Hi Mamas! My son is almost 5 months old and exclusively breastfed. I haven't had any discomfort with nursing for about three months. However, in the last few days, I seem to be producing more milk and am uncomfortable enough that I'm having to express some in between feedings. I haven't noticed any change in my son's nursing, so I'm a bit baffled by the sudden overproduction. Have any of you experienced this? Any ideas what the trigger might be? Thanks in advance for any and all guidance... Also, my son let's go frequently while nursing and has been for about a month. Is this normal?
Thanks girls! Must've been the Sonic Route 44's and water consumption. Never made the connection. Thanks!!!
Have you been eating a lot of oats? (cheerios, oatmeal etc)
Oats have been known to increase milk supply. Very tried and tested with me hehe! :)
all if have to say is "you are soooo lucky!" - - - i always had the opposite problem - decrease in milk - - - keep doing whatever you are doing - remember, you can freeze and save your milk for when your little one beging weaning from the breast - hopefully a long time...wtg
It may be that the kid just emptied the breast better for a few days, increasing your supply. Now, however,you are doing it yourself by expressing between feedings.
Your marvelous breasts will make as much milk as required. If you keep expressing and your son keeps nursing, you will keep making this engorgment worse.
Stop expressing. You may be uncomfortable between feedings for a few days, but at least you'll be on the right track to solve the problem.
I found that when I did this I was drinking more water or juice's.
i don't remember exactly when i started to make more milk, but at some point around that age my daughter became quicker and more effective at nursing. she went from 45 min feeds to about 20 min feeds and was expressing more milk during the shorter sessions. i also think that is about when she discovered that it was fun to "play" while nursing. she would pull the cover off and look around, try to look at things that made noise etc. and would unlatch and latch as she felt inclined. i think it's normal, but if you are concerned i really like the lactation consultant i saw - chery h at special addition across from central market on lamar. good luck!
Hello! By expressing your milk when your son is not hungry you are increasing your milk supply. To increase your milk supply you need to feed often. Your body is now not on schedule with your son's needs, but the needs of your son and the breast pump. This is giving you an oversupply, if you are not careful, it could cause Mastitis (a breast infection). Try not to pump and wait for your son to cue you. Cabbage leaves can help dry you up a little bit, but becareful not to leave them on your breast too long, as they might dry you up too much. Good luck! It's a sometimes difficult but very rewarding process.
Hi A M,
Since a mother often has the let down of milk before the baby cries to nurse, perhaps your body is preparing for DS to increase his appetite. Perhaps your body senses a growth spurt coming.
I had the opposite, I didn't quite produce enough milk.
I would think that you should not express in between feedings. By doing this you are telling your body you do need the milk and to make more. Try to go without expressing otherwise your problem may continue.
You may want to use warm/cold compresses to relieve some of the discomfort.
Your baby likely was milking you more than you were aware...at this age it's easy to let our minds wander and not pay attention to swallows, etc.
The seemingly sudden increase is more likely a decrease in his intake. He may have just come off a growth spurt.
For discomfort, LLL recommends expressing to Comfort, but not beyond - unless you are wanting to store or donate milk.
Most women's bodies need only a day or so to adjust to the new demand (or lack of).
Should you choose to pump and store (freeze) your milk, you can use it later to dilute pureed solids when you start adding those to your little one's diet.
The letting go - or pop on-pop off -- is very common starting at around 4mos of age. Babies generally become more interested in what's going on around them. So things that wouldn't distract them before, now merit un-latching to check it out -- noises, kids, TV, book page being turned, dog barking outside, etc.
If this is bothering you, I would recommend a quiet room or corner if you can find one. Sometimes restricting visual stimuli can help -- but not all babies will tolerate being even semi-covered while nursing.
HTH - if you have any questions about what I wrote, please don't hesitate to email me.
K., mama to
Catherine, 5y
Samuel, 2y
EDD 9/09
Your son is incredibly efficient at nursing now and he could be stimulating extra production unbeknownst to you.
Try nursing him on one side during a session. If he breaks off, burp, and relatch on the same side. Just keep track of which side you are starting and ending on so you can stay "even". I was a natural over-producer, but also pumping for work, so we did the single side/single session for 4-6 months.
Manually express, or only pump until the discomfort is relieved and use cool compresses (warm may trigger your let down and stimulate milk production).
You might also consider milk donation. There is a milk bank in Austin. I did a private donation direct to mama and baby, but was able to donate three gallons and maintain my own stockpile in the freezer.
You need to get on a schedule feeding him, so that you do not get engored or anything!
