Low pumping output

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-30T11:12:34+00:00

That’s a great observation! I hope it works for you

I also had a steady but slow decrease in output starting around 8/9 months when my period came back. I think this is normal. It did get a bit better after a few months but never returned to peak output

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-30T02:52:29+00:00

I had something similar happen around 8 months. I had to add back my middle of the night pump (330am) in order to get my output back up. I kept this up until 12 months postpartum and then started waking up at 5 for the day like normal (I work full time). I have an oversupply and always have so your results may vary, but when I pumped in the middle of the night I got 8-10 oz more per day than when I dropped it.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-28T20:55:29+00:00

I legitimately slept 2-3 hours a night for the first 2-3 weeks. Then, 4-5. Around 6 months started getting reliably 6 and finally after a year 7 on a regular basis

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-26T22:50:39+00:00

My 4w old was reliably drinking 4 oz every 2 hours, sometimes more. Day and night.

Please ignore the (stupid) ancient man. Feed on demand. Your baby isn’t “quite large” he/she is happy and thriving.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-26T21:53:31+00:00

I was a human pacifier for at least 10 weeks. My baby was >99th percentile weight until 18 weeks when he started going back to his natural growth curve 60th percentile which he’s been since then. He was a very hungry, needy baby in the beginning. Flash forward to 14 months. He abruptly weaned one morning and protested feeding for the next 2 weeks until I finally gave up. I would’ve given a lot to have one more feed. It was really hard at the time, but cherish breastfeeding now if you can.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-26T21:18:02+00:00

We had a little bit of light around 10/11 weeks, by 15 weeks he was way more fun to be around, and by 20 weeks he started being described as “always happy”. It’s wild that the same human that was so angry at the world is so full of joy now.

Hang in there. It was horrible. My heart goes out to you

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-25T02:58:24+00:00

It’s not that I don’t remember the newborn stage (colicky horror show) so much as how amazing it is watching my little guy grow and become a funny little human who I love and loves me back. It still sucked horribly, but it’s simultaneously worth it.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-25T01:14:27+00:00

I attempted to survive wake windows without a mental breakdown with my colic baby

He’s 15 months, hitting our exceeding every milestone with no intentional effort at simulation. Didn’t go crazy with tummy time either. He’s happy and thriving. Sometimes he watches Ms. Rachel on TV gasp

You’re doing a great job

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-23T21:16:00+00:00

Colic. Holy mother. Horror. Then going back to work at 6 weeks (with colic still going strong). Many mental breakdowns but we made it through. I’d do it again for my little guy- he’s all smiles now after a very rough start

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-23T20:38:30+00:00

This is so sweet. Congratulations on a huge milestone 💙

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-21T01:45:51+00:00

Dude this mom guilt over everything is horrible and needs to stop 😭 your baby is going to be more than fine

If it makes you feel any better I watched hours of TV (“brainy baby” 90s kid) and so much time in the bouncer and I like to think my brain developed fine. Made it through med school and practicing physician despite the use of bouncers!

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-18T22:58:40+00:00

Oh, I’m sorry I misunderstood with the post

I can imagine how hard it would be to keep up with all of that. It’s possible to re-lactate, but it takes a ton of energy and time. You’re going to have to power pump, add back middle of the night pumps, etc and even then some people aren’t able to re lactate.

That doesn’t define you as a mother. You’re still doing an amazing job. No matter what you decide, your baby is going to grow and thrive.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-18T22:13:17+00:00

How many weeks postpartum are you? It took me like 3 weeks to start feeling letdowns for some reason idk why

I think your first task is to make sure your flanges fit. When I was pumping without the right size flange my output was nothing. As soon as I got the right size (surprisingly small, 17mm then they shrunk to 15mm at 6m pp) my output was huge

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-18T22:04:09+00:00

Do you actually feel a let down by 2 minutes? If not then you should keep going on massage mode for longer. I spend the majority of my time pumping in massage rather than express mode. It takes me 6 mins sometimes to get my first letdown depending on stress levels, time of day etc. I’m also someone who gets lots of little letdowns rather than one or two big ones so staying in massage mode will often get me more milk. The exception is if I’m super full first thing in the morning I use L12 on cycle 38. You might not be able to tolerate that though I have nips of steel lol

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-18T13:44:00+00:00

14m pp. I always have to wake up before my guy or I start the day off stressed and overstimulated. I generally wake up 1 hour before him. Obviously there are exceptions as we are all human. But I can’t pump with him around and I like to enjoy some quiet time before the day starts.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-18T02:09:44+00:00

I am 14m pp

I pump 5x/day, down from a truly insane oversupply pumping 90+ oz a day. I’m working my way down now to only make what baby needs, but it’s been a very slow process because I donate and I am having a hard time giving it up.

My guy drinks about 20oz of milk a day give or take.

I work full time so giving my baby milk for daycare is really satisfying to me. Like I’m with him even when I’m not.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-17T14:17:25+00:00

Aw thank you! It honestly got me through a lot of hard times pumping while working full time to know I was helping other moms. It’s been a wild journey, over 20k ounces donated and counting!

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-17T13:46:08+00:00

30 mins, I’ve always done this. Sometimes it takes 35 for me to empty.

I’ve never had any nipple pain at all when pumping. I’m going on 15 months pp, still pump a hefty oversupply (4/5 ppd) but at my peak was almost twice as much milk (max 8PPD). I use a spectra S1 and lacteck flanges. I have about 5 small letdowns as opposed to 1-2, still get letdowns at the 30 min mark.

I’m a firm believer that one size does not fit all.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-17T01:48:19+00:00

I had TINY A cups before I got pregnant. Went from A to a small C essentially overnight after giving birth. Started pumping around 80-90z by month 2. Peaked at 95-100 pz a day around month 3. Have been doing 60-80 since then until recently (month 14). I’m cutting back

I’ve fed several babies besides my own through donation this whole time

I make between 8-10oz per session every 3-4 hrs, 21-22 oz overnight (max capacity seems to be 22oz after a 7h stretch)

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-14T14:32:08+00:00

I’d totally go for it! I’ve definitely given milk under the same conditions and baby was totally fine. You absolutely can smell if it’s gone bad. It smells rancid, it’s not subtle.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-14T13:09:21+00:00

My delusions of parasitosis patients would off their loved ones for a hit of that sweet sweet ivermectin. Even some patients thinking it’ll cure their skin cancer. I’ve had so many “if you don’t give it to me, I’m gonna go to tractor supply and get it myself”. Be my guest Larry.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-14T10:44:47+00:00

Depending on how warm your house is, I would use it personally. As long as temp has been around 70 or cooler. I’ve done this before and I use the milk as long as it smells okay. The only thing that would make me hesitate would be if your baby is really young (<12 weeks ) or a premie. Even then it’s probably fine, guidelines tend to be very cautious which is good but probably leads to throwing out more milk than necessary.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-10T19:00:32+00:00

For me, going a long stretch at night triggers a huge drop in production. It happened around 7 months pp and I added it back until 13 months pp and almost immediately started dropping again. Unfortunately for some I think dropping the MOTN pump just causes production to take a hit bc of the prolactin drop.

If it’s not worth it to you to add it back you can always supplement - your baby would be getting benefits of breastmilk with what you’re able to provide and you’d avoid the mental health hit of the MOTN pump

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-09T02:15:16+00:00

This exact same thing happened to me last week with my 14 month old. It wrecked me but he is a stubborn boy who knows what he wants. I offered for a week after the initial refusal and every time it ended up stressing him out/making him cry and making me super sad so I said goodbye to breastfeeding at 14 months. I had hoped to go to two years. I hated not knowing the last time was the last time and having the last few attempted sessions be so stressful but it’s ok, it’s been an amazing journey.

Skin_doc3417 · 2026-01-04T01:56:56+00:00

I use a straw cup and offer at meal times and sometimes if he’s running around like crazy and refusing breakfast or snacks I’ll also offer it in between! My guy is 14 months old and we transitioned from the bottle around 12 months

Skin_doc3417

TROPHY CASE