I'm chugging this crap at my desk. Did it work for increasing your supply? I'm currently around 4oz/day in deficit of what LO needs for daycare. 
(Already eating oatmeal and taking Fenugreek...)
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Worked for me in bringing my supply back up after I was sick with a stomach virus. However I know that part of what I was able to get back was probably due to being sufficiently rehydrated and being able to actually eat food again. Still felt like it was worth it though (and I HATE the taste too).
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I just wasted like a half hour reading the reviews on Amazon.. seems too good to be true..
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I drank an entire box but I can't say for sure if it worked (I wasn't pumping, just feeding from the tap, so no measure). Are you drinking it right before pumping or just trough out the day? I wasn't clear on what you were suppose to do.
I actually really liked the taste so I didn't mind drinking it, though I hated the smell.
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Wheat beer helped me! Never had much noticeable results with the tea...can you add a night time pump session too?
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@Foodnerd81: I dunno. I guess drink it all day? All I read was don't drink it before bed because you'll wake up engorged in the middle of the night. I'm on 16oz mug #3 of the day so I guess we'll see how my next pump and tomorrow go.
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i had a noticeable increase in my supply the first 2 weeks, then i plateaued.....
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@Trailmix: No
I go to bed 30-45 mins after LO as it is, and use that time to eat dinner, pack my bags for the next day, say hello to DH for 5 mins -
@yourekindapretty: Plateaued at the new increased amount?
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@jojogirl - within the first 3 days of drinking the tea (3x per day) there was a significant increase, then it stayed steady at that level, until finally i didnt notice any additional increase.
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@JoJoGirl: I forgot who gave me the advice of Gatorade but that seemed to work for me! Or a Guiness... unfortunately, drinking Guiness at my desk was frowned upon.
I have a new box of MMT in my desk, if you want it.
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@yourekindapretty: Ah, got it. As long as there's some increase, I don't mind if it eventually levels off (I'd assume it wouldn't increase indefinitely, that might be kinda scary!). Just an extra 3-4 oz/day would make a HUGE difference!
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@JoJoGirl: How much are you sending to daycare? Maybe your LO doesn't actually need that much? How many times do you nurse in the evening? Could you add a pumping session after nursing (maybe not after the bedtime one, but any others)? What about adding a pumping session in the morning before going to work (or when you get to work)?
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I tried oatmeal, fenugreek, and mothers milk tea. Nothing helped. I'm just not a milker I guess!
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@rachiecakes: Ha ha!! New mom, back at work, drinking Guiness at her desk.. that would awesome. And yes, I'll take it! I'd say let's reschedule our ice cream date but I'm off dairy
Boooooo. @Adira: I send whatever I pump, and they have their own freezer stash of my milk. They're trying to estimate (with my help) what she needs, so it started at 3.5oz/bottle and Friday was at 4.5oz/bottle! Eek! In the evening I nurse when we get home at 5:30pm and then before bed around 7. She won't eat in between. I get to work at 7am and pump. If she's up before I leave around 6:30, I'll also nurse her, but usually she's still asleep.
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@JoJoGirl: So the daycare is telling you that she's drinking 4.5oz bottles? How often? What's the total for the day? How much are you pumping each day? Can you pump after her 7:00 feed before you go to bed? How often is she waking in the middle of the night to eat?
If you suspect she may not really need 4.5oz bottles at daycare, you could try to visit a lactation consultant and do a weighted feed to see how much she usually gets from you. Xander has three 5oz bottles at daycare, but when I did a weighted feed during one of his normal bottle times, he only drank 4oz from me, so I refuse to send more to daycare even though they've asked for it.
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I've been drinking the tea on and off since LO was born, so I can't whether it's made a difference for me. I don't mind the taste though.
I'm in the same boat of trying to up my pumping output. I just ordered More Milk Plus to see how it works for me. I'm just barely eking out the 11-12 oz I need per day. As a side note, my LO takes about 2 more ounces per day at day care than with her grandma's so I wonder if the unfamiliar environment is bumping up her intake (comfort eating essentially) and maybe that will level out? Might be something to explore.
Also, I saw that LO is asleep when you leave for work. Mine often is as well but I have been waking her to nurse right before I leave. Not sure if this might help you too - for me it means waking her at 7:30am, not 6:30am, so big differnece there!
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I think it worked but I"m not 100% sure it was the tea. It might have been because I was just drinking a lot of fluids. Either way, doesn't hurt to try!
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I noticed a small difference but eating oatmeal for breakfast has done wonders for me.
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@JoJoGirl: As you know, my supply has sucked since day numero uno. MMT didn't do much for me. Know what did help? Goat's Rue. Get on it.
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@Adira: She eats 4-4.5 oz there 3x/day, and has another 3oz or so with DH in the morning since I already am at work when she gets up. So I need around 16 for her and hover closer to 12-14. I can't pump after she goes to bed because I go to bed shortly after she does (8/8:30, after eating dinner, packing bags for the next day, etc). She is getting up once/night to eat, around 3-4am. I get up at 6 and leave for work around 6:30. If she's up, I'll nurse her, but won't wake her up - we're trying to extend her wake time to later!
@Revel: Yeah I don't want to wake her, we are trying to get her to sleep later!
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@JoJoGirl: Totally understood. If I was looking at waking her at 6:30am I'd think long and hard about that because once she is up she is UP!
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@deerylou: Seriously? Do they sell that at Whole Foods? Or Witchcraft Supply, Inc?
@Revel: Right? She got up at 5am today though
So I'm having a rough day. I nursed her at 5 and spent 45 mins trying to get her back to sleep.. which she did just in time for me to wake up. She got up again at 6:30 anyway. Gah.
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@JoJoGirl: Sorry I'm asking so many questions! Just trying to figure out if I can give you any advice that might actually help! 16oz seems like a reasonable amount (I was curious if it was more like 20+, in which case she was probably getting more than she needs), but it's a bummer you're not pumping enough.
How many times a day are you pumping at work? Is it possible to add another session in at work? What about pumping while eating dinner? What about pumping in the car? Do you think you're drinking enough water? Could you get up 30 minutes earlier to pump before going to work? How long do you usually pump for at work? Could you pump for 5 minutes less each time and then add another pumping session? Do you hand express after you're done pumping to make sure you're empty? What about massaging while pumping?
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It worked soo well for me. Made me totally engorged. More Milk Plus also worked well.
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@JoJoGirl: Bwahaha, I can put you in contact with my on-call wizard.
Honestly, I got it at a health supply place that was connected to a natural foods store. They sold various, natural supplements and vitamins.
I believe they're available online, at drugstore.com. I know Amazon has the capsules, but my LC advised me to get the tinctures.
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@Adira: Hahah
Let's see, my first week back I was pumping 4x/day at work, but the last session only yielded about an ounce total from both sides so I dropped to 3 this week with around the same output. I already get up at 6 with a baby who eats at 4 so i think i'd have to just get up for the day at 4 An extra session is out but I gotta work on my water intake. Do you think tea "counts" as water?@Rainbow Sprinkles: That's good to hear! Where did you buy it? I can't find it on amazon..
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@JoJoGirl: I bought it on amazon. The brand is mother love. Maybe try googling it?
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@deerylou: Goat's rue helping can indicate that you have/had an insufficiency of mammary tissue. So for some women (myself included) it can be a crucial galactagogue. But if you have another reason for producing less, it might not be the go-to choice. You might consider taking Motherlove More Milk Special Blend-- it worked much better for me than goat's rue on its own.
**Edited to add-- tea counts towards your fluid intake, and I agree about tinctures being the most effective (though they taste gross).If you can tolerate it, pumping or doing a night/dream feed in the middle of the night when your prolactin is at its peak can also do wonders for supply. In the beginning with Lorelei I pumped in the middle of the night at least once for the first few months in addition to letting her nurse on demand throughout the night. Mr. T made me a pillow nest and I got a hands-free pumping bra and I could basically sleep through it. It's not for everyone, though.
I ended up taking domperidone, eating my placenta, using More Milk Special Blend, and drinking a galactagogue tea in order to meet my goal of nursing without formula supplementation.
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I saw More Milk Plus at Whole Foods, by the way!
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@deerylou: That is good to know! There is a midwife in town who is making me a tincture with goats rue in it... I'm a little freaked out by it, but if it helps me maintain when I go back to work, so be it!
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@Mrs. Twine: Thank you for the information! I wish I had known more about that when I was attempting to EBF. My LCs were absolutely wonderful, but they were also entirely stumped as to what caused my incredibly low supply, especially considering my "assets", as they so lovingly put it (lol). Unfortunately, I think I'm past the point of recovering my supply, but am hopeful to be immediately armed with better information and strategies when it comes time to welcome child # 2.
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@deerylou: That was the position I was in, as well. Lowmilksupply.org is a wonderful resource, and I would also recommend this book: http://www.amazon.com/Breastfeeding-Mothers-Guide-Making-More/dp/007159857X
Mammary tissue can be, and often is, completely unrelated to breast size. You might be pleasantly surprised at what you may be able to accomplish regarding supply if you are interested. At any rate, it is empowering to be able to plan ahead for the next time with all of the new information you now have (and will, no doubt, continue to amass). -
@JoJoGirl: Tea definitely counts - I think it's a fluid intake that's important - not just water.
So, I don't think my advice will be helpful, but this is what I do: Get up at 4:30/5:00, get ready for work, wake Xander to eat at 5:30, pump at 6:00, get to work by 7:30, pump at 11:00, pump at 3:30, nurse at 5:30, Xander in bed by 7:00/7:30, pump after, wake Xander to eat at 9:00, pump at 9:30, bed by 10:00. <-- the pumping sessions in the evening are if I didn't get enough at my 6:00, 11:00, and 3:30 sessions. So... if supplements don't work for you, my only suggestion is missing out on sleep to pump more.
Also, not sure if you already said this, but massaging during pumping helps and hand expressing after helps. I sometimes can get as much as 0.5 oz after pumping by hand expressing.
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@Adira: Wait, you go to bed at 10 and get up at 4?!? That would SO not work for me.
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@Adira: Also you can nurse at 7, pump at 8, nurse at 9, pump at 9:30 and still have output all those times?! I think my 9pm nursing would have nothing left..
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@JoJoGirl: I try to be in bed by 9:30 when I get up at 4:30 or by 10:00 when I get up at 5:00 (so 6-7 hours of sleep). As far as nursing/pumping in the evening, it usually goes like this:
5:30 - nurse
7:00/7:30 - pump (~1oz - if I need more, I'll push back pumping until 8:00 and can get ~2oz)
9:00 - nurse (I don't think he eats a lot at this one, but I figure he can get more out of me than the pump can, so even if I feel fairly empty, I can still hear him swallowing)
9:30 - pump (~0.5oz)Also, if I have a bad morning and don't get as much as I need, I'll add a pumping session at work, but I'm only pumping 2x at work at the moment, so that's an option for me, whereas you're already pumping 3x, so you might not want to add in a session.
I usually get 2-3oz in my 6:00 a.m. pump, 6-7oz at 11:00, and 6-7oz at 3:30. Total is usually 14-15oz for the day. But sometimes I don't get anything at 6:00 a.m. or I'll only get 4-5oz at 11:00 or 3:30 and then I have to add the evening sessions in to make up for it.
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