Has your breast milk ever dried up on you?

Memigen's Journal

Has your breast milk ever dried up on you?
Oct 30, 2009 at 4:48 PM
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- Memigen
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With my first child my breast milk dried up after only 6 weeks. I was pumping (after feedings as my doctor told me to do after a couple of weeks of attempted breastfeeding that wasn't going to well to increase milk) and feeding like I was told to do by the hospital and doctors. I even tried supplements my doctor prescribed to try and increase flow and this didn't help. Eventually I simply dried up and had to go full formula after supplementing formula for her (I refuse to starve my baby and I was barely extracting 1/2 ounce to feed her and she was a great eater and latched on wonderfully etc.) for a while.

With my second it took only 4 weeks for me to dry up. I had to supplement for her as I was barely extracting any milk again to feed her.

I am now pregnant with baby number three and I want to breast feed as long as possible, but has anyone else ever went through this? When I spoke to a lactation consultant she looked shocked and as if she had not heard of this occurring before but I know that I can't possibly be the one and only freak of nature to go through this. ;) lol

Any advice is accepted and please no bashing on my use of supplemental formula. As I said I refuse to starve my child and I was not making enough milk AT ALL to feed either child. Also I DID do things correctly. I followed all the advice from books and my doctors on how to properly breast feed so it was not my technique or anything of that nature. My doctor and I agreed that supplemental formula was the best route and I will do it again with this baby if I have to and I will be fine with it as I know from experience even formula babies grow up perfectly healthy and smart (my children are exceptionally smart and healthy).

Thanks for all the help! =)

**Sorry if I seem to jump the gun on thinking I might get bashed... people in the arguement of breast feed vs. bottle feed get on my nerves being mean to bottle feeders.**

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Oct. 30, 2009 at 4:53 PM

Heh, I don't think you jumped the gun, I'm pretty sure some bashing will occur... Now as for your question, I was the same way. I was dead set on breast feeding exclusively, I read all the books, my hospital had lactation specialists, the whole 9 yards. Baby came, he latched on right away, no problems whatsoever except... I didn't produce enough. Pretty much from the beginning. Still, I kept at it, thinking my production would go up at some point, but when it came to the point of my baby losing TOO much weight, I started supplementing too. Pumping was a joke, I NEVER managed to get more than maybe an ounce out. I don't care what ANYBODY says, I'm not going to let my baby suffer just because I can't produce enough milk, know what I mean?

So yes, eventually my milk just dried up altogether, and I switched to formula. He's now 14 months old, and in my humble opinion an absolute genius, so I don't think it harmed him any.

You're not the only one, believe me :)