The first few weeks of breastfeeding aren?t easy for many women. It?s not uncommon for a new mom?raw nipples exposed to a squalling, hungry newborn in the dark of night?to wish for a magic pill to make the whole thing easier. It wasn?t until my second baby was born that I learned said pill does actually exist. It?s available by prescription, and its generic name is domperidone.
Prescribed to me by my midwife at the low dose of 10 milligrams three times per day, this glorious little white pill promised to take the edge off a worry that gnawed at me around the clock until my mind, too, felt raw: Was I making enough milk to satiate my baby boy" Or, as time ticked on, was I marching us both toward another sleepless night filled with bawling, cluster feeding, sack-like empty breasts and enough salty tears to drown us both" The worry would begin each day when I awoke, and it grew with every hour, sucking at my already low energy. To combat it, I filled my days with self-imposed strategies for keeping up my supply. I would drink endless mugs of milk-making herbal tea and litres of water while popping fenugreek and blessed thistle supplements. I also ate a ton of carbs (which I had somehow convinced myself added up to more milk, although there?s no science to back this up).
What I desperately wanted was some kind of safety net to ensure I could count on my body to make the milk my son needed. Though he was gaining plenty of weight, the concern came...