preventing oversupply

**Maruschke** · July 17th, 2012, 03:55 PM

Quick help please.

I need to be ultra careful not to generate too much supply. Right now I am pumping 3 hourly both breasts, until I get relief, and until most milk is out (because I don't want milk stasis) but not ever getting to the point where I am pumping dry.

I just pumped at 3 pm and got 80 mls in total (45 and 35) so I'm curious... seems like I am powering along and need to pull back?

I just don't know what to do

. When do I switch to pumping only one breast at a time (so 6-8 hours between emptying each breast)?

What to do? DD2 is feeding 3 hourly but currently I have heaps of milk for what she needs.

**Heaven** · July 17th, 2012, 04:06 PM

I don't think you can help it really. Milk supply at the start is driven by hormones, not supply and demand yet. I would just keep pumping 3hrly both sides because a newborn would feed at least that much.

HTH

**Taurean** · July 17th, 2012, 04:15 PM

I don't think you can help it really. Milk supply at the start is driven by hormones, not supply and demand yet. I would just keep pumping 3hrly both sides because a newborn would feed at least that much.

HTH

Totally agree and freeze the excess milk. Don't attempt to dictate your supply by pumping and especially as she is so young and a prem.

I had to exclusively pump for 5 weeks when DD2 was 2 weeks old and was pumping around 80ml total initially too. It increased but not significantly and I was pumping 3 hourly around the clock at first then I cut back to 4 hourly overnight. We reintroduced the breast gradually from 7 weeks and then DD worked out my supply for me. The excess was a bonus as I've had a constant supply of EBM in my freezer since

I had to pump with DD1 too and my supply also just worked itself out once DD was back on the breast full time.

**TaRhLi.** · July 17th, 2012, 05:03 PM

I would just keep pumping, at the moment you have heaps for her needs but as she gets bigger and hungrier you will be wanting to have a good production of BM and then when she can finally starting BFing she will then stablise your supply to her needs

Better to have too much and have a good supply than trying to restict your supply now and then trying to get it back up when you need too.

**Barb Glare** · July 17th, 2012, 06:07 PM

Hi,
You are getting just what you need to get. Why do you think you should get less milk? I hope this isn't bad news, but there won't be a time when you don't need to pump three hourly (until your baby is breastfeeding and then you will be feeding her every three hours or so.

Right now your milk supply is driven by hormones. Later on it will be driven by the amount of milk the baby takes. You need to work with your hormones to set your milk supply on *high* and keep it there. Your body needs to know it needs to feed the bouncing 5kg baby she will soon be. At no point do you want your body to know it only needs to supply the 45mls she is probably taking every 3 hours. It is easy to down-regulate your milk supply, and it is very, very hard to build it up again later. So, you need to express both breasts every 3 hours day and night. fill your freezer, but don't spin it out longer, you won't believe how quickly she will be taking 80mls or more per feed.

**Kmn** · July 17th, 2012, 10:25 PM

Did you have serious oversupply problems with DD1? I think that as Barb says you are better generating a typical month-old-baby supply now if you can (i.e. working towards 1 litre ish a day). If you end up with a huge excess then you can try pumping less often (I mostly expressed for my DS when he was a little baby and got over a litre in 4 pumps a day - but I had a monster of a supply). Oversupply per se doesn't make problems as long as you are not getting engorged - it's just messy. Undersupply on the other hand is much more of an issue.

**Maruschke** · July 18th, 2012, 07:38 AM

Yep, had a huge over supply with DD1. But things are stalling here, last 4 pumps (both sides, 3 hours apart) were only 70 mls each. Is that right? So confusing.

**Barb Glare** · July 18th, 2012, 07:48 AM

This is the problem that mums have when they are pumping for their prem babies - keeping up supply in the long term. Make sure you are using a hospital grade pump - a medela symphony, hopefully with a premmie card. Personal use pumps won't cut the mustard. If you are at home you can hire one from ABA. Make sure you express every three hours day and night. You could pump 2 hoursly at some times of the day.
When you are at the hospital get as much skin to skin time with your baby as you can. She's more than 35 weeks so she will be happy to "have a go" (even though you wouldn't necessarily expect her to transfer much milk at this stage. Many mums find that they express more while they are holding/just after they have held their baby.
It won't be long (only a week or two) before she is breastfeeding. 70mls is probably more than she needs right now anyway and it should be pretty easy to build up your supply

**Maruschke** · July 18th, 2012, 08:39 AM

Hi Barb, yes they have a medela pump I use at the hospital (it's awesome!) and I have an electric medela at home. I tend to get about 20 mls more at the hospital. I've expressed in the SCU so many times that the sound of the warning bells in the SCU triggers my let down. Anyway, I will do my best to keep going 3 hourly. I think the healthy baby quota on day 4 for her weight is about 37 mls per feed, 3 hourly.

**Barb Glare** · July 18th, 2012, 11:07 AM

Excellent - you are doing great! Make sure your pump at home is a symphony as well - that extra 20 mls matters

**Kmn** · July 19th, 2012, 09:44 AM

Are you able to hand express out the last little bit after you pump? It can make a big difference:
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2009/j...sing-0716.html

**Maruschke** · July 19th, 2012, 12:15 PM

Are you able to hand express out the last little bit after you pump? It can make a big difference:
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2009/j...sing-0716.html

Thanks heaps, that's handy research! I did hand express 8 times a day for the first 3 days, now pumping 8 times a day and just then got 110 mls

.

**Heaven** · July 19th, 2012, 12:53 PM

Awesome Maruschke!! Sounds like it's all going to plan

**Maruschke** · July 20th, 2012, 12:36 PM

Sorry I am so paranoid but...

Is 130 mls per 3 hours normal? And split 85/45 between the non-surgery / surgery boob? I'm just curious if the surgery boob is lagging behind and the other one picking up for it? And 1040 mls per day OK?

**PumpkinZulu** · July 20th, 2012, 12:43 PM

1040 litres a day is great! That's about what I pumped on top of feeding DD (huge supply). One of my breasts was always more of a producer than the other, and I've not had surgery on either of my breasts.

**Maruschke** · July 20th, 2012, 12:49 PM

1040 litres a day is great! That's about what I pumped on top of feeding DD (huge supply). One of my breasts was always more of a producer than the other, and I've not had surgery on either of my breasts.

OK phew! Thanks PZ.