Expert: ruth kraft - 7/2/2009

Question
Hello, I am currently nursing my 5 month old. She is #4 and I was able to
nurse her siblings to approximately one year old. It seems my milk supply
has drastically decreased recently as she is tugging at my nipples and crying
at feeding time and it is taking me much longer to finally let down. Please
help. I am wondering what might possibly be the of cause such a sudden
change. (I am 36 years old.) Thank you for your help!

Answer
If she has been nursing exclusivly there isnt much that could have caused such a sudden drop in milk. unless you got really sick and stopped eating and drinking for days on end... but you didnt mention anything about haveing a flu for a couple weeks or anything. it would have to take something pretty severe... like not nursing at all for a couple weeks...

She might be starting to teeth, tugging is a sign of that, She might just be impatient hoping that it will co me faster than it normally does because she is so much more social now. Or she could be going through a growth spurt a little early. that usually happens at 6 months but give or take a couple weeks is normal. so it could be that as well and actually would make the most sense.

What you need to watch for is if she is still having wet diapers. if she is haveing wet diapers, then she is getting the right amount of food. if her diapers start drying up, then something is up. nurse her more often, take fenugreek or mothers milk tea a few times a day, and hopefully that will help. Also , your breasts will not likely have that fullness they did in the beginning of nursing. after 4 months or so, the breasts adjust and arent usualy nearly as big as they were at first...

hope that helped!
Ruth Kraft
www.honoringwomen.com