Hello! I’m looking for encouragement as I start my relactation journey at 12 weeks postpartum. This community has been one of my motivating factors for trying again, so I hope you can cheer me on!
You can ready my story here:
Please help me succeed by sending love and positive thoughts my way! Also any of your experiences, mantras, and tips.
I’ll be posting every day for a week in /breastfeeding and /breastfeedingsupport. Let’s do this together! Love you all!!
——
I’m working with an IBCLC who came up with a doable pumping plan that gives me a full 4-hour stretch of sleep. She suggested supplementing with herbal tinctures and using an SNS.
I’m pumping 8x daily. My pump schedule is: 3 am, 6 am, 9 am, 12 pm, 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 8 pm, and 10:30 pm. Pumping 10-25 minutes during each session. Incorporating massage, heat, and hands on pumping as much as possible.
Aiming to use an SNS (Lact-Aid) at least twice a day.
Trying to keep my hydration and calories up. Supplementing with Goat’s Rue (6 ml daily = 1 ml 1:1 tincture taken at 3 am, 9 am, 12 pm, 5 pm, 8 pm, and 10:30 pm) and Milk Thistle (0.5 ml taken at 6 am).
And letting my daughter nurse as much as she’d like.
——
Progress so far -
Day 5: I pumped 9x today. (I was up at 2 am so I fit in an extra pump session then.) We tried out the Lact-Aid SNS with success! It was easy to use after we got the hang of the tube placement. Surgical tape used vertically (along the tube, not perpendicular to it) worked well. Without the tape the baby sucked most of the tube into her mouth and sucked it like a straw! She’s no dummy, ha! I did have an issue with the tube dripping when it came out, so I have to be more careful in the future (I think I just have to hold the tip of the tube up so it can’t leak - there’s a notch on the o-ring to hold the tube this way). We used it for most of today’s feedings. I honestly love it because 1) baby snuggles, 2) I’m getting nipple stimulation without being hooked up to a pump, and 3) it’s a motivating experience seeing my daughter gulp at the breast. My total daily output was: left breast = drops in the bottle, right breast = 2.5 ml in the bottle.
Day 4: I pumped 8x today. I started supplementing with Milk Thistle (in addition to Goat’s Rue). Incorporating more second letdowns into my pumping routine with success. Still fiddling with pump vacuum settings (I’m following my body’s lead during each pump session). Our Lact-Aid SNS came in the mail! We will try it out tomorrow. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 2 ml in the bottle.
Day 3: I pumped 8x today. I started supplementing with Goat’s Rue. Feeling tired because I didn’t get a 4 hour stretch of sleep last night (I need to do better at falling asleep right away at 11 pm!). Hand on pumping and massage is where it’s at! I’ve definitely seen a difference in output when using these techniques. I now see more drops turning into streams. I also changed my flange size based on my LC’s recommendation, which I think also helped. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 2 ml in the bottle.
Day 2: I pumped 8x today. I incorporated massage and heat into my pre-pump routine, and also hands on pumping. Fiddled with my pump settings, trying out 38, 42, 46, and 50 cycles on expression mode, and also adding a second letdown (massage mode) halfway through the pump. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 3 ml in the bottle.
Day 1: I pumped 6x today, getting a few ml of milk from each breast that coated the flanges. No milk dropping to the bottle yet.
You can ready my story here:
Please help me succeed by sending love and positive thoughts my way! Also any of your experiences, mantras, and tips.
I’ll be posting every day for a week in /breastfeeding and /breastfeedingsupport. Let’s do this together! Love you all!!
——
I’m working with an IBCLC who came up with a doable pumping plan that gives me a full 4-hour stretch of sleep. She suggested supplementing with herbal tinctures and using an SNS.
I’m pumping 8x daily. My pump schedule is: 3 am, 6 am, 9 am, 12 pm, 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 8 pm, and 10:30 pm. Pumping 10-25 minutes during each session. Incorporating massage, heat, and hands on pumping as much as possible.
Aiming to use an SNS (Lact-Aid) at least twice a day.
Trying to keep my hydration and calories up. Supplementing with Goat’s Rue (6 ml daily = 1 ml 1:1 tincture taken at 3 am, 9 am, 12 pm, 5 pm, 8 pm, and 10:30 pm) and Milk Thistle (0.5 ml taken at 6 am).
And letting my daughter nurse as much as she’d like.
——
Progress so far -
Day 5: I pumped 9x today. (I was up at 2 am so I fit in an extra pump session then.) We tried out the Lact-Aid SNS with success! It was easy to use after we got the hang of the tube placement. Surgical tape used vertically (along the tube, not perpendicular to it) worked well. Without the tape the baby sucked most of the tube into her mouth and sucked it like a straw! She’s no dummy, ha! I did have an issue with the tube dripping when it came out, so I have to be more careful in the future (I think I just have to hold the tip of the tube up so it can’t leak - there’s a notch on the o-ring to hold the tube this way). We used it for most of today’s feedings. I honestly love it because 1) baby snuggles, 2) I’m getting nipple stimulation without being hooked up to a pump, and 3) it’s a motivating experience seeing my daughter gulp at the breast. My total daily output was: left breast = drops in the bottle, right breast = 2.5 ml in the bottle.
Day 4: I pumped 8x today. I started supplementing with Milk Thistle (in addition to Goat’s Rue). Incorporating more second letdowns into my pumping routine with success. Still fiddling with pump vacuum settings (I’m following my body’s lead during each pump session). Our Lact-Aid SNS came in the mail! We will try it out tomorrow. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 2 ml in the bottle.
Day 3: I pumped 8x today. I started supplementing with Goat’s Rue. Feeling tired because I didn’t get a 4 hour stretch of sleep last night (I need to do better at falling asleep right away at 11 pm!). Hand on pumping and massage is where it’s at! I’ve definitely seen a difference in output when using these techniques. I now see more drops turning into streams. I also changed my flange size based on my LC’s recommendation, which I think also helped. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 2 ml in the bottle.
Day 2: I pumped 8x today. I incorporated massage and heat into my pre-pump routine, and also hands on pumping. Fiddled with my pump settings, trying out 38, 42, 46, and 50 cycles on expression mode, and also adding a second letdown (massage mode) halfway through the pump. My total daily output was: left breast = 1 ml in the bottle, right breast = 3 ml in the bottle.
Day 1: I pumped 6x today, getting a few ml of milk from each breast that coated the flanges. No milk dropping to the bottle yet.