my baby is 2 wks old, why is my breast milk decreasing?

Your breast milk isn't decreasing, it's adjusting to the supply and demand of your son. This is a good thing. As long as your son continues to nurse regularly on each side, still has plenty of wet diapers, and sleeps well during naps and at night, then you know he's getting enough. Your breasts are doing what they are supposed to be doing. It would be horrible if the entire time we breastfed we had to be totally engorged and leaking constantly. Relax and enjoy the breastfeeding.

The reason your not producing enough breastmilk is because your are supplementing with formula ditch the formula or else your going to end up just formula feeding eventually. When my son was this young and he would go through growth spurts he would eat every hour to two hours and I would just sit at home and nurse nurse nurse. The best way to increase your supply is to breastfeed and drink plenty of water. Good luck and really ditch the formula breastfeeding is so much more rewarding and the bond is amazing :)

I had the same problem. I never experienced engorgement and only felt my milk come in ONE time. I tried and tried and supplemented with formula until she was 6 weeks. I eventually had to give up on BFing because nothing was coming out. I tried to pump several times and would be lucky is 1.5oz came out. It was heartbreaking but I couldn't let her starve. To my understanding, there are pills that you can take to increase your milk supply. I didn't know that 4 months ago.

Also, I have implants, so I didn't know if that caused the decrease or not.

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Its possible your supply is not low, that you just think it is. Pumping is not an indication of how much milk you have. However its equally possible your supply has decreased because you are using a nipple shield and because you are only nursing every 3 hours which is inadequate for many nursing pairs let alone ones using a shield.

You need to stop using the shield

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/26baby_refuses_to_l...

A nipple shield started before the mother’s milk becomes abundant (day 4 to 5) is bad practice. Starting a nipple shield before the mother’s milk “comes in” is not giving time a chance to work. Furthermore, used improperly (as I see it often being used), a nipple shield may result in severe depletion of the milk supply.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/baby/wean-shie...

What precautions should be taken when using a nipple shield?

Here are a couple of things to keep an eye on until baby is weaned from the shield. By following through with the precautions that outlined below, you should be able to avoid or head off any problems:

* When using a shield you'll need to carefully assess your baby for adequate intake (see links below). Count his wet diapers every day and make sure that he's having at least 6 really wet ones each 24 hour period. You also will want to make sure that he stools at least twice daily if he is less than 5-6 weeks of age. After 5-6 weeks, his stools may only come every few days, but should still be loose and profuse if many days have passed. He will also need to be weighed frequently - at least every 2 weeks (make sure you use the same scale).

* You will also want to listen for frequent swallowing during the feeding and feel for overall good breast softening after the feeding. If your breasts are not well-softened after each feeding, you will need to pump until they are softened to ensure that your supply remains adequate. This will lessen your risk for plugged ducts and help to maintain your supply.

http://www.kathydettwyler.org/detsleepthrough.html

Human children are designed (whether you believe by millions of years of evolution, or by God, it doesn't matter) -- to nurse *very* frequently, based on the composition of the milk of the species, the fact that all higher primates (Primates are the zoological Order to which humans belong, higher primates include monkeys and apes) keep their offspring in the mother's arms or on her back for several years, the size of the young child's stomach, the rapidity with which breast milk is digested, the need for an almost constant source of nutrients to grow that huge brain (in humans, especially), and so on. By very frequently, I mean 3-4 times per hour, for a few minutes each time. The way in which some young infants are fed in our culture -- trying to get them to shift to a 3-4 hour schedule, with feedings of 15-20 minutes at a time, goes against our basic physiology. But humans are very adaptable, and some mothers will be able to make sufficient milk with this very infrequent stimulation and draining of the breasts, and some children will be able to adapt to large meals spaced far apart. Unfortunately, some mothers don't make enough milk with this little nursing, and some babies can't adjust, and so are fussy, cry a lot, seem to want to nurse "before it is time" and fail to grow and thrive. Of course, usually the mother's body is blamed -- "You can't make enough milk" -- rather than the culturally-imposed expectation that feeding every 3-4 hours should be sufficient, and the mother begins supplementing with formula, which leads to a steady spiral downward to complete weaning from the breast.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/low-supply.html#...

Is your milk supply really low?

First of all, is your milk supply really low? Often, mothers think that their milk supply is low when it really isn't. If your baby is gaining weight well on breastmilk alone, then you do not have a problem with milk supply.

It's important to note that the feel of the breast, the behavior of your baby, the frequency of nursing, the sensation of let-down, or the amount you pump are not valid ways to determine if you have enough milk for your baby.

What if you're not quite sure about baby's current weight gain (perhaps baby hasn't had a weight check lately)? If baby is having an adequate number of wet and dirty diapers then the following things do NOT mean that you have a low milk supply:

* Your baby nurses frequently. Breastmilk is digested quickly (usually in 1.5-2 hours), so breastfed babies need to eat more often than formula-fed babies. Many babies have a strong need to suck. Also, babies often need continuous contact with mom in order to feel secure. All these things are normal, and you cannot spoil your baby by meeting these needs.

* Your baby suddenly increases the frequency and/or length of nursings. This is often a growth spurt. The baby nurses more (this usually lasts a few days to a week), which increases your milk supply. Don't offer baby supplements when this happens: supplementing will inform your body that the baby doesn't need the extra milk, and your supply will drop.

* Your baby nurses more often and is fussy in the evening.

* Your baby doesn't nurse as long as she did previously. As babies get older and better at nursing, they become more efficient at extracting milk.

* Your baby is fussy. Many babies have a fussy time of day - often in the evening. Some babies are fussy much of the time. This can have many reasons, and sometimes the fussiness goes away before you find the reason.

* Your baby guzzles down a bottle of formula or expressed milk after nursing. Many babies will willingly take a bottle even after they have a full feeding at the breast. Read more here from board-certified lactation consultant Kathy Kuhn about why baby may do this and how this can affect milk supply. Of course, if you regularly supplement baby after nursing, your milk supply will drop (see below).

* Your breasts don't leak milk, or only leak a little, or stop leaking. Leaking has nothing to do with your milk supply. It often stops after your milk supply has adjusted to your baby's needs.

* Your breasts suddenly seem softer. Again, this normally happens after your milk supply has adjusted to your baby's needs.

* You never feel a let-down sensation, or it doesn't seem as strong as before. Some women never feel a let-down. This has nothing to do with milk supply.

* You get very little or no milk when you pump. The amount of milk that you can pump is not an accurate measure of your milk supply. A baby with a healthy suck milks your breast much more efficiently than any pump. Also, pumping is an acquired skill (different than nursing), and can be very dependent on the type of pump. Some women who have abundant milk supplies are unable to get any milk when they pump. In addition, it is very common and normal for pumping output to decrease over time.

http://www.normalfed.com/Help/babyget.html

Laura just didn't get it. Her mother finally was able to get her to latch on by using a nipple shield. At first, she gave additional pumped milk in a bottle. But Laura's mom was soon able to maintain a full supply without pumping, even though Laura nursed with the shield. After 6 weeks of using the nipple shield and occasionally being offered the breast alone, Laura was able to nurse without the shield. (Caution: for some mothers, regular use of a nipple shield without pumping results in a lower and lower supply. Use a nipple shield only with guidance from a breastfeeding specialist.)

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/26baby_refuses_to_l...

At about two weeks after birth, a change in what you have been doing often seems to send a message to the baby that “there’s more than one way to do this”. If you have been finger feeding only, a change to a cup or bottle will sometimes work, or using a nipple shield will often work. If you have been bottle feeding only, switching to finger feeding may work (only before attempting the baby at the breast is good enough if finger feeding is too slow, and finishing the feeding with cup or bottle).

http://www.llli.org/llleaderweb/LV/LVJunJul00p39.h...

Nipple shields are frequently used (or misused) for:

Sore nipples (protection and/or prevention)

Flat nipples

Engorged breasts

Nipple confusion/nipple preference

Premature infants

Neurological challenges of the infant

Breast refusal

Problems frequently associated with nipple shield use:

Decreased milk transfer

Increased nipple pain and/or damage

Preference by infant to taste or sensation of shield

Reduced milk supply

Interference with proper latch on

Maternal message of failure as a mother

Are nipple shields appropriate?

Has the mother been assisted in common interventions to get the baby to the breast? Or is the nipple shield the "first line of attack"?

Do the benefits outweigh the risks?

Does the use of the nipple shield fit the mother's breastfeeding plan?

Will the mother be able to receive and comply with careful follow-up?

Does the mother understand that nipple shields are a temporary measure?

Common interventions to avoid nipple shields:

One-on-one assistance by a knowledgeable Leader or lactation consultant.

Assessment of positioning and latch-on.

Use of a hospital-grade electric pump to reduce engorgement or to draw out flat or inverted nipples.

Offering milk rewards at the breast via the use of tube feeding device, periodontal syringes, eyedroppers, etc.

Cup, spoon, finger-feeding methods.

Use of the "breastsandwich" technique.

Increased skin-to-skin time.

Precautions for nipple shield use:

Rule #1: Feed the baby.

Rule #2: Maintain mother's milk supply.

Daily: Monitor baby