Janae Says...

*I have had a couple of friends say they've sent my post to several women, and saying I should get paid for this post 😆 Honestly, I just want other moms to have a better experience than I had. Sifting through all the info in the newborn fog was SO hard. So I'm genuinely happy to compile all this and update it periodically if it will help anyone have a better experience than I had. BUT if you found this helpful at all and would like to buy me a coffee, my Venmo is @janaeandmatthew  (thank you!). Don't feel obligated. This post exists for free on my personal page for a reason. Thanks for reading and thanks for sharing!* So, you're either here because you know my breastfeeding struggle the last 15 weeks, because you're expecting and I want you to be more prepared than I was, or because you are trying to see if you've missed anything worth trying in your own struggle.  Let me just say right off the bat that we all have different capacities. We all have different le...

I wish I had some better news at this point. All I have to report is a lot more time, energy, and emotion wrapped up in this heartbreaking struggle. I'll pick up where I left off with my last post.  I met once again with my lactation consultant on May 25.  We ended up getting AJ's lip and tongue ties lasered at the dentist on May 26. We were much better about the oral exercises/stretches we needed to do with this go around.  I've continued to take Legendairy supplements because once I transitioned from one to the other, there was a day in between that my small supply took a hit. So I know it works! I have also added in sunflower lecithin, not because I get clogged ducts obviously, but to help with flow.  We have tried many times to latch without the shield. He does a good job, then he switches to a shallow and painful latch and gives me lipstick nip. Just this past week or two as I've gone back to work, he's decided my milk flow is not good enough for him, so he get...

Editing to add: I later found out that this mom had adequate supply prior to the 16 week mark. I believe struggling to build a supply from the start is different from rebuilding a previously adequate supply. That's not to diminish her efforts. It's only to say that our situations are pretty different.  Essentially there are four main recommendations Shannon made that helped her increase her supply at 16 weeks postpartum. She made this extensive effort over the span of a month to get her supply up and was able to match her baby’s demands at that point. Assess oral function and ties Get a flange fitting; make sure you’re using the correct size flange Exclusively pump; empty every 3 hours around the clock and through the night Power pump 2x a day, but drop once supply is back on track 1. Have baby assessed for tongue and lip ties. If you get a revision, reassess afterward. Practice oral function exercises. If they can’t latch or suck, they cannot effectively feed or empty you out....

 June 1 was kind of a fun day. Matthew had an interview, so I took the baby to visit my work. Everyone was so excited to see him. It was awesome. I also had a phone call in the afternoon that could be good. Matthew and I used our T-Mobile Tuesday deal to get Little Caesars for dinner. June 2 We just hung out at home watching shows. Baby and I went on a walk, and Matthew made dinner. June 3 I had another phone call. It went well. I started some house cleaning. June 4 was just a calm day at home. Matthew helped his cousin move, and picked up milk for AJ from her and from his SIL Jenn. Matthew worked an event that night so I had baby boy by myself. He really did great. If I didn’t have to wake up to pump I would’ve gotten 7 hours of sleep. June 5 we had an impromptu lunch date at In-N-Out. We ate on the grass near a river. Baby boy loved the water sounds. In the evening, we took the baby over to Matthew’s sister’s house for Rowan’s birthday. He fell asleep on the way there and was in ...