knew I can always count on these forums ....