does anyone know?

Question

can anyone tell me how soon afer nursing my daughter my breastmilk repenishes?I nursed her 3 hours ago, and pumped what was left to releive the pressure of "full" breasts..I just went to nurse her again, and did not seem to have as much milk this time..

Answer 1

It depends on the demand of the baby...most mothers make as much or more milk as baby drinks. I don't know how old your baby is, but as her demand goes up, so will your milk supply as she needs it.

However, if you do find that your milk supply is not increasing with her need or you notice a significant decrease, please see your doctor because that may be a sign that something else is going on with you - such as a chemical or hormonal imbalance that would need to be addressed.

Answer 2

Your breasts DO NOT need to "refill" between feedings. Milk is actually being made AT ALL TIMES. Trying to completely empty a breast is like trying to empty a river -- it's impossible, since more milk will keep flowing in while milk is being removed.

A lot of the milk is made ON DEMAND when you put her to the breast or turn the pump on. Rather than thinking of nursing or pumping as "pouring milk out of a container" think of it as flipping on the "high speed production" switch!

The sensation of "feeling full" is engorgement and it means you are not nursing often enough OR that you may have an oversupply if you feel that.

Waiting a set amount of time to nurse your baby (under the mistaken belief that breasts need time to "refill") is actually COUNTERPRODUCTIVE. Full breasts make milk SLOWER than breasts that are constantly being emptied! Consistently delaying nursing will lead to decreased milk supply over time because milk production slows when milk accumulates in the breast.

EDITED TO ADD:
The quantity of milk DOES NOT depend on how much fluids you drink. The MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR is how often you nurse or pump. Yes, you need fluids, but drinking to thirst should be enough. DO NOT force fluids.

Answer 3

With my experience, I always had more milk at night. So though it may seem like your milk supply is diminishing, it might just be the time of day. It is pretty normal to have tons of milk when you don't need to nurse, and not enough when it's feeding time....at least with me it was always that way. Try pumping at your fullest time and storing it...that is only if you are willing to let her drink from the bottle though. Most babies won't go back to the nipple after they have had the bottle because it is so much easier to get milk out...Good luck!

Answer 4

I breast fed two children.....the quanity of milk depends on how much YOU drink....your fluid intake. If you find that you are not producing enough....the doctor had me drink one beer.