Home Forums Induced Lactation aka Adoptive Breastfeeding Medical Interventions to Induce Lactation/Increase Milk Supply Hello! Plus help finding a supportive dr? (long)

This is my first post to this group, so first of all Hello! I'm Pam and my husband and are hoping to adopt a newborn domestically (US). Our profile just became available last week! We've been contacted by two potential b-moms but do not have any concrete leads or anything yet. So we don'tknow how long our wait will be. Also, I'm 40 and have never been pregnant.
Anyway, I read brief mention of adoptive breastfeeding on the e-group for our agency and then found this website. I read the protocols and emailed Lenore and armed with all my info, made an appointment with my nurse practioner to get started. A few days before my appointment, her office called to say (in a tone of voice that suggested I was nuts) that my nurse practioner had never heard of adoptive breastfeeding and that she was cancelling my appointment until she could gather more info. OK, well I didn't appreciate the tone, but no big deal, gathering the info was an important step. I emailed the protocol info to nurse practioner and waited...nothing. So I left a follow up message and finally got a brief email back (after nearly 3 weeks) saying that taking BCP would dry up any milk so she wouldn't advise that. (I guess she hadn't read the protocol too carefully...) She suggested I go to a lactation expert...but didn't suggest one. So, I found a lactation consultant who was supportive of adoptive breast feeding in general but had never heard of the protocols. I summarized carefully and offered to send the info I had...no need to she said. She said I should call back a few weeks before the baby is coming and she'll set me up with a pump, Reglan and Fenugreek. I asked about starting BCP and Dom, but also said don't take BCP because they'll dry up the milk (I explained that you stop taking them before the baby comes, etc...but she wasn't listening at that point). She also said that Dom was nearly impossible to get so I should just use the Reglan. She felt there was no need to start taking the Reglan until I started pumping "a few weeks" before the baby arrives...
Anyway, I'm frustrated. I feel I'm a pretty good communicator and am just so surprised at the kind of dismissive way I'm being treated. I'm more than willing to call other drs. and lactation consultants. I guess that's all I can do...but does anyone have any advice on how best to proceed? Should I be stealthy and not give a reason for the appt. and only introduce the subject face to face (armed with printouts)? Or just keep calling around until someone at least seems interested in discussing this with me? Can anyone refer me to a doctor or lactation consultant in the greater Los Angeles area that has experience with these protocols?
Thanks for listening! -Pam

Hey there,

You know I induced for my son and did it only with the support of people on this site and Lenore especially....I never did an MD.

You can get Dom from a New Zealand website and a Medela Pump IN STyle double electric and you can also get Yasmin without a prescription.

I would stay in as close of contact with the fine women and Lenore on this site and educate yourself buy asking questions and reading the boards.

That is a drag about not being able to find a supportive med prof. in LA though.

Keep looking,.,,,and don't take Reglan....it crosses the blood brain barrier wheras Dom does not.

All the best,

Eden

Hey Pam,

Can you please email me at [email][email protected]?[/email] I'll send you the most updated version of the protocols plus a few references that you can take back to your nurse practitioner. She may not realize that the protocols have been published in the Breastfeeding Answer Book by Nancy Morbacher published by La Leche League International. She may also not realize that domperidone is more readily available than she thinks...many compounding pharmacies now offer it.

Also waiting a few weeks before the baby is due is old news and will virtually guarantee formula feeding your infant. The birth control pill is used to build breast tissue. It's true we don't recommend the bcp to birth moms but that's because their milk making apparatus is already in place. We use the birth control pill in adoptive moms to build tissue and suppress milk while doing so...sort of applying the brake while reving the engine. Then as you said, we stop the bcp and add the herbs and voila! MILK!

Email me for further instructions and don't worry honey, all of us here will get you through this.

Fondly,

Hi,

I too induced lactation solely through the support of this website. I had contacted Dr. Newman by e-mail also. Along the way I've educated my lactation consultant and my MD on this process. It is a bit unsettling at first to be doing something "medical" that the medical and lactation professionals around you don't understand - but it works nevertheless. My sweet little seven month old adopted daughter was placed in my arms on the day she was born and has been fully breastfed from day one until today. During the first six months I used a lact-aid as a supplementer as my supply grew. I now have a full milk supply for her with the help and advice of all the great women of this website! Just keep the courage of your convictions and press on!

Hi Pam!

Welcome to this wonderful place! Everyone here is really friendly and more than willing to help you, as you can see. I live in London, UK and reading your story reminded me of all the steps I took while looking into this subject. Because doctors and other medical professionals haven't heard of this or they don't recommend inducing lactation in this way it doesn' t mean it doesn't work! IT DOES WORK! With the support from Lenore and all the girls on here, I managed to pick myself up, order the medications, tried to convince my GP without success, but hey, I'm doing well on the protocol now! My GP is interested to hear of my progress even though she hasn't been able to help me by prescribing the meds.

I'm expecting a baby through surrogacy and I truly cherish this time as I prepare myself to breastfeed. It's an amazing opportunity and feel wonderful being in this situation, just to have been given the chance to offer this. I believe this is the best way to offer your baby a special bond and through it all the immunity I have in me. I can't imagine what I would have felt like if I hadn't found out about inducing lactation in this way and I came across it later on. I would have been devastated to miss out on this wonderful opportunity.

Good luck to you Pam and I truly wish you the best of luck with the protocol! You are doing the best thing for your baby!

Love
Andria
xxxx