Relactating

I tried some activite this morning and nearly made me gag! i have read in another thread some success and others it has nothing for them. I think because i am on the Motilium anyway it probably wouldn't make a huge difference.

I haven't been counting how many breastfeeds i am doing atm but it would be between the 8-12 feeds. I did notice this afternoon i fed Jaxon a few times then a couple hours later i was feeling somewhat fuller so my supply is definatley starting to adjust some what. I also can hear more slurping going on while he feeds!

You girls have been so amazing, i don't think i would have made it this far without your help.

Talk soon

I've just come accross this, and just wanted to say what a great job i think you've done! :dance:

Danni, knowing how and when to drop comps can be really hard. You first need to be sure that he's getting plenty, so checking nappies and weight gain. You've done a fantastic job at building your supply up, so the next step is to work out reducing the bottles, if that's what you want. It can be really good to work with an LC, or an ABA counsellor when reducing comps, as the extra reassurance is fantastic.

Danni - rather than dropping bottles wholesale, maybe try slowly reducing the amount you put in them. If you reduce every bottle by 20ml that means that the increased BM need is spread over the day rather than in one hit where the bottle used to be. and if after a few days he seems a happy camper then reduce some more.

Thanks MummaB, it has been hard and it is slowly happening for us.

Janie i was thinking the exact same thing yesterday as he hadn't done a poo in a couple of days, but then today he pooed for me which made me feel better. I am still getting plenty of wet nappies and it isn't dark yellow or anything to indicate dehydration. I was also going to go into the Child Health Clinic on Tuesday to get him weighed. He is a baby that definately lets you know when he is hungry and i feed him quite often in between feeds, maybe hourly although today was a little more spaced rather than being ontop of each other. He only ended up having two bottle today as well, one at 10am and the other one at 6.30pm, he really wanted to go to bed at 7.30pm so i just breastfed him and he didn't want a bottle so i left it at that, although he might wake up a little more through the night as he has missed one of his bottles.

Kmn i always offer the full 200mls that is recommended on the formula tin and he has been having about 150mls most bottles for the last week i would say. I have been quite gentle in my approach to dropping bottles hence why i was stuck there for quite a few weeks on still the four bottles. I see what you mean and in a sense that is what i have been incorporating into the journey. I find that if i drop a bottle after a few weeks and then within a few days he is adapted and quite happy with it, i guess either way my supply just adjusts to his needs and some days he seems to be on there constantly and others days it might be 1.5-2hrly.

All these ideas are great as it keeps me thinking of other ways to approach this.

:D

Quick update

My supply is definately on the up. I can now pretty much express 20-25mls out of each side now :dance: I have only been expressing twice a day atm and popping him on the breast at all other times, i am just happy to see an improvement!

Yay Danni! :clap: Keep up the good work.

Went to the CHC yesterday and weighed in Jaxon just to see how he is going......he has gone from the 75th percentile to the 90th in a couple short weeks! She told me to drop the 10am feed as he doesn't really need it...trialing it today.
Yesterday he had only 100ml at 10am a full 200mls at 6.30pm and another 90mls at 9.30pm when he decided to wake after being in bed. The rest was just breastfeeds. My BB's were busting by 2.30am when he woke for a feed, i really feel as though we are on the downhill slide to fulling relactating now....i can now see all the hardwork i have done in recent weeks paying off :dance:

We had a shocker of a day yesterday....he wouldn't sleep! We are down to 2 bottles now and maybe it is him getting used to more BB'S than bottles. He did sleep through to 5am this morning though!
I don't think he was over hungry as i tried to put him down for a sleep even after his 3pm bottle and he wouldn't co-operate.

Well done Danni!!! Nearly there... He's going to have unsettled days for many reasons, with the way he's doing in other areas I wouldn't be attributing it to bfing over anything else.

You have achieved this all so quickly, what a star you are!!

Yeah, maybe just a bad day. You're doing great

You are doing great!!!!!!!!!! Sounds like it's going so well :D I agree with the others, he will have bad days regardless of how he's fed......just see it as an excuse to put him back on the boob LOL (as if you ever need one ;)).

We have had an aweful few days....no i shouldn't say that, it has been very trying to say the least! He has become overly clingy just wants to be cuddled constantly and i just don't get a break until he goes to bed at night....thank god he is sleeping well until 3-5am in the morning.
He won't sleep during the day atm, unless he is in my bed and i bfeed him to sleep during the day, i have been feeding him at his first feed in the morning at say 3-5am then he will go back to sleep for 3ish hours and then it is hourly feeding until i lay down with him for a nap where he will go 2-3hly and then it is back to hourly again till his 3pm bottle and then maybe two hours till another breastfeed or two or three and then a bottle to go to bed with around 7-8pm....hope that makes sense!
I have started to resort to doing a little house work of an evening, just impossible during the day with him so clingy. I know it is only a stage he is going through but gee i forgot how hard they are when dealing with it!
Would he maybe be going through a growth spurt atm as well, he is nearly 3 months?? I am perservering with the two bottles a day still, i hope it gets easier soon again. I don't think he is over hungry as he cries even after a bottle, if i pick him up he settles. If i breastfeed him he normally falls asleep on the breast and then soon as i put him down he wakes and is horrified i took him off the breast :rolleyes:

Cutting down to two bottles has been the hardest one yet, i don't think we were fully ready in certain ways but as the nurse said he doesn't really need it as he is sooooo chumpy! We will just keep going and i am sure it will get easier ;)

I expressed last night before bed aound 10.30pm and i just wasn't full enough for my little man this morning when he woke at 2.30am.
I haven't been expressing since he has been on the two bottles a day, but he took 110mls of formula at 6am this morning. He had been really restless since when he woke at 2.30am so i decided to make up a bottle.
Should i just not worry about expressing atm?? When he is awake....alot atm he is feeding probably every hour....gee i hope my BB's catch up to his needs very soon!

You will need to read my last post to get the full read on what has been happening.

Cluster feeding is a pretty common thing - my DS liked to feed hourly from 6pm to midnight at this age. Just remember that there may be lots of reasons other than lack of milk for him to be restless - so try cuddles and music and a walk before reaching for the bottle. Also - sucking on an almost-empty boob soothes some babies, so don't be in a hurry to take him off, let him do that himself. If you can feed him with you both lying down then you may get to doze as well!

As far as expressing is concerned - I would keep doing it if you can. You can always give him what you get out when he wakes up next time, and overall you will make more milk the more often you empty things.

I wouldnt worry about expressing atm. FWIW Byron just had a growth spurt and he was feeding every 2 hours day and night for 5 days. It was hard at first cause i felt empty all the time but it did get better. You are doing a fantastic job with Jaxon.
Also when he had his g/s he was clingy and whingy too :hug:

Thanks girls!
Kmn he is always in bed by 8pm....just what he likes. The past week has been quite tiring as my bb's are getting used to making more milk since i cut out the 10am bottle, this way he is going all night and all day without any bottles until around 3pm when he gets one. I could almost kick myself today for caving in and giving one this morning, although he only had 110mls. I gave him another this arvo at 4pm and he had 150mls...i always make a 200ml bottle as recommended on the can.
I guess i was wondering when i should start to see an improvement in milk production?? I think i was starting to stress as well, thinking i wasn't making enough.
Forgot about the cluster feeding too!

At the moment we lay down together for a day time sleep....only way he will sleep during the day ATM.
How many wet disposible nappies should i have in a day as well? He poops every second day ATM.....CHN said that was fine!

You probably are making more milk - he may have just decided to drink more as well!