Mothers who experienced delayed onset of milk production or experienced low milk supply with their first baby often contact us for support to try breastfeeding again. They typically have anticipatory anxiety because they have lost trust in their lactation professionals and hospital staff and are unwilling to attempt breastfeeding again without supplementation. They want to know how to supplement their baby until their milk supply becomes sufficient to feed them safely while providing proper breastfeeding stimulation for optimal milk production.
The most common concerns expressed:
- Fear of the pressure to exclusively breastfeed
- Fear of failing to breastfeed again
- Fear of advocating for themselves and their babies while in the hospital
- Fear of being shamed by hospital staff when wanting to supplement until their milk comes in
- Fear of being denied formula or not receiving it promptly
- Triggers from the previous negative breastfeeding experience, such as being touched without consent
Monica writes: “I lost confidence in breastfeeding because I didn’t make enough milk for my first son, who required hospitalization for severe jaundice and a 13% weight loss. I was devastated and furious when the neonatologist told me he was starving. In my birth hospital, my son had been forced to cry from hunger, and I was told my body would make enough milk for him by every lactation consultant and nurse in the hospital. I trusted them. They were wrong! I no longer trusted breastfeeding and decided to pump and bottle feed to ensure he got enough milk. I purposely delivered my second baby at a hospital that didn’t force me to breastfeed exclusively. After starving my son, I was not taking any chances, and I supplemented my daughter after every breastfeeding session. My breastfeeding experience was the opposite of my son’s, and I remember tearing up several times because she was so peaceful and never cried. Thankfully I supplemented her because it took five days for my milk to come in. Supplementing saved my breastfeeding journey, and we are still breastfeeding 19 months later.”
