Milk Supply

I haven't written about this in detail before because I was hoping it would be a problem that would be solved by the resolution of Cole's ear infection. But it didn't, and now I'm at a loss. My milk supply in one of my breasts is drying up. It's still there, but it is becoming less and less with each passing day. The milk ejection reflex is very weak, and I rarely feel a let down these days. The cause? Cole stopped nursing on that side.  It might have even started before then just because the milk ejection reflex was weak. And it once had a strong milk ejection reflex, which is the sad part.

What does that mean? It means that when he would suck to get milk, it came right away. But now it takes a while for the milk to come. And that's just not good enough for a hungry baby. Why wait for milk on one side when he can just hop on over to the other side and get the milk quicker and easier? No work involved. The problem continues when I use the electric pump at work. It take sometimes 8-10 minutes of pumping before the milk starts to come out. It works better (the time is cut in half) if I use a manual pump. Although I thought the problem was caused by the pain in his left ear I remembered that it started even before that - probably with the last few milk blisters I had. The milk blister always reappeared on the other breast, and so I would constantly have Cole nurse on that side so I could try to burst the blister. He must have gotten used to that. Damn that fucking milk blister!!! I am so aggravated by all the havoc it has wreaked on my life that it deserves to be cursed.

I've researched the problem on the internet. The solutions are as follows:
-Nurse on the side he doesn't like using different positions (I do this and he gives up fairly quickly)
-Pump after a nursing session so that I maintain my supply (I don't always do this because either a) I'm busy taking care of him or b) I don't want to spend yet another 15 or 20 minutes pumping when I could be doing something else - like grading for crying out loud!).

I've been taking supplements, and it's been helping, but nipple stimulation only 2-3 times a day is not going to keep the milk supply up. In the meantime, I think a call to the birth center's lactation consultant is in order. Maybe she has a better solution. As far as I see it, this could be detrimental to my overall milk supply and to the nipple of the other breast.