Hi all,
This is the first post i have done so i apologize in advance if its in the wrong forum or posted the wrong way.
I am a first time mom of a 4 month old baby girl (4 months today) and have been EBF since she was born. I have had some minor issues along the way but so far so good - that is, until the last week.
My production has always been pretty good if not great and i had an overactive letdown which my daughter adjusted to nicely.
As of about a week ago my supply all of a sudden dipped (i think). I am a stay at home mom but go to school 3 nights a week so Gianna gets fed a bottle those nights and i pump when i get home to make up for the missed feeding. I was getting 6-7oz total from both breasts. Now i am only getting a few ounces. My letdown is also extremely slow from being pretty fast and it is upsetting Gianna, so much so that she keeps pulling away and crying. So at night before bed i pump and feed her a bottle and i do the same for the middle of the night feeding (except i have to pump several times before she awakes to get enough for a feeding).
I have taken Fenugreek and eat oatmeal but i have heard that the best way to increase production is to feed more often. Gianna was eating every 3-4 hours so i am trying to feed her every 2.5 hours but between the slow let down and the lack of milk Gianna gets very upset and will not stay on the breast long enough to wait for the letdown. When she does wait for the letdown she seems unsatisfied when she is done with both breasts. Mouth open looking for more. So i resort to a few ounces from a stash that i have reserved in the freezer because my production was more than she needed for the first few months.
As of yesterday i started pumping every 2 hours after she goes to sleep which means i am not sleeping much. I am nervous to pump after she eats during the day because its so little to begin with that i feel like she wont have any milk when she wants to feed.
Hope this all makes sense to you moms. Any suggestions/advice would be appreciated.
Best Regards
Elisa