feeling guilty...

, I have had two bouts with mastitis one in each breast and my production decreased greatly. And now I'm trying everything to get it back up, fenugreek pills, oatmeal everyday, lots of water, and lots of pumping. And nothing seems to be working. I talked to my Dr and DS pediatrician and they both said to mix the breastmilk and formula. So that's what I've been doing, putting about 2 oz or less of formula and the 2 oz of breastmilk to fill the bottle. Its definitly not how I planned this out when I had DS. And now I feel guilty and mad at myself that I can't provide for DS totally.

Anyone have ideas on how to get over the guilt? Or how did you seal with a supply going away?

TIA

Mine went away completely when LO was about 2-2 1/2 months. I was disappointed but at least he was able to eat and grow. He's been on 100% formula for 2 months now.

My son just turned 2months. I know he will still be getting what he needs and such. I just feel guilty that I can't provide what he needs. my plan was to BF until he was eating solids but I guess that's not the plan that was made for me lol

Although I am kind of glad I can have my body back lol. I loved bf but its not all its cracked up to be like they say lol

Just think you did everything you could do to breast feed your baby and to no fault of your own is why you can't give her as much breast milk as you want.

How often is baby eating? The average intake per day is only 25 oz...so 2 ounces per feed (if every 2 hrs) is pretty normal milk output.
http://kellymom.com/bf/pumpingmoms/pumping/milkcalc/

He eats about every 3 hours during the day but can go as long as 5 at night after he gets up from his 'night' time which starts at6pm and he will usually wake between midnight and 3am. He gets about 2oz formula and 2oz breastmilk all in one bottle. So in total he gets 4-5 oz at every feeding.

So it sounds like you only pump & do not do any breastfeeding? If you are pumpin g- I need to know how often you are pumping & how long per session & what you do at nighttime. Also please include age of baby.

There really is no reason to feel guilty or angry. If you want to get your supply back up or what to continue, there are options. Did the Dr not offer to even try a prescription for reglan? Did he tell you that taking ledithin can help reduce plugs which are the most common cause for mastitis? Plugs are common obstacles in pumping only as pumps do not do a good job for many mommas at draining the breast.

No he has not breastfed since I got hospitalized in the beginning of December. I tried while I was in there but he wouldn't latch properly. The Dr didn't say anything about a script that could help. DS is 2months old and I pump at every feeding of his but sometimes at night I might miss one feeding because by the time I get DS back to sleep its only an hour till his next feeding and by that time I just pass out. I am going to continue pumping until I really can't get any more because I want him to still get all the good nutrients. I used to get a good 5 oz out of each side and now I can barely get 2 & 1/2 sometimes 3.

Well depending on what you want long term...

You can get him back to breast, ESPECIALLY if he nursed for that 1st month. An IBCLC or La Leche League could help with that. It is definitely doable, especially with a simple supplemental nursing system (AKA a SNS). That would be your BEST bet to returning to supply.

Many health authorities will say pump every 3 - but realistically you should more likely pump every 2 hrs. Breastmilk contains predigestive enzymes that help break it down, as such, breastmilk is out of the stomach by 2 hrs. So eating every 2 is a typical rhythm for babies to eat at the breast & for milk to be removed. Doing that would increase your prolactin levels & increase production. You should pump for at least 10 mins & no longer than 20 mins per session. To reduce the amount of work involved, refrigerate pump parts between pumpings rather than washing them every single time. As you are working on baby latching, you feed baby the pumped milk you got & that helps baby to stay interested & motivated to try latching. Pumping short durations MORE often is much more effective than pumping for long periods less often. So if you can get in 12 sessions a day, that is ideal...NEVER less than 8.

If you pump less than 8 you can be guaranteed you are down regulating supply. Your milk has suppressor peptides in it. When milk is not removed, those get absorbed by your body & tell your brain to lower prolactin levels. It is a built in safety mechanism trying to avoid plugs & mastitis. The fact that you've had it twice concerns me on whether milk removal is happening often enough, since it is a back up of milk that causes it. Also - to help empty the breastmore thoroughly, try doing hand compressions & working milk down the duct manually while pumping.

I know that is a lot of work...that is also why I say first, get help to get baby latched....because that is your BEST bet. And as always - it is up to you as to what you want to do with it - I am just here to offer solid info on how to get back on track. And please check out that link - it is true that babies his age should only be needing about 25 oz a day give or take. So it is possible he has been being overfed per feed & that is why he spaced his feeds out longer & then you pumped less often & it got your hormones a bit out of whack. If you were pumping 5 oz per session, you were in a period of oversupply - that is actually an excessive amount per session compared to most moms & either indicates over supply or a mom waiting until she is bursting before she takes a pump break.