some reflux/MPSI help

i've eliminated all traces of milk and soy for about 2 weeks. i went to the gastro on monday and he said there were still 'slight' traces of blood in her stool and sometimes it takes up to 2 weeks to eliminate.

however, he instructed us to alternate feeds with alimentum and since doing so, she's been much better.

i feel however that whenever i nurse her, she's fussier. she'll cry, arch more (I'm assuming its the reflux, etc.) than when i give her a bottle of alimentum with some rice cereal in it. maybe my milk still has something in it that bothers her?

also since i've started supplementing the formula, i feel like my supply has gone down. she'll eat for 30 minutes and still be hungry. I'm afraid i've 'ruined' my EBFing....

any thoughts?

(ETA)
PS - i'm also having a tough time nursing and 'hanging' with two 2.5 yo's all day. they argue, fight, etc. need me to watch them outside and play with them and having the new baby attached to me all the time is very difficult. i'll nurse her while in play room, but there's still a great deal of mediation going on with the boys and at times, its so much 'easier' to just give her a bottle and tend to their needs as well. PLUS I CANT HAVE CAFFEINE AND IT'S KILLING ME!

 

She may be fussier because your breast milk is thinner and that means it comes up easier than the formula mixed with breast milk. Or she may be laying down more while breastfeeding than when you bottle feed her and that makes the reflux worse. Try holding her more upright if you can to see if that helps.

Supplementing with formula does lessen supply because you're breastfeeding less. Are you pumping to make up for the feedings when you do formula? If not, you should probably start - that way your breasts will know there's still demand.

I had to stop breastfeeding because one of my daughters could not handle the thinness of breast milk due to her very severe reflux. So I pumped exclusively for a year (and mixed the milk with rice cereal to thicken it) so she could get breastmilk. It was really tough - but you can do it if you have to.

Good luck!

 

i do pump - most of the time.
at night, my DH feeds her so i can rest, plus it's the only time he is home to feed her and to be honest, some times i just 'don't' pump bc I'm so exhausted.

could that cause a decline?
or would that just cut that particular feeding?
(hope that makes sense)...

when i do pump i only get about 2oz per breast, too.
im stocking the freezer in hopes that my 'bad' milk with milk/soy from the past month can be used when she outgrows this intolerance.

how long should i pump for?

 

The ladies in the breastfeeding forum might have better advice than I do... but as far as I know, yes - not pumping on a regular schedule will definitely affect your supply. It's basically telling your body that there's no baby to feed so there's no need to produce milk. Also, you'll get more when pumping if you hold your baby or cuddle her during or right before. What kind of pump are you using? I think my lactation consultant told me to pump for 20 minutes (I used a hospital grade pump that could do both sides at once).

 

i use the medela freestyle; it's a bit hard to hold her while pumping (LOL) but i can def cuddle beforehand.
i thought eliminating just the night feeding would give me more comfort and let me sleep.

 

Tricia's right- the less you nurse or pump the less your body will produce. Hopefully as soon as your milk is free of allergens you can maybe build that supply up by doing a nursing marathon on a weekend.

 

i thought if i just cut out certain feedings (aka the 2am one) that my body just would make milk at *that* particular time.

 

One of my babes was projectile vomiting breastmilk. I cut out wheat and it stopped. It only takes 24-48 hours to pass from your breastmilk, so it's a fairly easy experiment. The other thing that was giving both my babies a lot of gas was peanut butter.

 

no way, only 48 hours? i thought it was 10-12 days.
Hmmm....i'm thinking i'll try anything but i wasn't sure about pumping/supplementing with certain feeds.

in other words.
if i just cut out the 2 am feed and DONT PUMP, will my body stop making milk for all day or just that feeding.

 

Some foods take longer than others to pass out of your breastmilk. Dairy is 2 weeks, I don't know if wheat is less. For me, I had to cut out tomato based and spicy foods in addition to dairy.

And about pumping, if you skip the 2am feed/pumping, your body will make less milk all day long. A woman's body is set up to make milk continuously when a baby is just a month or two old, and by not nursing for six hours (you do 11pm and 5am I'm guessing?), you are telling your body that you don't need milk. So it shuts production down and can't ramp fully back up by 5am. Lactation consultants advise nursing or pumping every 3-4 hours for the first few months. Then once your milk supply is firmly established you can skip feedings in a few months. Sorry!