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Weigh-In Wednesday #6

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Did I weigh myself this week?  Yes.  Did I do Weight Watchers this week?  No.  Did I lose weight?  Um…yes.  Weird.

So I’m finding that I’m SLOWLY losing weight no matter what I do.  I follow all my points to a T and I lose a pound.  Then I throw caution into the wind and eat like a pig and lose a pound.  Huh.

On another note, I’m having milk supply problems.  After I weaned her from the shield, my supply got better and I didn’t have to supplement anymore.  But no matter what I did, I never really made much milk in the evening, for her last feeding before bed.  So I would try to give her a bottle.  But suddenly my fastidious baby turns up her nose at bottles.  The same baby who drank bottles just fine a month ago.  And even still she will take a bottle in the middle of the night.  So I nurse her anyway so she can comfort herself but I always worry that she is still hungry.

But now my milk starts dwindling in the early afternoon.  Thanks to my advisory board (also known as the Honeybear Lane Facebook Page) I am now taking Fenugreek and Mother’s Milk herbal tea.  I’ve only taken it for a day, so I’m hoping it helps.  For those of you who have taken these supplements, how long does it take for them to start working?  And how much does it really help?

39 Comments

  1. Try eating more oatmeal too… it really helped me with my milk production when it was dwindling with my first son. hope things turn around for you!

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      Thanks, I’ve been eating it a lot! Good thing I like it. 🙂

  2. I’ll second the vote for oatmeal! Also, lots of water. I never used Mother’s Milk tea, but I did take Fenugreek.

    I took 3 capsules 3x a day (a total of 9) and smelled like a maple syrup factory. I started on a Saturday and by Monday morning my supply had doubled! You have to keep taking it for a while until your supply is well established again.

    Also, don’t forget that your body may be regulating how much milk you *actually* need to make. If you are truly concerned for baby’s weight gain, take her to a lactation consultant and have her weighed, eat, and weighed again so that you can see she’s taking in enough of a feed. Maybe set an appt for the time of day you feel you’re dwindling most. You may find that it’s just that the ta-ta’s look deflated even if the milk is still there.

    And breastfed babies eat a lot more often than formula-fed babies because BM is so much easier for their tummies to digest, so of course they hungry again quicker. Take a baby-moon 😉 – feed her every hour for a day or two and you’ll see your supply go right up. 🙂

    All the best!

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I’m not really worried about her weight gain, she still has wet diapers and is fairly chubby. But it makes life difficult when she clearly wants more than I can give her because she won’t nap hardly at all and is SO fussy all day.

  3. I tried oatmeal too since I’m not a big tea drinker. Some women also drink gatorade or powerade and that helps them. I always had supply issues, even when I was feeding my son every two or three hours…I was blessed enough to not have to supplement that much, but it seemed as though I had just enough milk for each feeding, while I had a friend who had a huge supply and was freezing a bunch of it.

  4. I didn’t use those herbs, so I’m sorry I can’t answer your question. Although if you’re willing to try you might want to consider adding a pumping session a little bit after your baby has eaten during those low milk times–it will signal to your breasts to start making more. Even wearing breast shells in your bra for a period of time throughout the day can stimulate milk flow. Good luck, you’re doing a great job!

  5. When I nursed Boston, I found that taking mothers milk tea three times a day helped best, and I noticed immediately. Also eating lots of oatmeal helps too. I never noticed a difference with fenugreek.

    I joined weight watchers to get rid of this pregnancy weight too. I found that even though it’s slow going (I don’t loose much while nursing), eating almost only all power foods has really helped with my supply too. The power foods are the green triangle foods.

    Good luck!

  6. I would say try oatmeal too. I had milk supply issues with my youngest as well. Once I started eating oatmeal once or twice a day I saw a big change. Also, make some “lactation cookies” (just google it!), they are full of stuff that will help you out too.

    And I’m sure you know this, but drink TONS of water and nurse more often.

  7. I agree with all the above: oatmeal, pumping, the tea and the fenugreek. I got a terrible stomach flu when I was about 10 months in nursing my daughter and I nearly dried up completely. I tried fenugreek at that time because I couldn’t stomach the flavor of mother’s milk tea any longer (I can’t stand the flavor). I also ate a lot of oatmeal and tried to pump whenever I could.

    What I am about to say is a complete no-brainer — but are you drinking and eating enough? I drank a TON of water when I started nursing and I was in large supply, but as B got older I found myself busier and didn’t take the time to drink the way I should! Just an idea in case you’re like me and would rather grab a small drink here and there rather than really quench your thirst!

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      Yes, I am super busy so it is hard to remember to drink and even eat sometimes. But I am trying to make it a priority!

  8. I took fenugreek with my second child and it seemed to help. I don’t remember how long it took. I also wanted to tell you eating asparagus helps. Weird, I know, but on my first baby we did the whole NICU thing then pumping then nipple shield, I lost milk, had asparagus every meal for a week, and it was back

  9. I never got Fenugreek to work on it’s own. It wasn’t until I took Blessed Thistle that my supply increased. Of course, I can only find it at Whole Foods across town. :-/

    For me, right now, if my supply is lagging, I’ll take 2 pills of each once a day for a couple days. It takes a day or two for me. I don’t know if it’s the herbs or if it’s the fact that I’ll focus on drinking water again. Last time, I had to take 2 pills 3x a day and couldn’t stop. It stopped working right away, so… I assume it started working just as soon.

    Oh, I notice a small difference with Blessed Thistle, but I notice more of a difference if I also take Fenugreek. But Fenugreek on it’s own never did much.

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      Thanks–I’m gonna look for that!

  10. How do you know your supply is dwindling? (not saying you’re wrong, just wondering why you think that) Baby’s often just want to eat a lot at night gearing up to sleep for longer. (cluster feeding). For me, even if I felt like baby wasn’t getting enough, I just nursed when they wanted to nurse. The more they nurse, the more milk you’ll make, so sometimes they want to nurse a lot, because they know they want more milk and they’re correcting it themselves. Plus I found that a few months into it, my boobs don’t feel full anymore, but they just make the milk on demand instead of storing it in between.

    Kellymom.com and the le leche league website (or find a group in person!!) are really helpful resources.

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I know it is. I can tell when she stops swallowing and is still sucking. And then is fussy and rooting afterwards and won’t sleep. It’s been a hard few weeks and I’m so tired! I’ve nursed her like every hour sometimes and my milk doesn’t increase.

  11. Someone else beat me to it, try Gatorade! Something about the electrolytes helps. I’ve been drinking it a lot lately and I really feel like its helping my supply.

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      Ya I bought some powerade tonight, so I’ll try that too!

  12. I don’t know about all of the other stuff but I pumped (no breastfeeding – long story) for a year with each of my girls so I new when things were low and what not. It sounds silly and like a no brainer but you don’t always realize it… Are you getting enough rest? Are you drinking and eating enough? I know you are trying to lose some weight but sometimes it comes at the detriment of your milk supply. I found the days I was really busy and on the go, I would pump up to 2 or 3 ounces less than the days I did less. If I didn’t eat the right things or drink enough, my milk would be low. It sucks when you want to lose some of that weight but I was amazed at the difference. Also, I agree with the extra pumping session. Make your body think it needs to make more. And I always pumped till it basically stopped. It was time consuming but I did computer work or something while I was sitting. I had a crazy huge milk supply – literally a deep freezer full. I was blessed with being able to pump plenty. I am interested to hear what works for you. Good luck!

  13. Ashley C. says:

    Another supplement I would recommend (if you’re not already taking it) is brewers yeast. It really helped my supply of milk. Also, guzzle water like it is nobodies business. That worked the best out of anything. And, it’ll help you in your weight loss, too! 🙂 Double bonus! Good luck with breast feeding. It was pretty much a challenge for me, not matter what. I hope it all works out for you because it’s such a special bond that a mommy and baby have. Love your blog!

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I bought some IBC root beer, I heard it has a lot of that. Is that true?

  14. As I read your post, it was those two exact products that came to mind. When I had my first, I had to go back to work for 2 months to finish out the school year. To keep up my supply while pumping I drank that tea twice a day and took the Fenugreek once in the morning. It took a few days to notice the difference. On the days I would miss my regimen, I’d notice almost right away.

    Good luck on your weight loss! I’m following your Weight Watchers progress b/c it’s what I want to try after I have this second in March.

  15. Monique W says:

    Heidi-
    I had major supply issues. So I tried everything. EVERY SINGLE THING. Some vitamins started a few days after taking them. I have learned I am tremendously allergic to fenugreek. If you have a question- email me about that. So if you find yourself itching in weird places, well, you might be allergic.
    I also wanted to tell you that there are things called supplemental nursers. This might help you maintain the breast feeding and help you feel that she is getting adequate supply.
    http://www.amazon.com/Starter-Supplemental-Nursing-System-Bottle/dp/B001G87KYE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1329345394&sr=8-2
    If you have questions about that you are welcome to email me as well. As it was something I had some serious issues with I love to help anyone I can!!!

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I don’t think I have an allergy but thanks for the heads up!

  16. The herbs should work pretty quickly.

    I agree with Erin Marie, who suggested a herbal supplement called Blessed Thistle – that was what I used with my daughter, and found it really helpful. It took maybe a day to work. I also pumped after feed sessions if I was concerned.

    I also hate to say it when I know you’re dedicated to losing weight, but my lactation consultant always told me that dieting was a pretty big no-no for breastfeeding, particularly when the baby is less than 6 months old. You may not be getting enough calories (even though WW will say you are — their goal is for you to lose weight, not to continue breastfeeding).

    Do you have lactation consultants you can go to for free in the States? I’m not sure. I live in Australia, and they are a free service at most pharmacies, and a real lifesaver. Honestly, they know their stuff and are so much more helpful than midwives or doctors, because their specialty IS breastfeeding.

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      Oh, I’m not dieting anymore. I would LOVE to lose this baby weight but not at the cost of losing my milk. I’m eating regularly and not counting calories or points.

      1. Oh, good to hear 🙂 Life, and the newborn stage, is too short to be worrying about your weight. I’m sure you look absolutely fantastic.

  17. Well since you’re breast feeding you’re burning up to 600 calories a day, even if you’re not doing much exercise. So that explains the weight loss. 🙂 I lost all my baby weight in about 4 months without doing any exercise, just nursing and eating somewhat healthy. But make sure to drinks loads of water! 🙂

    When I had supply issues I took Fenugreek and it started working in a couple of days. I think I took like 3 pills twice a day or something like that. But don’t worry so much about your baby getting what she needs. Your body knows what to do, so just nurse her whenever she’s hungry and soon enough your body will get the hint to make more milk. 🙂

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I’ve already been feeding her quite frequently for a week or so and no change, I seem to be getting even lower. 🙁 That’s why I’m trying so many different things.

  18. Great job with the weight loss! Keep breast feeding, it will come off. (500 cal a day from breastfeeding x 7 days a week is 3500cal = a pound a week!) Also, just a thought on the milk supply… how do you know that you aren’t producing enough? Around now, your breasts will start to soften and not be so engorged. This can cause you to think that you aren’t producing as much as before but that’s not true. Also, your little one is becoming more effeciant in getting her milk so she may not nurse as long. Also, if she is going through a growth spurt, it may seem as though she will want to nurse all day! That’s ok your milk will adjust! I would just watch your baby and take her cues. Is she having many wet diapers? Is she gaining weight? If she is then she is being well fed. One more thing, if you are judging your milk supply from how much you can pump…don’t. Your baby can get WAY more milk out then a pump will. When I pump I can only get MAYBE 2 ounces (and that’s when I’m very full). Obviously my 9 monther is getting WAY more then that when he feeds. Don’t worry though, it’s totally normal to feel worried about whether your baby is getting enough or not with your first BF baby. 🙂 I hope this helps somewhat.

  19. I used Fenugreek with my second baby and I wish I would have known about it for my first. I always have supply issues and Fenugreek really worked for me. Just make sure you take enough! I started really slow and didn’t notice anything. Then I thought, what the heck, and took a whole bunch (it was only the amount that was recommended to me in the first place, but it just seemed like a LOT of pills 🙂 ) and it worked very quickly–maybe a couple days.
    You are doing great! (So glad I’m not a nursing mom right now though! It’s tough!)

  20. Totally agree with RaeChelle – I was often worried about supply issues, only to discover my supply was just fine, and the things I was using to gauge supply weren’t accurate. Definitely keep an eye on it (it’s different for everyone, and some women do have supply issues, especially around the 3 month mark), but if little E is happy and wetting enough and growing, you are probably just fine.

  21. I never to any supplements to help produce breast milk. Breast Milk is made more on demand. The first time I ever pumped was when my son once 1 years old and get an ounce. The best way tell if your baby is getting enough is by diapers as long as you are getting wet and soil diapers you should be fine. Also if the baby is gaining weight that is good. Most people forget babies tummies are about the size of a golf ball and breast milk is easier from them to digest so they consume the calories from it faster and are hungrier sooner. I had one that I nursed every 2 hours. I also had one that was botttle feed and at 2 months she would down 8 oz every 2 1/2 hours. So do not worry to much your little one is hungry more in the even and seem to nurse more.

  22. I have taken Stephen’s Malted Milk. I’m not sure if anyone else has mentioned it (sorry, I don’t have time to read everyone’s comments), but I heard about malt from another lady who drinks it 3 times a day to keep her supply. I just needed a little boost every now and then and I thought using malt sounded kind of bogus, but I took it once and IMMEDIATELY saw more milk come in. It was insane how fast it worked, and it tastes great. I got it from the local grocery store in chocolate once and vanilla the second, but I know they also make it in strawberry. I know it’s not advised anymore, but my aunt even drank beer (because of the malt) to increase her supply while breastfeeding 20 years ago and it worked for her– same concept, just safe.
    Conclusion= works, cheap, and tastes great.
    http://www.walmart.com/ip/Stephen-39-s-Strawberry-Malted-Milk-1-lb/16383050

  23. For me, the more I nurse the more milk I have. So instead of supplementing just nurse. If your baby is hungry soon after nurse again and so on. Nursing on demand is one way to keep your supply up, make sure each side is emptied completely before switching. Water water water 😉

  24. Hi- Looks like you have a lot of great advice. I drank the Yogi brand tea called Nursing Support. I thought it was more effective in upping my supply than the Mother’s Milk tea. I bought it six boxes at a time off of Amazon.com- it’s way cheaper than the grocery store price of Mother’s Milk and tastes way better IMO.

    You can also call your OB/GYN and have him/her prescribe Reglan (it’s used off label to increase milk supply)… that dramatically helps!

  25. Yay for you for working so hard to nurse your little one! My two words of advice are to drink LOTS of water and always nurse on a schedule. Don’t miss a single feeding as this is important to get your supply up and keep it up. Miss as in I will just have Dad wake up in the middle of the night with baby and feed baby a bottle. That and go get your self a frosty at Wendy’s, the malt in it will also help with milk supply. Good luck!

  26. I popped over to look for your basketweave quilt from the feature on Ucreate and found myself engrossed! I had supply issues with my first daughter, but have been lucky to be keeping up better this time around – I think I’ve created a better relationship with my pump, and also stopped thinking I couldn’t feed her x minutes later because I wouldn’t have any milk to give her (now I know I do have some and like previous posters, it signals an increase to your body.) But you’ve seen that above.

    The only new thing I can add is something I just learned about myself from a post on Aint No Mom Jeans about Power Pumping – http://www.aintnomomjeans.com/2010/02/best-breastfeeding-tip-ever-power-pumping.html. You pump for 10 minutes, rest for 10 minutes and repeat for an hour. It does the same signal to your body to increase production, but you can do it when it’s convenient for you. I tried it the other night because I’ve noticed a slight dip in my supply, but I only did three cycles. I did notice my supply rebounding, so looks like a good technique! The post that led me to the Power Pumping tip was also for a breastfeeding supplement she was recommending: Gaia Herbs Lactate Support.

    Best wishes for happy and healthy breastfeeding!

    Jenn

    1. Heidi @ Honeybear Lane says:

      I have heard of power pumping…but I don’t think I have time for it! My life has been so busy. I really think that if I get more sleep it will work wonders. But maybe I’ll try PP sometime. Thanks!

  27. Christina says:

    I would also try Lactation Cookies! They have worked for me as well as the Mothers Milk tea and Fenugreek. One of the ladies from my Breastfeeding Mom’s Group sells them. Her website is cookiesthenmilk.com my favorite are the peanut butter ones!

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