Hellobee Boards Topic: Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!

Hellobee Boards Topic: Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help! https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 16 May 2026 12:21:18 +0000 nicollette1189 on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2243597 Thu, 23 Jul 2015 08:06:37 +0000 nicollette1189 2243597@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ms. pug: that's awesome! I'm hoping to up my supply to get more of a freezer stash going, so I will be coming back to this :) ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2243577 Thu, 23 Jul 2015 07:47:03 +0000 ms. pug 2243577@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Just wanted to thank everyone again for their help- increasing length of sessions alone has already made a difference. I went from 28oz MAX per day to 30-33 per day in only 6 days. I am hoping to continue seeing it climb to about 40!! TiredmommaMD on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239535 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 15:57:37 +0000 TiredmommaMD 2239535@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Seems like you are doing all the right things! The only thing that I did besides what you have listed is add a MOTN/Super-early morning pump. It was a little tricky to time it because I didn't know for sure when LO would wake up to nurse, and it was super painful to do because it was yet another wake up in addition to nursing LO. I would pump around 90 minutes after one of LO night wakings. For example if we nursed at 2am I would set my alarm to pump at 3:30am. This would get me another 4 ounces. My supply was pretty high in the wee hours of the morning. lady grey on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239502 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 15:09:36 +0000 lady grey 2239502@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I agree with @kiddosc about doing breats compression while pumping, and also trying power pumping is a good idea. Also when you pump at work, watch a video of your baby. Also make sure to avoid mint and sage (in tea or food) as those will decrease your supply. You could try drinking a non alcoholic beer daily. Another herb that can help is Goats Rue, you could try that instead of fenugreek. I have heard that eating quinoa helps some mom's with their supply. mrsjyw on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239470 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:30:54 +0000 mrsjyw 2239470@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Af returned for me at 4.5 months and my supply took a hit. I started taking fenugreek, mmt, extra water, sleeping earlier, power pumping sessions and took magnesium/calc supplements since my decrease was due to Af. I repeated the same every week Af was around until 13 months. And kept up to ebf ds. It got easier at 6, 9, 11 months as ds' intake decreased. ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239467 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:27:47 +0000 ms. pug 2239467@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @junebugsmama: I hope so too! For now I'm going to increase the time in at least a few of my sessions, try overnight oats, and add a power pump session. I can't run to the store today for the oils/ other things but will definitely do that if I still have issues! Thanks everyone! mrsbubbletea on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239459 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:24:04 +0000 mrsbubbletea 2239459@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ms. pug: sounds like you are doing a lot. I hope these pumping tips help. The only good part about having a reluctant bottle consumer is that I pump more than he eats while I am gone! He may be starving and wanna eat all might after that... :silly: ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239452 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:14:50 +0000 ms. pug 2239452@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Portboston: I will look into that- thank you!!! ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239450 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:13:54 +0000 ms. pug 2239450@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @junebugsmama: LO nurses 2-3 times a night. He goes to bed at 8pm, then nurses around 12,3, and 5. I used to do a dream feed at 10, but after many MANY nights realized this was very much disrupting LO's sleep and dropped it. I pump at 10 now instead. @nicollette1189: Since LO is up 2-3 times anyway and I work full-time, I think getting up again to pump may kill me, LOL. Portboston on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239449 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:10:24 +0000 Portboston 2239449@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I have no experience with this since Im currently pregnant with my first but a friend of mine swears by fennel and basil essential oils. You mix a drop or two of each with some coconut oil and rub it on your breast, avoiding the nipple. Fennel you can only do 10 days at a time, then you have to take a few days off but basil you can do straight through. There are a few blogs on this if you care to google. nicollette1189 on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239438 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:03:57 +0000 nicollette1189 2239438@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Can you add a MOTN pump instead of a dream feed so you wouldn't wake up baby? And I've heard of Fenugreek decreasing supply for some people, especially if you have thyroid/diabetes issues. Maybe try cutting that for a couple days to see what works? josina on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239431 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 14:00:13 +0000 josina 2239431@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ms. pug: I don't think I would drop a session... I '3rd' pumping longer, I was able to increase supply by pumping for 26 minutes instead of 20, I get 'let down's roughly at 7, 12, 17 and 23 minutes. When I went from 4 sessions down to 3 I was getting about a half ounce to an ounce less, which is why I don't think cutting a session would help. mrsbubbletea on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239411 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:44:13 +0000 mrsbubbletea 2239411@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ms. pug: how many times do you nurse during the night? I wonder if adding in maybe a dream feed type would help? My baby started getting in that distracted nosy phase when nursing during the day around that age. ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239395 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:34:05 +0000 ms. pug 2239395@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @kiddosc: great advice, thank you!!! I will try the power pump. I do compressions when i pump, i forgot to mention that! kiddosc on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239374 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:18:05 +0000 kiddosc 2239374@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Do you do compressions when you pump? There are some good youtube videos on how to do this. I'm at work now, so I can't look them up for you. I would also power pump for a week for one of your evening pump sessions to try to increase output for that session. You pump for 10 minutes, rest for 10 minutes, pump for 10, etc... for an hour. This simulates a growth spurt and will help increase output for that session. mfa_lady on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239369 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:12:11 +0000 mfa_lady 2239369@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ms. pug: I think you'll love it! Might take you a minute to get used to eating them cold instead of hot, but they're delish. Enjoy! :) ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239365 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:10:31 +0000 ms. pug 2239365@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mfa_lady: wait, this is genius! I always thought overnight oats had to be made in a crock pot or something? Wow, *facepalm*. Adding all of these things to my grocery list! Thanks SO much! ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239363 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:09:00 +0000 ms. pug 2239363@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @autumnlove: Thank you! I will definitely try. With work, it's very hard. and at home, I'm usually caring for the baby alone which also makes long sessions difficult (my husband travels). Do you think number of sessions or length of sessions makes more of a difference (I keep reading conflicting views...)? For example, I could drop from 4 to 3 sessions at work, and make them 25-30 minutes instead of 10-15 minutes? mfa_lady on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239362 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:08:59 +0000 mfa_lady 2239362@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @autumnlove: Agree. I get a solid couple ounces extra in the time between 18/20 and 30 minutes. @ms. pug: If you're wanting to switch to real oats, try overnight oats! I do equal parts rolled oats and coconut milk for mine, then add either 1) cocoa powder, coconut, and chocolate chips or 2) coconut, brown sugar, and frozen fruit. Just let it sit in a tupperware or mason jar overnight and you can grab and go! My husband loves them, too. So convenient! You could also use any kind of milk AND still add your flax seeds to whatever other combinations you make. autumnlove on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239360 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:05:03 +0000 autumnlove 2239360@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I would try increasing your pumping sessions to 25-30 mins when it is possible. ms. pug on "Increasing supply at 4.5 months? Help!" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/increasing-supply-at-45-months-help#post-2239358 Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:03:49 +0000 ms. pug 2239358@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I need some help from all of you that pump successfully! Some background: LO is 4.5 months old and has been EBF since birth. I recently returned to work and am meeting his needs fine, but am only very slowly building a freezer stash. I have been working very hard to increase my supply using the great advice in previous threads, but I consistently get between 21-28 ounces per day. The variance mostly comes from how much i get in my first session (which depends on how many hours LO slept- which varies greatly! I nurse him in the MOTN so I can't track ounces). Things I have done: -Take fenugreek and blessed thistle 3x per day -drink mother's milk tea 3x per day -eat, a LOT -drink water, a LOT -eat oatmeal (instant) with 2 tbs flaxseed every AM -pump 7-8x a day in addition to nursing 3x a day (20 minutes 3x, 10-15 minutes 3-4x at work). Always pump through a second let down. -drink a hoppy beer 2-3x a week ETA: Things I forgot to mention -my first pump session is 5am, after shower -i pump more often in the AM when my supply is much higher Things I am thinking I'm doing wrong (not sure) -i need to eat more protein -i need to get away from instant oatmeal and get real oats -LO is not sleeping well or consistently Is increasing my supply at this point hopeless? I would really like to have more than a couple feedings stashed away. I'd like to be able to consistently pump 30-35oz a day, which isn't THAT much more. what else can I do?!?!?!?