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I am pleased to be able to share this success story. An online friend recently made the decision to relactate and has given me permission to post her story here. I hope it will inspire someone who may be considering relactating as well. The mom in this story, Tiffany, recently updated me and said that at 6 months of age she is exclusively nursing!!! I would definitely say that this is a case of successful relactation by one dedicated mama!
A little background...
I had breast augmentation surgery on July 11th 2005, in late August I found out I was pregnant. I had my son on May 2nd 2006. I have a capsular contraction (hardening of the breast) in my right breast so it makes it hard for him to latch but he did. Breast feeding went great for the first 4 days until the pain started, nothing too bad but by day 6 I was blistered, bleeding, and the entire feeding hurt from start to finish. I later found out that more then likely I had thrush the entire time. since I was told by my LC and LLL leader/doula that his latching was perfect. While relactating I did have some pain at first while my son still had his thrush and I treated myself and the pain left within days and never came back (unless I pumped) so if it was not thrush it very well could of been me using the pump too soon with too small of flanges .
Okay here is my relactating story...
My son was 5 weeks old, and I got pink eye. So I pumped to see if I had any milk to help with my eye. I got 1/2 of an oz from my right breast within just a few minutes. I was excited that I still had some milk left in me. So I pulled out my nipple shield that night and my son latched and went to sleep. He stayed latched for over an hour. Looking into his face I decided that I had to give relactating a try for my sweet little boy! People say you can bond both ways with Breast feeding or bottle feeding, but having done both, there was something about Breast feeding that I never got out of Bottle feeding. It was my fight to keep that bond that kept me going strong! I had no support from my husband who I knew would object. so for the first week I hid it from him. Only nursing him with the shield for comfort to sleep when my husband was at work. and after a week, I started latching him for comfort at night as well in front of my husband. ignoring his objections. I was going to do this! I started out slow with just 1 goal. get him to breast feed every morning. I thought starting out with a low goal I would just make a new goal once I reached one. It would keep me positive reaching one small step at a time.
By the time he was 7 weeks old, just 2 weeks later, I started full force. I pulled out my pump and started pumping every 2 hours (or more) for at least 20 minutes per session both sides. I was using my medela pump in style. Pumping really started to hurt my nipples and nothing would come out (months later I found out my flanges were just too small) I started taking fenugreek 3 pills 3 times a day, then soon 3 pills 4 times a day. After a week I noticed that after these 20 minute sessions of getting nothing, I could hand express a few squirts afterwards. And truth is you have to remove the milk to make more milk. So this was not going to work unless I figured out how to get the milk out. So hand expression was started. I finally had my husbands support and was really ready to do this!
At first I only hand expressed after my pumping sessions until I decided no more pumps for now. Hand expression I found easier for me, I was having an easier time with a letdown and I didn't have to wash parts in my already busy consumed Breast feeding attempts! I would however at first express with low success but one day decided that I would shake tickle and play with them until I would get a letdown and I would get much more I know I looked silly but it helped! I didn't realize at first that it would take so much work for let down. I would pull out my Medela bottles and express into that bottle all day. After 2 weeks I was getting 1/4 th of an oz a day. Days later an oz a day, then more and more. After a month into relactating I was up to 3 oz a day, and he was off of the shield and comfort nursing off of just me! That is when my supply really started to increase. I ordered the supplemental nursing system and after many days, weeks, months of trying to use it, it proved no good for us. I found it hard to figure out and he hated that tube in his mouth. He would latch without it, but with it just scream :( I had stopped all herbs because I didn't notice it helping me much if at all, and without them continued having my supply increase. After a month and a half into the relactation process I was up to 12 oz of Breast milk a day with expression and he was still comfort nursing as well. But I still could not get him to latch when I had more milk but only after I had expressed as much as I could out. So I decided to take a day and just nurse all day. Day 1 went easier then I thought . He didn't cry and would only fight the breast a little, he had 2 supplements that day.
Then the next only 2 supplements.
We have days where he fights me. Mainly I think due to teething and over all crankiness, the Bottle is just easier for him, but I don't tend to cave in!
He is now supplemented 2 times a day typically . I am now only working on building my supply up. which because of my breast surgery and complications may never Exclusively Breast feed him though we still work very hard at it! He is a great little nursling and hopefully continues for as long as he will like!
Relactation takes patience. Lots of it. I was told that it typically takes as long as baby has not nursed to get baby back to nursing. So if you quit for 4 weeks it typically takes 4 weeks to get your supply back to where it was. I am not the norm when it comes to relactating, having done it with a nipple shield (temporarily), hand expression and just his nursing. Typically you have to rent a hospital grade pump and use various herbs. Neither worked for me. So It goes to show that you can relactate and not have to spend a lot :) Though if those thing were to have worked for me I may have relactated a lot sooner!
I contribute a lot of the success to the La Leche League's website. I never met with anyone but found a lot of support and help in their forums.
I'm glad to say I have a wonderful nursing relationship with my son! And that bond is back!