A breast feeding ? about milk supply....please help!!?

Question

I've been breastfeeding my newborn who's 5wks. And when my milk first came in my breasts were a lot bigger and fuller feeling. Now they don't seem to get engored near as fast and they don't feel as big as in the beggining. Is that normal to have happen once breastfeeding has been established? I still feel the let down sensation, and he seems to be getting enough (poopy diapers, lots of peeing, and not fussing once he's eaten). Can your milk supply just drop for no reason? I eat enough, drink enough, and he nurses like every 1-3 hrs during the day just depending. He only nurses for about 10 minutes at a time on one side though, is that OK? I also don't need to pump like I did to begin with, can someone please help with this question! First baby too!!!!!!

Answer 1

Congratulations to you!! Not only have you had a blessed little baby but you are smart enough to be breastfeeding him! You are off to an awesome start! If all mothers were as smart as you the world would be a better place! Everytime I see a woman sticking a rubber nipple connected to a bottle full of noxious artificial formula I want to cry. Every baby deserves what YOU are giving your sweet baby!
Okay, hopping off my soap-box now I will go on to your really good question. YES! What you are experiencing is totally, completely normal! It just means that your breasts have grown accustomed to the added demand of breastfeeding. Imagine how uncomfortable it would be if you continued to become engourged like you did in the beginning? It would not be much fun. I remember when my milk first came in I was SO uncomfortable and really afraid that I would stay that way.
The only time that you will feel that engourgement would be if for some reason you had to be seperated from your baby (heaven forbid) and could not get to him to feed him. If you missed one or two feedings you might get engourged to the point where it would be uncomfortable again. I can remember leaving one of my babies to go out with my husband to dinner and a movie. I knew I was supposed to be enjoying myself but all I wanted to do was get home and nurse my baby! I thought of him all evening even though I had left a bottle of my milk with the setter for him. As it turned out he had refused the bottle and screamed his head off for me! He had worn himself out and gone to sleep by the time I got home. I broke my rule of never waking up a sleeping baby, and went right and got him. He was so glad to see me that I don't think he minded at all. He nursed and nursed and went right back to sleep with a full tummy. Then again there were a few times ( I nursed 4 babies until well over a year) that in a similar situation the baby did not wake up to nurse and my breasts were pretty uncomfortable.
Still, for the most part, that does not happen.
You are giving your little boy the most beautiful gift that a mother can give her child.
You are protecting his health, you have transfered to him the immunities it has taken you a lifetime to aquire.
You will very likely raise his IQ by at least 10 points......
You are creating an emotional bond that will last forever, I know.
You are doing all the right things. You do not need to be pumping unless you are trying to store milk for later. If you are lucky enough to be home with him then it is not necessary. He will not like bottles anyway. You would be amazed if you knew just how much milk he is getting, you just do not feel it like you did at first.
Be sure to use his level of satisfaction as your guide to how much milk he is getting. Not how full your breasts feel. You are right to check the number of wet diapers too...how did you know to be so smart? You must have been well prepared.
BTW, some babies only like one side at a time. It is actually better if you can get him to nurse on both sides though. Have you tried letting him nurse on one side and even tho he is obviously not done, gently remove him ( slide your finger in the corner of his mouth to break the suction) and offer him the other side. If this does not make him mad I would try it. It stimulates your breasts to make more milk than just offering one side at a time at each feeding. As I said tho, all babies are different and they all have their little ways but you do not want to be lopsided either. Try to remember which side he started on the last time and start him on the opposite side the next time. Babies nurse more vigorously on the first side and it is good to rotate ( but I bet you know that!)
You are doing a top notch job and anyone would be really proud of you! If you have any questions go to the La Leche League website. They publish a beautiful book called "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" it is a book that I could not have gotten along without when I nursed my first baby.
For a first baby you are doing and incredibly good job!
I hope I have answered your question and if I can help in any way feel free to write to me.
Love and Blessings
Lady Trinity~

Answer 2

Totally normal. I had so much milk in the beginning that I ended up storing it in bags in our deep freezer. You can store milk in a freezer for 2 months and in a deep freeze for 6 months. Madela makes plastic bags for storing milk.

Anway, my daughter was about 5-6 weeks when I noticed my milk supply went down because it was meeting my daughters requirements. As long as your son is getting enough to eat, don't worry about it. When he starts to require more milk, you can increase your milk supply by nursing or pumping more often and for longer periods. Your milk replenishes every 90 minutes, so that's how often you can nurse or pump. To increase the length, add about 5-10 minutes per breast when pumping or pump after nursing. It usually takes about a week for your milk supply to change, so say if your son was sick and didn't nurse much, you would notice your milk supply diminish about a week later. It will take about a week of extra pumping or nursing to increase your milk supply. That's when the stored milk can come in hand.

If your son only nurses on one breast, that's okay, just make sure to alternate breasts at each feeding. The lactation specialist told me it's really better if they nurse on each side at each feeding, so maybe you could take him off the first breast after 7 or 8 minutes and then have him finish on the second.

If you have any questions about breastfeeding, contact the hospital where you delivered to see if they have a lactation specialist on staff. I took a breastfeeding class at my hospital. The lactation specialist that taught the class helped me in the hospital because I had problems with engorgement and getting my daughter to latch on properly. I was also able to call anytime I had a question.

Best of luck to you.

Answer 3

i think of maximum folk have listed the main significant modifications right here. basically a pair of ideas to function. Breast milk has the fore milk (watery, thirst quenching milk) and hind milk (wealthy, fatty and pleasing milk) which follows a couple of minutes later. as quickly as I show, that every person gets mixed mutually, so in specific circumstances my toddler has to have some water besides to make effective his thirst is quenched. I went lower back to artwork while my toddler became 3 months, so pumping became the only way he gets my breastmilk interior the day time. So from that attitude, that's a actual effective. yet as quickly as I had the alternative between breastfeeding or pumping, i might % without postpone from the breast every time.