You are already doing her a lot of good by breastfeeding her as many times a day as you have been, so keep that in mind.

You’ve got a long road ahead of you, but if you are persistant, you can probably turn this situation around. The first 3 months of breastfeeding are the most important for establishing an abundant and steady supply, but you can probably still bring it back up to what it was through frequent feedings or pumping, eating well and getting plenty of rest. Breastfeeding is a big commitment on your part, but it’s worth your time.

I would suggest that you introduce new breastfeeding sessions to her when she is not very hungry or full and see what she does. You can also encourage her to breastfeed before giving her a bottle. Just make sure she isn’t feeling impatient. If you wait until she’s starving, she will probably refuse to nurse, because screaming babies aren’t usually interested in learning new things.

Keep in mind that your supply has adjusted to feeding her less often and it will take a lot of work to bring up your supply to what she needs. Make use of a breastpump at least every 2 hours and put the expressed milk into a bottle to feed her. At first you won’t have enough, but frequent pumping as well as nursing her to sleep will eventually increase your supply.

So make yourself familiar with hand expressing, as well how to use a breast pump. I own an electric Medela pump-in-style, which I am very pleased with. If you can’t afford one because you are in a low income bracket and you are willing fill out the paperwork, you may be able to get a free breastpump from your local WIC.

Check out the breastfeeding aids section of this website for more information.

I hope you find this helpful,

Jess