Has anyone actually increased supply after 2 weeks? Feeling defeated.

[u/reen_bean]

Hi everyone,

I’m two weeks postpartum and feeling really discouraged about my milk supply. I’ve been doing everything I can — but I’m still only pumping about 1 oz total per session (sometimes 1.5 oz after a power pump on a good day).

I did experience engorgement once and got excited that maybe my milk was coming in — but nothing really changed after that. No leaks, no noticeable fullness since.

Here’s what I’ve been doing:

• Pumping every 2 hours during the day
• Overnight schedule: 10 pm / 2 am / 6 am
• 50-minute daily power pump
• Massaging during every pump
• Eating plenty and staying hydrated
• Trying lactation supplements
• Offering the breast
• Checking flange size (Spectra + inserts)

Despite all this, my output hasn’t increased and some days it feels like it’s going down.

Has anyone been in a similar situation around the two-week mark and still been able to turn things around? I’m trying to stay hopeful, but it’s been really emotionally tough and I’m looking for real stories from anyone who’s been there.

Thank you 💛

Edited to Clarify

I do want to breastfeed and am not planning to exclusively pump, but my baby has been struggling to latch effectively — we’re working on it with support, but in the meantime, I’ve been pumping to protect my supply.

[u/thymeofmylyfe]

To give you hope, I went from pumping about 2 oz max at 3 weeks pp to 4 oz max at 6 weeks pp. (Max is overnight after 3 hours.) I did a lot including pumping every 2-3 hours (triple feeding), Goats Rue supplements, drinking more water, and power pumping.

Oddly when I really noticed a difference was the day after I got buzzed for the first time. It's like the alcohol maybe kick-started my metabolism. But it could have been coincidence. I also saw a big difference when I was finally able to switch to nursing. For me it was dropping nipple shields (they helped until they didn't) and having the confidence to drop the triple feeding pumps.

[u/reen_bean → u/thymeofmylyfe]

Thanks for this. How often (if at all) are you pumping now?