re: fenugreek

Quoting Jessi Graffia:" what if i start pumping every six hours exclusively. like if i only pump and i only bottlefeed baby. ... [snip!] ... baby. do you think i can do that, take fenugreek, and trick my body into producing more on a six hour inbetween schedule?"

Its hard to say because everybody is different. You wont produce much every 6hours and it all depends on how much and how often your LO eats. What's probably keeping your supply alive now is putting that baby on your boobie. Once you remove that baby and don't have a strict pumping schedule, your supply can dramaticly decrease. Exclusively pumping is a job with in itself. Which clearly you don't have the time for. Why don't you pump on all your breaks. Pumping for 5-10 mins is better than nor pumping at all...

I dont get breaks at work. maybe I can sneak bathroom breaks and pump real quick with my manual pump but waiting tables on a friday and sat night... i wont have time to sneak anywhere. this sucks. i want to breastfeed but i have to work and i have to wait tables because i ahve to work at night. baby father works days so we can switch off on watching baby.

Quoting Jessi Graffia:" what if i start pumping every six hours exclusively. like if i only pump and i only bottlefeed baby. ... [snip!] ... baby. do you think i can do that, take fenugreek, and trick my body into producing more on a six hour inbetween schedule?"

In all honesty, that won't work. Pumping is never as good as nursing, even with a great pump like a Lactina (I have one, I know.) A pump doesn't get all of the milk out like a baby can. DS has never latched, & I have to pump for him every 3-4 hours & pump during my breaks at work. During the night while I sleep, I can go 6-7 hours. You will not make any more milk by doing this. It will only make it worse. What you are thinking about as exclusively pumping is wrong, you still have to pump every 3-4 hours to keep your supply, & to UP your supply, you would have to pump more than that, & probably power pump ever 1-2 hours & switch off & on every 10 minutes.

I've been working for nearly two weeks now. I thought I was doing well to maintain. I pump in the morning when we wake up and pump when I get home from work. With that I've been able to leave daughters father with three bottles to feed her with while I'm gone. She's seven weeks old and for the past two days she has been constantly eating. She's been eating so much I cant pump enough to make her bottles and only got to make her two today and had to make the third from formula. I dont know if she's going through a growth spurt or if my supply is running low. I'm not giving up on breastfeeding anytime soon. I want to breastfeed until she is about eight months old, then she'll start drinking whole milk.

If I were you I would be taking my required 2 15 min breaks and pump than. In Colorado we are a state that they can fire with no reason at all. But with that being said we are also a state that if you get fired you are not denied unemployment. When I was 7 months pregnant I was fired from my job. I was always getting up to go to the bathroom and the place I worked only approved 2 15 min breaks so if I left to go to the bathroom and I was over my 30 mins or on a unscheduled break they would clock me out. We were on a point system at my job and everytime they clocked me out I would rack up points. I got fired and now am collecting unemployment because they fired someone pregnant.. Im just saying if you arent being helped at your job and they threaten to fire you, you can still make money off unemployment till you find something new. It helps in my situation. I would try talking to your boss and see if there is something you can do to find a way to pump. It kind of sounds like you just arent willing to even see what your options are at your job to help you pump. Im sure your boss would be willing to help. whats the worse that could happen is that they tell you no.

Quoting Ashlee Baudendistel:" If I were you I would be taking my required 2 15 min breaks and pump than. In Colorado we are a state ... [snip!] ... job to help you pump. Im sure your boss would be willing to help. whats the worse that could happen is that they tell you no."

It's not that I'm not willing to find a way to pump at work. I work in a restaurant. I dont get breaks and even if I did, on a busy night there would be no way to stop. No one can take over my tables for 15-20 min when they have tables of their own. It's just not possible. And there is no law in LA saying they have to let me pump anyway. Collecting umemployment would be a last alternative for me. I would honestly have to make more than unemployment could give. But thanks for offering an alternative.