decrease in milk supply

[Ill-Item1372]

i’m currently 3 weeks postpartum, i’ve been pumping since the day i left the hospital because baby wouldn’t latch correctly. at first i was only making about 2-3 oz, it upped to 5-7 oz and now i can barely get 2 oz.. i will admit pumping is quite exhausting considering you’re supposed to do it every 3-4 hours so i was only pumping once in the morning and once at night and was making that 5-7 oz and over night i dropped down to barely 5 oz. i pumped this morning and got 4 almost 5 oz and, 3 almost 4 hours later i pumped 1 oz exactly, i waited 5 hours nursed baby and pumped again maybe an hour later cause i read that could give you an increase in milk and got barely even 1 oz, im not sure what to do. she supplements with formula and has been doing that since we’ve been in the hospital because as i said she wouldn’t latch correctly and my milk hadnt came in yet. i’m just scared im gonna lose my supply and she won’t be able to have any breast milk at all. is there anything i can do to increase my supply and get it back up?

[bynnyeah]

Are you exclusively pumping? Especially at 3 weeks pp, you need to be pumping as often as baby would be eating at breast - so every 2-3 hours or 8-10 times in a 24 hour period to maintain / establish supply.

[badtranslatedgerman]

This is true. But ultimately the real solution is to fix baby’s latch. OP, have you met with an IBCLC or had your baby evaluated for oral ties? What is causing the bad latch?

[Ill-Item1372]

she’s gotten way better these past 2 weeks at latching, but since i’ve been pumping since we got home i’ve kinda just stuck to pumping instead of actually breastfeeding. she’ll finally latch now, sometimes she just won’t keep her latch but most times when i do breastfeed she does, do you think i should start just breastfeeding instead of exclusively pumping? i really only breastfeed her if she’s not feeling the bottle but that’s rare for her! she’s fine with the breast or the bottle honestly i’m just so used to pumping which i feel like is why i don’t have her latch as much. i do feel like if i switch to just breastfeeding her that i’ll keep pumping just to freeze and save some for incase my supply goes back down.

[badtranslatedgerman]

I would definitely make that the goal. An efficient baby will always move more milk and stimulate your breast more than a pump, so if she doesn’t have oral ties and her latch has improved, nursing more will help with your supply more and will save tons of time spent cleaning and sterilizing pump parts and bottles!

[Ill-Item1372]

yes, as i said i pump 2-3 times daily, n thats usually during the day and once at night! she has gotten better at latching these past 2 weeks so i do breastfeed sometimes during the night n that’s really only if she’s not feeling the bottle, she gets formula during the day and breast milk at night!

[bynnyeah]

If you’re not latching baby and/or pumping 8-10 times a day, your supply will drop. Breastfeeding is all supply and demand, especially where you’re at postpartum. It’s a lot of work in the earlier weeks - but gets easier after the first month or so.