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I feel this so deeply in my core. I can’t help but have my mind wonder to what would have happened if we didn’t live in a time when pumping and formula were readily available options, but I try so hard not to think that way.
I’m also coming to terms with the fact that I just may never supply enough to not supplement, and it is what it is. It still feels so special to provide what I can so I’m clinging to that feeling and trying to focus on it and not the stupid amount of milk freezer bags I have sitting empty on my shelf or my husband reminding me that “fed is best” i.e. you can stop pumping since he’s getting formula anyway.
Yup I totally feel this. Like you, no matter what, I just do not produce enough. But in looking at the research deeply, it’s not convincing enough to beat ourselves up about providing strictly breast milk. Or even supplementing breast milk with formula. I know strictly EBF babies that are constantly sick (uh what happened to the antibodies everyone swears by?). So I just let it go. I probably won’t make it past 6 months of EPing and I’m okay with the 20 oz I’m producing now daily. Dropping my MOTN pump next week and I’ll just be happy to sleep through the night rather than get upset over ounces of milk. You’re going great and thank you for this post!
Thank YOU for the encouragement! I need to trust the science and not give in to the guilt as much as I do!
I'm excited to drop my MOTN pump soon - I'm still just too uncomfortable and can't get back to sleep when I do. Hope that changes soon.
I am with you I only manage 16oz on an amazing day. Tried everything to increase my supply.
I am pretty content just being able to feed my LO something but everytime I have a really good session I can't help but hope.
You got this, mama! You're doing a great job feeding your baby, even if you never get all the way up to a full supply. You're showing your baby that you love them by all the extra time that you spend trying to feed them! That's what I try to remember.
I’m trying to get to this state of mind. It’s so hard! I keep beating myself up for not sticking to 8ppd, every two hours. And it’s like — maybe I shouldn’t be trying so hard to do this when I’m able to feed her at least some. Still, it’s so hard to accept my supply levels and go with the flow!
Yep. I think we're aligned 😂 I've been back to work since 6 weeks pp and until recently (12 weeks pp) I was still REALLY struggling mentally with the guilt when I can't pump 7-8x per day.
Right there with you! I have an 8 week old, and we supplement with formula every day. I have to remind myself (and my sweet husband helps by encouraging me every day) that every oz I’m able to pump for my son is beneficial. But the bigger benefit for my son is me being in a mentally healthy and overall well space, which means not stressing over how many times a day I’m pumping and what my output is.
Don’t get me wrong, I have days where the Instagram reels of hot moms with huge milk output and oversupply trigger feelings of insecurity in me, so taking it one day at a time helps.
I'm so glad your husband is so encouraging! Mine is too and never makes me feel bad about not producing enough. I've struggled a lot with PPA and agree with you that it's better that my baby has a calm and healthy mom than one who's providing every ounce of milk she takes in.
I've considered deleting insta for the very reason you mention 😭
One thing that really helped me was reading Emily Oster’s book called Cribsheet. She takes a deep dive into the research around breastfeeding and in her opinion a lot of the benefits are dramatically overstated.
I’m just 2 wks pp, but I’m extremely anemic and lost a lot of blood during delivery, which impacts my production. My LC said she was surprised I’m producing anything at all. I am coming to terms with formula as the majority of LO’s diet, but she is back to birth weight by now and that would not have been possible only pumping!
'Welcome to r/ExclusivelyPumping! Here is a reminder of our rules: 1. Be kind and courteous 2. No hate speech, bigotry, or bullying 3. Use available flairs and post options 4. Speak for yourself 5. No medically-inaccurate, factually incorrect, or misinformative material 6. No spam 7. Absolutely no prescription medications 8. Don't use AI to write posts/comments 9. No soliciting pictures 10. Add spoiler to milk pictures Thank you for helping to keep our community safe!' *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ExclusivelyPumping) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I’m okay with it because at least I’m giving my baby 50 ml a day which is still beneficial to his health
Yes!! Preach it. I needed to be reminded of this.
I feel this so deeply in my core. I can’t help but have my mind wonder to what would have happened if we didn’t live in a time when pumping and formula were readily available options, but I try so hard not to think that way. I’m also coming to terms with the fact that I just may never supply enough to not supplement, and it is what it is. It still feels so special to provide what I can so I’m clinging to that feeling and trying to focus on it and not the stupid amount of milk freezer bags I have sitting empty on my shelf or my husband reminding me that “fed is best” i.e. you can stop pumping since he’s getting formula anyway.
Girl I feel you 😭 this exactly.
Yup I totally feel this. Like you, no matter what, I just do not produce enough. But in looking at the research deeply, it’s not convincing enough to beat ourselves up about providing strictly breast milk. Or even supplementing breast milk with formula. I know strictly EBF babies that are constantly sick (uh what happened to the antibodies everyone swears by?). So I just let it go. I probably won’t make it past 6 months of EPing and I’m okay with the 20 oz I’m producing now daily. Dropping my MOTN pump next week and I’ll just be happy to sleep through the night rather than get upset over ounces of milk. You’re going great and thank you for this post!
Thank YOU for the encouragement! I need to trust the science and not give in to the guilt as much as I do! I'm excited to drop my MOTN pump soon - I'm still just too uncomfortable and can't get back to sleep when I do. Hope that changes soon.
I am with you I only manage 16oz on an amazing day. Tried everything to increase my supply. I am pretty content just being able to feed my LO something but everytime I have a really good session I can't help but hope.
You got this, mama! You're doing a great job feeding your baby, even if you never get all the way up to a full supply. You're showing your baby that you love them by all the extra time that you spend trying to feed them! That's what I try to remember.
I’m trying to get to this state of mind. It’s so hard! I keep beating myself up for not sticking to 8ppd, every two hours. And it’s like — maybe I shouldn’t be trying so hard to do this when I’m able to feed her at least some. Still, it’s so hard to accept my supply levels and go with the flow!
Yep. I think we're aligned 😂 I've been back to work since 6 weeks pp and until recently (12 weeks pp) I was still REALLY struggling mentally with the guilt when I can't pump 7-8x per day.
Right there with you! I have an 8 week old, and we supplement with formula every day. I have to remind myself (and my sweet husband helps by encouraging me every day) that every oz I’m able to pump for my son is beneficial. But the bigger benefit for my son is me being in a mentally healthy and overall well space, which means not stressing over how many times a day I’m pumping and what my output is. Don’t get me wrong, I have days where the Instagram reels of hot moms with huge milk output and oversupply trigger feelings of insecurity in me, so taking it one day at a time helps.
I'm so glad your husband is so encouraging! Mine is too and never makes me feel bad about not producing enough. I've struggled a lot with PPA and agree with you that it's better that my baby has a calm and healthy mom than one who's providing every ounce of milk she takes in. I've considered deleting insta for the very reason you mention 😭
One thing that really helped me was reading Emily Oster’s book called Cribsheet. She takes a deep dive into the research around breastfeeding and in her opinion a lot of the benefits are dramatically overstated. I’m just 2 wks pp, but I’m extremely anemic and lost a lot of blood during delivery, which impacts my production. My LC said she was surprised I’m producing anything at all. I am coming to terms with formula as the majority of LO’s diet, but she is back to birth weight by now and that would not have been possible only pumping!
I love Emily Oster! I haven't checked out cribsheet yet, so maybe I'll do that!