Sudden drop in supply

I have started to worry about my supply. I BF morning and night and express 4 times a day (usually) on top of this as I am back at work full time. My DD is 4.5 months old. DH told me that DD is drinking a little more lately and he's been dipping into my freezer stash so I have been trying to express 20 mls more/session. I usually get:

1 - 200mls
2 - 150mls
3 - 150mls
4 - 100mls

DH thinks DD is drinking about 700mls/day now so I figured I would try and get 20 mls more per express and it would be all good. I've noticed her morning and night BF's are getting quicker but she is still fully emptying both breasts so it makes sense to me she is increasing the milk she wants. But today I got this:

1 - 220mls
2 - 80mls
3 - 80mls
4 - 60mls

WTH? I actually expressed another couple of times other than the above and got 80mls both times because I need to milk for DD. I do have a really good freezer stash but I am so worried that my supply has dropped all of the sudden. I have googled lactogenic foods and will be drinking ginger beer all day tomorrow :) But other than that, does anyone have any idea why this would happen? Anyone experienced this before? This has never happened to me before and recently I've been feeling like I've got a bit more milk than needed again rather than not enough.

Feeling a bit worried about it all.

This is more likely a problem with the expressing than with your supply. If you're stressed, anxious, or worried then that can affect your letdown and the amount of milk you get out. Supply-wise, the best way to increase it is to increase the feeds.
Will leave it to the expressers to offer better advice.

Thanks Marcellus, I appreciate your response

Wish I could help you Hun...I just wanted to say

C'MON BOOBIES!!!

xx

Its worrying when you see your supply drop. Stress and lack of rest will always kill it off, and sometimes I just have off days where my expressed amounts reduce. (Background: I'm exclusively expressing for my DD who was born prem in June).

Essentially, the more frequently you pump, the more milk you should make. If I feel like mine is dropping off a bit or if I have a few days where I need to rest and do less pumping, then I make sure I back it up with a couple of days of pumping every 2 hours rather than every 3 hours. DTMS?

ETA: You could try what they call 'power pumping' LOL. Every hour you just sit down & pump 5 mins each side. Don't worry about the amount, its mainly about stimulating the supply / demand thing.

Is there any way you can take some time off and spend a couple of days tucked up with your DD and just let her feed? That would probably be the best way to bump it back up again but totally undertsand it might not be feasible.

Good luck hun

Me too! I've gone from being about to express 180ml no prob to lucky to get 30ml out total!! and bub is feeding every 2hours during the day but my boobs just don't seem to be feeling full at all anymore
I'm worried bub is going to starve!!
Hope someone has an answer for you though hun x

If you got an extra couple of sessions of 80mls I don't think your supply has dropped....it seems as if you have a pumping issue...i.e. the milk is there you are just not getting it out as efficiently...it could be a one off, happens to me some days. If it happens again tomorrow or ongoing it could be few things.....the pump may not be sucking as well which could be a few issues: the membranes on the breastshields may need replacing (you should replace them regularly) or as happened in my case the large membrane on the motor itself got a split and I lost suction and got bugger all out. Or as has also happened to me over time I have had to increase the suction setting I was using as my breasts seemed to get used to it and not let down as well. So my advice is give your pump an overhaul by checking all the connections have no air leaks at all, check there are no small holes or splits in the hoses, replace the membranes and then if that doesnt help try upping the suction (assuming you are not on the highest setting already)...if none of that works get back to me and I will see what else I can think of.....

Wow the support on here is wonderful! Thanks so much ladies :)

I am using my manual pump because I
found it easier to get milk than with my electric but I might give the electric one another go. I'll also check all the parts for suction.

I will see how I go tomorrow but if I don't get alot I will add some more expresses again to try and keep supply up. I originally thought it was a let down issue but I tried putting a hot pack on first and that didn't help at all which is why I came to the supply conclusion. Plus I am still getting letdown. Fingers crossed and as Yules would say COMEON BOOBIES!!

Also, if I was to get DH tp bring dd to me for feeds won't she be hungry? I express less often than she feeds and get most milk in the morning so would I still express then too? Man this is hard work. Totally worth it but very difficult

One way to get more into bub is to give her an extra bf in the evenings - even if it's only an hour between them. And baby sucking will be more effective than pumping at maintaining supply.
Can you hand express (i.e. with your hands) once the pump stops getting stuff out - sometimes squirting out the last bit can send the "make more" signal.
Also - serious distraction whenever you can - reading (I used to read draft reports that didn't matter if they got milky), music, anything but watching milk dribble!

You may have a period back too - that can do funky (but temporary) things.

Thanks Kmn, I actually can hand express a bit of milk out after the pump stops but it's generally only drops. It's a really good idea to give her an extra BF though because DH already gives her a smaller bottle around 6pm since she does like to cluster feed around this time. During the day I usually call DH and chat to him and find out how much milk our LO has drunk etc etc but I might try reading a book or something, great idea! No period here but I have woken up during the night feeling a bit off so maybe my body was fighting sickness yesterday. Time will tell.

Any extra feeds you can get in would be great. If you can get some feeds in during the day instead of pumping they would be more effective - she'll get more than your pump will in any case.

Anyway, great job mummy :clap:

Belle_S are you expressing as well as feeding or only expressing? 2-hourly feeds at this age are totally normal and it doesn't matter how your boobs feel - it's quite normal for that early 'full' feeling to disappear with a bit of time. It just means your breasts are becoming more efficient at making the right amount of milk. If you feed, you'll make the milk you need - you don't need to fill up in the meantime. Also, if you're expressing as well as feeding - many mums find they can express plenty in the early weeks as they have an oversupply. But as supply settles down it can become harder to express - changing pumps or experessing patterns may help if you need expressed milk.

Thanks again so much everyone for your speedy responses. I am so grateful for the support and I just wanted to give an update.

My milk is still low but the very next day after I posted this I woke up with aches and pains and felt very tired. I think I am fighting the flu or a cold or maybe even a tiny bout of mastitus as I am prone to lumps. I've been feeding DD at every opportunity and expressing an extra 2 or 3 times a day and been blessed enough to be able to continue to express the normal amount of milk I usually get (but it just takes longer!!!)

I am very keen to continue breastfeeding/giving EMB and I really really value the support from here. I took DD to the Dr this morning as she's got a chesty cough and he commented on how "robust" looking she is :ROFL: so I am taking that as a compliment to my boobs for their milk making :)

Yay for Miss X on her robustness... hope she gets over her cough quickly :hug:
Been thinking about you and how your boobs have been going... yep I think about another woman's boobies :ROFL: because I had a massive drop in supply for 5days, couldn't express anymore than 30ml combined! The most I managed was 60ml and that was in the morning when I haven't fed for 11hrs!!! But woke up this morning and hey presto my boobs are back to their milk making goodness :lol: Honestly never thought I'd be soo happy to wake up and feel rocks on my chest again :)

I only express parttime (1-2 times a day, mainly to check my supply as I have health issues) but I know that if Im under the weather my supply drops.
Yesterday I only got 50ml first thing in the morning - I usually get at least 100, and today I got 140mls.
I took heaps of vitamins and had a nap yesterday, so I think that helped.
Stressing really doesnt help, but its SO hard not to!