You go all over the internet and forums for mommies. You joined several Facebook groups of breastfeeding moms.
You bought several milk pumps in the hope to find the perfect one that can suck more milk out of you.
You watch your nipples like a hawk when using the pump, and when only a drop or two of milk come out from your breast to the bottle, you wonder what goes wrong.
All the books you've read said that all moms should always have enough milk to provide to their babies. Then what's really wrong here?
Your baby is hungry. His mouth opens up and directs toward your nipples every time you carry him, it seems that he never gets full. As the should-be only source of his nutrition, you feel so damn guilty thinking it's your fault that your baby doesn't get to eat full.
And then the pain from the clogged milk ducts drives you crazy. How in the hell does someone who doesn't produce enough milk for her baby get clogged milk ducts so damn often?
You even purchased many products that are supposed to help you produce more milk for your little one.
But nothing helped.
Feeling hopeless, you bought the formula with tears while thinking of giving up on breastfeeding for good.
I feel you. Because I’ve been there.
I’ve tried all the methods possible in the hope to increase my milk supply so that I can go breastfeeding 100% for my little boy.
And here are some tips that I’ve found along the journey to find the answer on how to make more breast milk fast.
Drink a lot of water - warm water and sweetened liquid if possible
You are producing milk, which means you need to be hydrated all the time, enough for your own body and some extra to go to the milk.
Try to drink warm water or sweetened drink as those drinks can be absorbed into your body faster.
However, stay away from soft drinks because they usually contain lots of empty calories, which means they can make you gain weight without providing quality nutrition.
I recommend making drinks from nuts, like cashew, sesame, corn, rice, etc with a little bit of sugar. You can also drink fresh milk, it is also a great drink for breastfeeding mommies. These drinks can increase breast milk fast, generally after a few minutes.
Generally speaking, you should drink around 4 litres of water and juice, more if you are heavy.
Eat healthily - you need to produce quality milk
Eat a variety of food so that you can get all kinds of nutrition and vitamin and give it to your little one. However, stay away from some kinds of herbs or veggies, because the common norms believe that those herbs and veggies can result in low milk supply or giving your baby a tummy ache.
Those herbs and veggies are
Sleep a lot - the luxury I didn’t have which was the main reason why I didn’t have enough milk for my son
All new mommies don't sleep enough. We stay up at night every few hours to feed our babies, change the diapers, or check our babies breath and all. The same thing at day time, with some extra work from house chores to cooking.
I was in the chaos too. Actually I must say, my husband and I were in the chaos.
However, due to my son's titled neck, that added at least 3 hours working at night for me. Breastfeeding, then breast pumping, then working out for my son. Every night was too short for me to recover.
If you can, sleep as much as you can. Infants often fall asleep while drinking milk. You can learn how to feed him while laying down, so that you can sleep with him or at least get a little rest.
Massage your nipples while pumping and nursing
Cuddling and hugging your baby while nursing is a great way to stimulate your brain to produce more milk (yes, it's in the brain). But you can add a little hit to the combo my massaging your nipples while nursing and pumping to get milk fast.
Not all kinds of massage are equal. When massaging, don't try to pinch your nipples or hurt yourself even more. There is an effective and yet very simple way to massage your breasts.
Using your thumb or palm to touch your nipples. While still keeping the same area between the nipples and your hands, move your nipples around in a circle. Make sure you don't rub your nipples. Your nipples need to be rolled and touch the skin on your breasts while rolling.
It often takes less than 1 minute to get your milk comes out if you massage it right.
Stay close to your baby while pumping
I know sometimes you just want a little bit of "me time". And pumping time seems to be the perfect time for it. You can get to watch TV, listen to music and read a book while still doing a mom's job.
However, research has shown that staying close to your baby will stimulate your brain and make you produce more milk.
If for some reasons your baby is not around you while pumping, replace that with looking at pictures or videos of him. I'm sure you've got plenty of them!
Relax
There are around 10 million things to think about when you have a baby. And you seem to know next to nothing.
But I can assure you. No one knows everything. Reading does help a lot, but your baby is a person, he is not a robot who comes from a book or represents someone else's experience with their baby.
Every baby is different and unique. Things that work for other babies might never work for your baby. And it's OK.
You don't know anything, you are learning every day and it's OK too.
I want you mama to relax a little bit and knowing everything is going to be alright.
Trust your instinct. You are the perfect mom for your baby, nobody else can do it.
Go for formula if needed - don’t stress yourself out
Formula is out there, available when you need it. Of course breast milk is the best for baby's development but formula is better than letting your baby hungry.
If you don't have enough milk right now, go for formula. You will have more milk for your little one. You just need to be patient. And your little one can be patient too!
Don't stress yourself out about not improving anything at all, or not knowing what to do. Relax a little bit. Things will fall into places.
Don’t look at the bottle while pumping
One mistake that the majority of new moms make is that they look at the milk bottle while pumping. They love to see the flow of milk being pumped out, and eager to wait for the next flow.
They realize that milk flow doesn't come out all the time after every suck the milk pumping machine makes. They start wondering if that is normal.
When they are stressed, they have less milk. When the pumping session is done, they get disappointed seeing they only collect a few drops of milk. And they wonder if their babies get full while breastfeeding.
Oh hey easy there.
Yes, it happens to almost everyone. That's the reason you should never look at the bottle while pumping.
And here's the answer for your most concerned question: yes your baby can get more milk out of you than using a pumping machine. And he can help to stimulate your brain and increase breast milk fast!
Remember your baby is the most effective pumping machine that no other pump can beat. Your baby is capable of getting the last drop of milk out of your body so just relax.
Believe in yourself
That sounds completely cliché. But if you want to increase breast milk fast, you need to stop doubting yourself.
You need to relax and believe in yourself. Believe that you are healthy and you produce enough milk for your little ones.
With a firm belief, you can notice a significant difference in amount of milk being produced.
Stop comparing yourself with other people, your baby with other babies. Trust your instinct.
You are an unique person. Your baby is an unique person. What works for others might not work for you and vice versa.
Trust your instincts. Trust your baby and stop your comparison.
Stop your negative self-talk and go get help if needed. But don’t listen to people’s negative talk.
I know how it feels when you see your baby is hungry but no matter what you do, you still don't have enough milk for him.
You feel like a fraud. You feel like you don't deserve to be a mom. You feel like you are a failure.
Let me get this straight.
You are a perfect mom. You are not a failure. You are doing the best you can do at the moment.
Don't listen to people's negative talk, don't even listen to your own negative talk. You are doing fine.
Relax, trust your instincts and get help if needed.
There. You’ve got it.
All the tips I found out while finding ways on how to make more breast milk fast.
Even with my sleep deprivation, I still managed to go 100% breastfeeding for my son Ethan for 2 months straight while saving enough milk for 2 more months after I get back to work.
Leave all the worries about breast milk behind you, and just look at your little one while feeding him, and watching him looking up at you with 100% trust and love.
Soon enough, your baby will grow up so quickly and is no longer so small and fragile and needs your protection.
Enjoy your time with your little one when possible. Because this too shall pass.
Stay safe, stay relaxed and stay loved.