milk died up

Amber - posted on 07/28/2010

I had a very low milk supply and everyone told me to keep pumping and it will increase but it never did so I just stopped. That was when my son was around 8 weeks. I have hypothyroidism and they say that can mess with your supply.

Kathryn - posted on 07/09/2010

Mine dried up at 6 weeks. Basically, though, I didn;t have much to begin with. If you had a particularly traumatic event that led to the prematurity (e.g, abruption, toxemia, HELPP), it is possible your body just can't do it. I was severely anemic after bleeding out twice prior to my son's birth, so it made sense that my body couldn't produce blood AND milk at the same time. Your body too might be trying to recover from your pregnancy ending and in the grand struggle, fighting to keep you healthy instead of producing milk. Food for thought ...

Angela - posted on 07/08/2010

i had to pump because my daughter was not able to latch on. My supply ended up dwindling, i felt guilty at first. but i realized i am doing the best that i can and that all that matters. They have great formulas like the neosure that give preemies the stuff they need.

Emily - posted on 06/25/2010

yea mine dried up after about a month and i done everything I could to keep it, fenugreek, pumped more, and even the reglen. Nothing. I wanted nothing more than to breast feed him, but he got some in the beginning and it helped alot. It got to the point of it was to painful emotionally to keep trying to so i gave up. I tried my best and its all i could do

Jessica - posted on 06/25/2010

I have been very blessed. I have 6 month old twins and am still able to give them breastmilk. They spent 3 weeks in the NICU and I pumped the entire time. Everyone in the hospital was amazed at my production. They were the only babies in the NICU to be soley on bm. I did notice it slow about 2 months ago, but I started taking fenugreek, 3 pills 3 times a day and it really helps. Neither of them latch on so they dont help with stimulating me. I just take the fenugreek and pump every 4 hours.

Pamela - posted on 06/24/2010

I only lasted 4 months but was luck to get 1 ounce each time I would pump that was for both! Maybe some of us just aren't ment to breastfeed. I was jelous of those women that could get a full bottle in 5 mins! You tried that's all that matters.

Angie - posted on 06/24/2010

mine dried up after 3 wks

Montana - posted on 06/21/2010

I dried up after about 7 weeks with my first two. I got my birth control shot and 2 weeks later my milk was gone. This time around I didn't get the shot and I am still able to nurse my baby. I don't know if it was the shot or if this baby eats more efficiently, but I am glad that we didn't habe the same problem this time around. I have also been drinking a whole lot of water and a lot less pop. Honestly I don't know what the difference is this time but I think my BC shot had something to do with it the last 2 times.

Kari - posted on 06/18/2010

I was on three courses of domperidome and my milk dried up at 18 weeks. Luckily i had frozen heaps so she had 6 moths of pure breast milk. It is absolutely heartbreaking and I think midwives ned to give more options as there are a lot of effective remedies that has been proven to work just as good if not better.

Kari - posted on 06/18/2010

How long has it been since your milk dried up? My cousin who is into natural remedies told me of a lady who successfully started producing milk again after it dried up. Wish I had known about it when my milk dried up. I was expressing for 18 weeks when, after my third attempt on tablets, my milk dried up completely. Was heartbroken. There is some great natural herbs which can help if you are interested.

Kylie - posted on 06/18/2010

Milk production can also be hampered by medication. Methlydopa (for pre eclampsia and hypertension in pregnancy) can artifically boost your supply then when you come off it, your milk supply can just stop. Magnesium sulphate can (but not always) cause problems too.

I pumped for 10 weeks, and then it just stopped. I refused to go on the motilium (domperidone) as I felt I'd had enough of medication, so I just gave in.

Formula is not poison, and sometimes, for the mental health of the mother, its better just to accept breast feeding won't work out. It's very very sad for you though. I cried and cried and cried the day I gave up.

Liz - posted on 06/18/2010

My daughter was in the NICU for 11 and a half weeks, so I had to pump exclusively to provide milk for her. After four weeks, I was struggling - having severe mastitis on one side didn't help, as the scar tissue from this kind of infection can drastically reduce the amount of functioning breast tissue.

Even the healthy breast didn't want to supply milk for long, however. I was pumping for longer and longer periods. I did everything: I ate oatmeal, I took fenugreek until I smelled like maple syrup, I drank Mothers' Milk organic tea, I took Reglan (with reluctance) for the maximum month that I was allowed to be prescribed it. Even with all of those things, I was managing a bare trickle of about 300 to 400 mls a day.

Eventually, the milk began to decline again to 100mls a day, even with all the measures. I had to give up on it right as my baby came home from hospital. I was exhausted from a punishing pump schedule and couldn't keep it up and look after her.

Emma, if you feel that you're running yourself ragged trying to produce enough milk and that you're still not succeeding, get your OB's advice. Remember, however, that you are very much not alone in this problem. As others have said, some moms just don't produce enough. We're not inadequate. We're not any less of a good mom. We tried our absolute best but nature just wasn't on our side.

You may find yourself facing a hard decision about what to do. Take a deep breath. The most important thing is that you feel happy, healthy and able to care for your daughter. It may well be that stressing over a diminishing milk supply is not as good for her in the long run than switching to formula would be.

You are still a good mother.

Good luck and big hugs.

Sarah - posted on 06/17/2010

I had good milk supply to start, but Zoe never latched properly- she was too small initially and we had to use those stupid nipple extender thingies and eventually mine dried up as well, at about 5 months. I had wanted to breastfeed for the first year, but it just didn't work for us. I felt really bad about it at first, but the pediatrician assured me it was ok, the most important time is in the beginning when they get the colostrum :)

Amalie - posted on 06/16/2010

I breast feed all 4 of my kids but with my last being a premm it was hell I to was on the motilliam tablets to help make more milk pumping every 3hrs but after 3mths I had to admit defeat an stop stressing myself out I was tired cranky an emotional Its not your fault your body is trying so hard to deal with producing milk early an stress will mess everything up Don't be hard on yourself it happens to about 70 percent of us

Jordan - posted on 06/16/2010

i was brest feeding for about 3 weeks when i just didnt have anything left. and the doctor told me that some moms just dont have enought milk.