Colostrum Powder - my breast milk never came in?

my breast milk never came in?

i have this problem,,,my milk never came in,,,as soon as i gave birth i tried to latch on my kid,,,she wouldnt latch on very well,,and she would fall asleep,,,lactation consultants brought me a pump,,so i could stimulate my nipples before i breast fed my kid,,the whole time i was in the hospital(4 days) i never got engorged, i never felt the let down reflex,,nothing,,,come to think of it,,my boobs never did get huge during pregnancy......however,,when i do sqeeze the nipple,,a minimal amount of colostrum(i think thats what it is)comes out,,,still my baby is 2 weeks old,,and still nothing,,,,ive been pumping at home,,not at often as i should i think,,,most i get is like 10 ml if im lucky,ive been feeding it to her with a syringe.......will my milk ever come in,,,should i just give up hope and accept formula,,i feel like a failure.. should i keep pumping?...i dont know what to do.....is there anything homeopathic i can take??..im open to just about anything,,i really want to breastfeed!!

Public Comments

I admire you for wanting to breastfeed so much, when other women just give up. Try Fenugreek, it's an herb that's very popular for increasing production. And try your hardest to nurse as often as possible! The more you nurse her, the more milk your body will realize it needs to make! Call the La Leche League, they'll help you tons! (DON'T give up!)
You do what makes you happy. If you want to continue trying then do so. But equally, don't you dare feel like a failure...you most definitely are not. Perhaps have a chat with your midwife, Health visitor or GP and see if they can make any suggestions...
It took mine 5 days to come in but as soon as I started using the pump I got less & less. Try just getting her on your breast and follow with a bottle of formula so she is not hungry.
Start pumping more often like every 2 hours as this is what the demand of a newborn is. Perhaps you just arent going to make milk, there should be a lactation consultant at the hospital where you delivered that can help you. Don't feel guilty. Us moms are so good at it. You tried your best, you didnt fail, it just didnt happen. Babies survive every day on formula and yours will too.
my milk took 1 1/2 weeks to come in. i was doing half formula half breast feeding. what i did learn was the less u use the pump and the more you make them latch the more milk you will get and the faster it will come in. and when my milk came in, it didn't hurt at all. i just looked down and my shirt was soaked. i had just gotten out of a hot shower not 20 min earlier. try that, a hot shower and just let the water run on your breasts.
Big hugs to you. That is a really difficult situation and I really commend you for wanting to do everything you can to breastfeed. There are supplements you can take to help increase milk supply such as fenugreek and blessed thistle. Check out the link below for herbal remedies. Try the supplements and keep on pumping and put the baby to the breast as much as possible with lots of skin to skin contact. Please don't feel like a failure though, you are doing everything you can. It will be wonderful if you can make breastfeeding work, but even if you are able to feed 4 oz. a day, your child will still get the benefit of breastmilk. If you try everything and you cannot breastfeed, remember formula is not poison, and you will be doing the best thing for your child in your situation. Good luck!
I didn't get much either. I tried for several weeks and the most I ever got was 3 oz total. I finally gave up and started my daughter on formula because she was losing so much weight and I was having anxiety over it. She is now almost 10 months old and doing extremely well.
you dont have to breast feed. i can make your nips sore!
You need face to face help. Call the hospital where you delivered and ask for the lactation consultants. Make sure to tell them how dedicated you are to breastfeeding. I hate to see any mother turn to formula because she didn't have enough support! It happens all the time, but if you're willing to work, you can breastfeed! It's totally worth it. You can also call La Leche League. Find a leader in your area and ask for help. These are wonderful women who want what is best for your baby. You can take several herbs that will stimulate milk production. An LC or LLL leader will help you figure out what to take, how to take it and how often. In the meantime, just keep pumping. Stay positive. I had to pump full-time in the beginning too. I never thought I would be able to breastfeed. I thought I would have to pump forever! With hard work, patience and persistence, I went on to breastfeed for 14 months. I am currently breastfeeding a 23 month old. You can do it too!
I know that this is a stressful time for you. Sometimes it just takes longer for a women's milk to come in. I would just take off your shirt and bra, sit in a comfortable recliner with your baby on your chest,and let that baby nurse or suck as much as she wants.Do this for at least two days straight. TRUST you body. Your body will produce what it needs to feed your baby. It could be your milk came in and it wasn't as painful as you were told it would be and so you don't recognize it. Don't give your baby formula, you will produce even less milk. Just nurse nurse nurse. Your baby will be fine.
Your milk "coming in" is stimulated by both hormones & your baby suckling. It's a common problem with newborns that they fall asleep while nursing & it takes some patience & ingenuity to keep them awake. It could be that you never got engorged because you weren't putting baby to breast every 2 hours. I don't think you should give up hope. You need to look also at how much fluid you're drinking. Nursing moms require lots of extra fluid. You should be drinking water all the time. You should try to get baby to latch on every 2 hours. Feed about 10-20 min on each breast. To keep baby awake, you can constantly like squeeze your breast which "jiggles" baby, stroke bottom of feet, tickle under chin, or even put a damp cloth on baby's forehead. There is medication out there that can stimulate breast milk production- ask your OB or pediatrician or the lactation nurse. Don't give up :) Drink, drink, drink, drink!!!!! Oh, also, try to be as relaxed as you can be while nursing. If you're tense, your milk won't let down as readily. Maybe some nice music, low light... Relaxation does wonder. Also, make sure baby is latching on correctly :)
First-stop feeling like a failure. You need to be on the top of your game for your baby and you got them this far so you are doing fine. With different women the milk (or lack of) is different. I tried to breastfeed for one week and had to supplement with bottle because baby had bad jaundice. At about 1 week she just decided she wouldn't latch on. Then I pumped like crazy. I would try to get her to latch on, then feed her, then pump. That is pretty insane for a new mom. Once I went to her first doctor appointment I felt much better. As long as baby got some colostrum that is all you can do. Tons of babies in the 70's and 80's flourished on formula. I am one of them. They say women with larger breasts have more difficulty which doesn't seem fair. I was a DD+ when I gave birth so I think there is something to that. Best thing you can do at this point is know you gave it your best and discuss formula with the doc.
Don't feel like a failure. I had a really really hard time with it also. Everything you experienced I did too. Keep trying and be patient. As long as you can give her something its better than nothing. My doctor advised me that as long as I could at least give her something of my milk for the first six weeks of her life she will get the clostrum and other nutrients to build up her immune system.
You've had some good advice (keep pumping, keep putting baby to the breast, contact LLL) and some bad (larger breasted women have trouble...huh??) -- anyway, I just wanted to add that I'd go obsessively through this site: http://www.drjacknewman.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5&Itemid=6 Check out the handouts. His book is excellent, too. And find a 'supplemental nursing system' asap. A picture and a bit of an explanation: http://www.selfexpressions.com/supnursys.html
As long as milk comes out of your nipples (even a few drops), you're fine. I was the same way. My breasts never got really big during pregnancy, and I never really got engorged. I also never felt let down. Pumping is not a good way to see if you have milk. A lot of women don't let down to a pump. Your body knows the difference between a pump and a real baby. Keep trying to get your baby to latch on. Contact LLL, and have them come over to your home and help you with the baby. Stay as close to the baby as you can. Sleep with her, and spend all day in bed with her. Have someone help with meals, and housework, and don't worry about anything else but your baby. Try taking a bath with her. Sit in the tub, have hubby, or someone hand her to you, and just sit there. You may be surprised, that alone may encourage her to latch on. If you spend enough time with her, with your breasts exposed, she will eventuall latch. If you want to boost your supply, drink lots and lots of water, eat well, and you can try taking Fenugreek and blessed thistle capsules. I think you ned to take six of each a day, if I'm not mistaken. If all else fails, and you have a low milk supply, there is also a medication that increases milk supply. It's called domperidone, and it's safe for the baby. However the best you can do, is keep nursing, and stay close to your baby. You can do this. Don't let anyone convince you have no milk. I never got engorged, never felt letdown, never leaked, yet I'm still nursing my 10month old daughter. Nurse as often as she wants. Take every little cry for hunger, and keep putting her to your breasts as often as she needs. Best of luck to you, and congratulations.