Milk supply is something I’ve worried about from time to time in my breastfeeding journey. Ultimately, when I was breastfeeding Maven, my supply was the demise in our breastfeeding journey. Read more about that here.
Because I just produce enough, sometimes slightly more and sometimes slightly less, I have to be watchful of what my supply is doing. In managing supply with Sylvie, I was able to reach it past a year of exclusively breastfeeding. We had times when my supply dipped and I thought it wasn’t going to be possible, but I was able to work through it using a variety of supply boosting strategies. Now, my third time around, I feel much more knowledgeable and better equipped to boost my supply to meet Rush’s needs.
How to boost your milk supply:
First, you should understand why your supply is low. Are you taking a medication that is decreasing your supply? I took Tamiflu when I had influenza which has the side effect of decreasing milk supply. (5 Do’s and Dont’s of Breastfeeding While Mom or Baby Are Sick here.) I was in the process of getting my menstrual cycle back while still nursing Sylvie at about ten months old, and hormones played a huge role in a dip in my supply with her. With Maven, pumping far more than nursing didn’t give the demand on my body that was necessary to keep up. Also, having babies early is influential in when your milk comes in and how you produce, too. All of my babies were early.
I’ve worked through a lot of options in terms of boosting supply but here I am going to highlight what actually worked for me. The things I saw a result with. I’m one who wants to try a lot of options and see what is best. I also believe there isn’t a one size fits all answer, which is why I’m going to present a variety of what worked so that you can test it for yourself and find the best options for you too.
Strategies:
Pumping: Adding in pumping sessions to increase the demand on my supply was one of the first things that was recommended to me + one of the first things that I tried. This did help. While I didn’t see a huge amount of ounces as a result, this was a key strategy in getting my body to produce more milk overall. So even if I was only collect 1ish ounce in these added sessions, it was “extra” and putting that extra demand on my body cuing it to produce more. Adding in a pumping session at the end of the day was great for me — especially as my babies started sleeping more at night. Though I produce far less late at night than early in the morning, it was still the demand that was valuable. Adding in an early morning pumping session between feeds produced extra too! I know there are strategies such as “power pumping” but really, just adding in extra sessions when it fit for me worked just fine.
Mother’s Milk Tea: This was the second strategy I tried. I had to consume a lot of this tea (think drinking it regularly throughout the day, daily), but I did notice a difference in my supply. I think this is an easy strategy to implement and helpful. I would not say it was a significant output difference, but enough that when I was feeding it wasn’t a struggle to have my baby satisfied afterwards. (You know when a baby cries for more after a bottle or a feed? That would no longer happen.)
Dark Beer: Guiness to be exact. It was horrible because I don’t even drink beer – at all. (Yes, all of Wisconsin may have just gasped.) As I was hormonally going through a supply dip when Sylvie was about 10 months old, I implemented this strategy and it worked. I would drink a Guiness when I would get home after work/ around dinner time and my supply for a bedtime feed would be much greater than if I didn’t. This was judged by the amount of time that she would actively nurse. It was something I had to do regularly to keep up the benefit of the supply, but to work through a temporary supply dip, it was worth it.
Lactation Bites: At the time (of Sylvie) I didn’t have a good lactation cookie that tasted good and worked for me… and I had tried a lot of them. I now highly suggest this recipe, which is really just a variation of an energy bite that I typically make for weekly snacks in our household anyway. The (main) key ingredient: Brewers Yeast. (Thus one could argue this eliminates the need for the dark beer.) The other ingredients are also important to milk production!
Lactation Cookies: Milk Bliss recently asked me if I would try their lactation cookie. Because I’m always on the hunt for a supply booster, I agreed and I have to say two things: 1. SO delicious and 2. They WORK! While consuming two cookies a day, I was able to see the result of my milk supply increasing. I’m away from Rush two different times each week therefore pump during those timeperiods. In the weeks I consumed the Milk Bliss Lactation Cookies, I pumped an extra 6-7 ounces to store and save. That is a lot of extra for me! In my opinion, these are a must try for everyone. My favorite flavor thus far is Peanut Butter Chip. Use code LISA10 for 10% off your order.
Motherlove Herb: I’ve tried a variety of supplements but have settled on Motherlove Herb More Milk Plus since having Rush. When I had influenza, the sweet, sweet people of Motherlove watched my Instagram Stories and saw how I was sick + worried about Tamiflu decreasing my supply. They reached out, sent me a bottle and I was hooked. It’s really gentle to use and doesn’t have any weird taste or side effects. I chose the capsule option and I can take up to 4 a day if needed. Now I utilize it occasionally if I feel like I’m worried about my supply at all, sick, etc. I like having this on hand, for sure!
At the current stage in my breastfeeding journey with Rush I’m not too concerned about supply, but it’s always in the back of my mind. There are so many things that can influence supply, so I try to focus on staying healthy, working out, eating the right things and staying hydrated. Oh, and sleep helps when I can get that too. ? Overall if my body is healthy, I’m trusting that my milk supply will remain steady as it is now + just stay in tune with situations that could decrease my supply. I do utilize the lactation bites, lactation cookies and More Milk Plus on rotation for those instances when I feel like my supply may be impacted. For example, I currently have a cold and feel pretty miserable. I haven’t been getting good sleep and just feel really run down. Because my body seems to be suffering a bit, I implement some of the supply boosting strategies during this time and then once I feel better kind of wean off of them and let my body get back to it’s “normal” milk production.
I also want to make a quick note here that I get a lot of questions from mamas who are afraid that working out will decrease their supply. I have never experienced this. I worked out through pregnancy (Expecting and Empowered Pregnancy Fitness Guide ??) and felt great – good for me and good for baby. Now, postpartum, I feel the same way. Taking care of my body + making it healthy is going to help me have a healthy milk supply. With that said, in my opinion (I’m not the expert, just a three time breastfeeder who has worked out and been conscious of working to lose pregnancy weight) being mindful of not extremely reducing calories is necessary. I think if we would cut too many calories, those would have to come from somewhere. On the contrary, just beware of how many lactation bites or cookies you are consuming, because those can add up too. ?
I sure hope this post is helpful to so many of you mamas who have supply boosting questions. I know that milk supply is such a hot topic. Coming from the experience of an under producer or adequate producer, I feel like I’ve tried + experienced it all. I’m at a good place now and feel prepared to handle what milk production + dips may come my way.
Happy milk making, mamas!
XO
P.S. Everyone has different breastfeeding experiences. Maybe you don’t need to boost your supply, maybe you have an over supply? If so, Amy has some great insights for you.
