Home Forums Induced Lactation aka Adoptive Breastfeeding Medical Interventions to Induce Lactation/Increase Milk Supply not a lot of milk

hi everyone,
I have been pumping for 3 1/2 weeks now and am not getting more than 3/4 oz per each side per each pump. My breasts have grown and I can always express more milk when I'm done with pumping.

Am I not experiencing let down? I nursed my son 4 years ago and could really feel when let down happened. Should it feel like that now too?

How much milk should I expect to produce from pumping?

What are the best ways to trigger let down?

Thanks for your help!
Kristen

That actually sounds like quite a lot when pumping. Remember the babies are going to be better at extracting milk. Things that can help with let down are looking at pictures of a baby or having baby things nearby. Do you notice a time when the milk seems to be spraying out? Does it come more at a certain time and then slow down? Or is it just consistently the same amount the whole time? If this is the case, you may not be having a letdown. How many times a day are you pumping? How long each session?
Jennifer

Hi Jen
thanks for answering. You think that's a lot? I am really worried about it which could be part of my problem. I've just starting looking at baby pics but it doesn't seem to make a lot of difference.
I am pumping every 3 hours day and night for a total of 8 times for about 15 min and sometimes 25 when I have the time. At the very beginning there is nothing and then a slow ooze starts. I don't have a lot of spraying unless I squeeze the milk out. I do this quite often during the pumping. After about the first 7 minutes nothing comes out anymore on its own.

Could it be that I don't have let down?
Kristen

Kristen,
It could be. I had a hard time letting down to a pump. But for only pumping 3-4 weeks without your babies here yet, I think 1.5 oz a pumping session is awesome. You may have to supplement when they get here, but I would expect your supply to increase much more quickly when they get here. And for the first week or two, my daughter only took 1-2 oz a session. I increased quickly, but I already had my daughter when I started pumping (last second placement).
Keep up the good work!
Jennifer

Kris I think you are doing great! I would try the massage befroe and half way through pumping. Also what helped me was to smell baby stuff like baby lotion.
What setting do you have your pump on and which pump are you using?

You can find the massage info here http://www.asklenore.info/breastfeeding/induced_lactation/pumping_instructions.html