Increase Supply After 16 Weeks Postpartum

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.

1. Assess oral function and ties
2. Get a flange fitting; make sure you’re using the correct size flange
3. Exclusively pump; empty every 3 hours around the clock and through the night
4. 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. Oral function videos: 
https://youtu.be/ABSUpcmWpZ0 
https://youtu.be/Qb-TO-ZvNEM 

2. She recommended getting a flange fitting to make sure your pumping is most effective. IBCLC can help with this, or Legendairy has virtual help too. She said she loved the liquid shield from pumpables. https://pumpables.co/products/liquidkit 

3. Empty breasts every three hours around the clock using a pump. This is basically a hard reset and going back to the schedule of newborn days. For her this looked like 8 pumps: 7am (power pump), 10am, 1pm, 4pm, 7pm (power pump), 10pm, 1am, 4am. Some notes:
* This will require donated frozen milk or formula for bottles.
* This required support from a partner to bottle feed, especially if baby can’t hold his own bottle or isn’t sleeping through the night. (My 3 month old sleeps through the night because we give him all his milk volume during the day, but doesn’t hold a bottle yet.)
* You may want to hand express after pumping to be sure you’re empty; Legendairy has a highlight on this.
* Pumping needs to be hands on with massage (and heat if you want) to encourage emptying, and most pump sessions for her were 30 minutes long. Legendairy recommends pumping for two letdowns, and they have some great infographics on effective pumping methods.
* When supply is back on track and baby is older, you can space pump sessions out more, doing 6 pumps in a day, then 4, then 2, depending on baby's age and needs.

4. Power pumping can be googled or found on @legendairymilk page. It’s 50-60 min. Method 1: 20min on, 10 off, 10 on, 10 off, 10 on. Method 2: 10 on, 10 off, 10 on, 10 off, 10 on. She said once supply is back on track, the power pumping can be dropped to regular pump sessions.

If you haven't yet, see an IBCLC. They can help with oral function, flange size, pumping methods, and a plan. They can help with latching and positioning. Many good accounts to follow on Instagram are @legendairymilk, @breezy__babies, @kellyibclc, @nourishedyoung, and @bemybreastfriend.

She also noted that she really wanted to nurse. So she nursed at night and did a triple feed (nurse then bottle and pump to empty out). This let her have the connection and let baby have the latching practice.

All the normal things apply like hydration, and eating enough. Legendairy supplements helped me personally (though not significantly), particularly Pump Princess and Liquid Gold if you’re looking to add in something like that. I have a 10% off code if you want to try it, linked here.

Other common recommendations (aside from what Shannon shared):

1. Skin to skin with baby
2. Galactagogues: oats, flax, brewer's yeast
3. Hydration with electrolytes (coconut water, liquid IV, body armor, etc.)
4. Supplements (moringa, goats rue, blessed thistle, Legendairy Supplements)

I just want to add for any low supply moms reading this, please make sure you are prioritizing your mental and emotional health. Building up low supply is HARD and emotional and lonely and so demanding. Really take some time to discuss with a friend, therapist, and your partner if you have one. What do you have to gain by doing this? What do you stand to lose? What do you have to gain by letting go of all your efforts? What do you have to lose by letting go? Which path will make you a better, happier, more available mom for your baby? Which will let you enjoy your baby the most? Who is this for (you, or baby)? Only you can decide how much more of yourself you can sacrifice.

I know that exclusive pumping is probably not what anyone signed up for or hoped for. But my baby sleeps at the breast or has started to get fussy because the flow is not enough to keep him awake or happy. So if I can sacrifice a chunk of time to increase my supply and practice latching, maybe we can come back to nursing when there's enough supply to keep him awake and happy. He never created the demand I needed in our early days, and I wasn't good enough at pumping at that time. It's been a hard road for us, and nothing has seemed to help. We are 12 weeks postpartum, and I have been feeling ready to let go of the effort I've been putting in so we can hopefully live life a little more normally. But I am contemplating making this final push, and I wanted to share what Shannon shared to let other moms decide if they want to make another push too. 

All my love to you. Feel free to comment on this post or send me a message on Facebook.