Hello - I am a Mom to a wonderful little boy who is 13 months. Despite a rough start we have have a strong nursing relationship. He has definitely transitioned into more of a toddler schedule in that he nurses only during the morning and at night. He takes in tons of food, water, and a cow's milk/almond milk combo during the day.
I work at least one night and sometimes two nights a week. Because we still nurse at night, I pump at least once a day to supply his bottle for the nights that I am gone. I was hoping to follow this pumping schedule for at least a month to build up enough of a stash that I could stop pumping all together by the time he turned 14 months old. Unfortunately, I am just not responding to the pump as I once did. I have never had an issue, but all of a sudden, I am lucky to get even 4 oz. I am well aware that the pump is not a good indicator of my supply, but what I am most concerned about is that I will not be able to pump enough to provide a nighttime bottle for when I am away. Could I substitute cow's milk with whatever I am short on in ounces breastmilk? I LOVE nursing him at night and I know it really helps to calm him down. I would hate to lose that session and I just don't think he is ready to let it go either buuuut.....
I worked 5 nights last week, which is VERY much out of the norm. As a result, I think my son has gone on a nursing strike. Although he may also be teething and not feeling well. He nursed wonderfully on Tuesday evening and then yesterday morning cried and pushed away. Last night he did the same thing and then finally nursed well from sheer exhaustion. This morning he did not nurse and just cried when I tried to put him to the breast. He is drinking water out of a sippy with no problem and eating with no problem. I've dealt with a nursing strike before, so I know that I should just keep trying to put him to breast and cross my fingers he comes back to nursing.
I am just at a loss of what to do. I hate the fact I have to be away from him at night. I am struggling with 1) how to make up for the lost milk during pumping and 2) being on a strike from my absence coupled with his teething.
Thanks for any help/insight/commiseration you can provide.