Bo is in the 75th percentile for weight at his 2 month well check! And I contribute it partially to my diet and partially to genetics. At this age Kellyn was in the 30th percentile for weight and Rhett was in the 10th. The one thing they all had in common after birth was that they were all slow to gain back their birthweight. I've had different breastfeeding issues with each baby. The pediatrician wants your baby back up to their birthweight by the time they are 2 weeks old and if they aren't you get in trouble. However, all 3 of my kids did not get back to their birthweight until they were 3 weeks old. With Kellyn, my first born, the doctor had me pump, let it set in the fridge over night then take it in to him to check the fat line. He said I did not have enough fat in my milk and was a little low on supply. So he told me to eat a beef angus ribeye steak and drink 6 ounces of a full bodied beer to put fat in my milk and to take fenugreek and blessed thistle to increase my supply. I did and it worked! He also suggested to pump after each feeding (which was a pain) to trick your body into making more milk. I was only able to do that with baby #1. It was too hard to sit and nurse then pump with a 2 1/2 year old running around for baby #2, but with #3 I've been able to nurse then pump off excess after the first morning feeding. With Rhett (#2) I did the same thing plus ate avocados and now with Bo I have learned even more. So after baby #3 here is my recipe for breast milk.
First of all, nurse every 2 hours or more and lay skin to skin in those early hours, days, and weeks. It's all about supply and demand. Nurse often and frequently! You create the demand and your body will create the supply. I would wake him and force feed him during the day to try to get those 8 to 10 feeding within 24 hours during the daylight hours as much as possible. And guess who has been sleeping through the night since he was 8 weeks old!
Increase supply:
Fenugreek
Blessed Thistle
(I take these 2 herbs morning and night)
Brewer's Yeast
Rolled Oats (NOT Instant or Quick)
Lots and lots of water then more water.
You should be drinking so much water that you have to go to the bathroom every time your baby nurses (every 2 to 3 hours).
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| I drink one and a half of these every day! |
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| We go through one of these every 4 days!! |
Increase Fat:
Beef Angus Ribeye
Full bodied beer
Avocado
Walnuts
Flaxseed
Cod Liver Oil
Eggs
I pretty much eat either eggs with avocado or oatmeal every morning.
Instead of lactation cookies I made lactation Energy Bites:
Keep these in the fridge and you'll have a quick energy-booster to grab for breakfast or anytime you need a quick snack plus it's good for breast milk!
Ingredients:
1 cup dry rolled oats (I use 1/2 quick oats and 1/2 cup old-fashioned)
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 Tablespoon Brewer's Yeast
2/3 cups coconut
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/3 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions:
Combine all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl then add in the vanilla, honey, and PB and mix thoroughly.
Let chill in the fridge for thirty minutes.
Using your hands, shape into balls (about the size of traditional meatballs ... around 1"). You will really want to squeeze and mold these tightly to get them into a ball shape. If your mixture seems too dry to shape, squeeze in a little more honey or add in a little more creamy peanut butter.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week. Although, mine are always gone in less than a week. Max takes them for a snack and I put them in the kids' lunches.
I also eat oatmeal or eggs every morning. I make my own packets of oatmeal so it's quick and easy in the morning and while I'm nursing Max cooks it for me on the stove. I'm starving in the mornings and oatmeal really fills me up plus I can add what I need in it like walnuts and flaxseed. I found the recipe here.
Here is a yummy, healthy snack you can make.
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1 1//2 cups of frozen blueberries
Handful of ground almonds or walnuts
1 teaspoon of flaxseed/ chia seed mix
The breastfeeding issues I've had aside from low supply and low fat:
Kellyn - she has a recessed chin and high arch in the roof of her mouth causing a difficult and painful latch. We had to use the SNS for the first 2 weeks of her life, but finally got it. I had to sit up, leaning forward in an uncomfortable position that always hurt my back in order for her to latch on. We had to give her formula for 1 feeding each night so she would gain weight and I could sleep. (sleep produces breast milk also) Then we got thrush when she was 8 weeks old. It ate through my nipple causing it to bleed for weeks when she nursed. Then I got a sinus infection and bronchitis and spiked a 104 fever when Kellyn was 8 weeks old. My body was now forced to take care of me instead of the baby and my milk went away for 3 days! My pediatrician assured me it would come back if I did all the above steps and sure enough it did. I was just so lucky I had so much in the freezer from pumping off extra to give her during that time. She nursed until she was 14 months old when I finally had wean her.
Rhett - He latched on great and didn't need any formula until he was 6 months old when he just up and tried to quit nursing. I got him back to it, but then he finally quit at 10 months. :( I think what I did wrong with him was not breastfeeding in public. I would pump and give him a bottle in public which I think made my body think he didn't need as much plus he just would not sit still to nurse. He started to prefer the bottle.
Bo - So far so good. The only issue he has is that he doesn't like the right side and practically refused it the first few months. He will latch on it, but it is more painful for me on that side and he has to be at the right angle to really latch on and stay on.
I tell you all this to encourage you to keep trying, but to also know that you are not alone in feeling that breastfeeding isn't easy and to not feel bad if you can't breastfeed. You have to listen to your body and your baby. If breastfeeding isn't working Do Not keep doing it. Some babies have a milk protein allergy, others may be tongue tied and can only suck out the foremilk and not the hindmilk. Some moms get mastitis more than once. No one blames you if you stop after that. The list goes on. Please know that if you end up having to give your baby formal they will still go to college and be healthy. Do not beat yourself up if it just doesn't work out the way you romantized it. It's ok and SAFE to not breastfeed. I know we are always told that breast is best, but what if it's not. Some babies exclusively breastfeeding are diagnosed with failure to thrive. What if your baby would actually thrive on formula? What if your baby's colic would go away if you gave him prescription formula? You would do it! I love breastfeeding! And grieve the loss of it each time I'm done and #3 will be no different. My heat breaks for those who cannot breastfeed who want to so badly, but just can't for one reason or another.
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