Home Forums Induced Lactation aka Adoptive Breastfeeding Natural Methods to Induce Lactation/Increase Milk Supply Increasing milk supply for 8 week old baby

I have a couple questions I was hoping someone could answer?

I followed the Newman-Goldfarb Accelerated protocol, with Yasmin for 40 days and 20mg of Domperidome 4 times a day - my breasts increased by one cup size during this time. After the 40 days, I stopped the Yasmin but continued with the Domperidome and started to pump for the next month every 3 to 4 hours and once during the middle of the night. After the month, I was able to pump about 60ml per day.

Shortly afterwards, our baby we were adopting was born and I started breastfeeding immediately. At first it went great, although the hospital in the US was a little sceptical. Then we reached day 5 and suddenly I didn't seem able to meet the demand and we had to start supplementing with an SNS. She would nurse constantly and not get full and come off the breast crying.

Since then, I have been trying to increase supply, although it has increased a little, there hasn't been a big increase.

When she complains that there's no more milk and she's sucking but not swallowing, I am able to hand express a couple drops off milk but not a whole lot. (I did exclusively breastfeed my other bio daughter for 2 years, she's now 5.)

Having followed the accelerated program is it possible to increase to a full supply? Our baby is now almost 8 weeks old. I am taking last week and this week to focus fully on increasing supply.

I am taking 3 fenugreek and 3 Blessed Thistle 3 times a day and pumping every two to three hours or after every feed using a hospital grade pump through the day and night for 10 to 20 minutes a time, but I'm on day 3 and not seeing much change in supply. Our baby is still taking about 3 to 4 oz of formula per feeding, more in the evening, less in the morning.

Is it still possible that I can increase supply? or have I reached my limit?

I really appreciate your input!

I think you are still increasing and can continue increasing your supply. There may be a couple of things at work here. 1) the baby needs more milk because its growing. You supply isn't decreasing necessarily, it just isn't increasing at the same rate as demand. 2) Are you sure that the latch is ok? If the baby isn't latched correctly, it will affect your supply.

Are you pumping after any feeds? It may be too much to do this after every feed but the more stimulation, the more your body will respond with more milk.

Dr Newman now recommends higher dosage of Domperidone. He told me to up dosage to 3 - 4 times a day and 4 - 4 times a day being the max dosage.

I would definitely increase my dosage of dom. I went up to 120 mg a day. I also would try a day of a nurse-in. Just nursing on demand. Stay in bed and do it. Try to only supplement a couple of times (so she demands more often the rest of the time). I have said this before, but when I stopped supplementing, it was a total leap of faith, because I wasn't making as much as she needed, but my body did catch up. But I was only a few ounces behind her need. I found a baby scale to weigh the baby before and after a feed very helpful to give me comfort that she was getting enough.

Good luck!
Jennifer

This thread is a little old, but I just wanted to say that, usually, as long as you are nursing on demand, doing any supplementation that is needed by Lact-Aid or SNS, milk supply will continue to build until the time that the demand decreases. That's usually when baby starts taking other foods and becomes more active. Some build faster than others, of course.