Oversupply - how much is too much?

[Kirley64]

My best friend just had her second baby and with both of them they have seemed to be really spewy and have alot of wind pains.....
with her first she didnt' really know much better but with her second she's done some research....
She has a really fast flow, so she attaches bub to get milk going; then takes her off and 'lets down' for a bit.... then puts bub back on and she gets the fuller milk at the end.
her bub also did the gulping thing (hence the fast flow) to start with; and so she found that this reduced wind pain (although its still there somewhat but alot better than it was); and she seemed more content with her feeds.
Just google it; thats all my friend did and she found lots of info. Somehow i dont think its good for a baby to be constipated for even three days i know how painful it is for me being a pregnant adult let alone a tiny baby.
How bubs poo also can tell you alot about your milk i.e if they have a lactose intolerance (from when you drink cows milk) or even an allergy to something like eggs....

all the best xxx

[inky]

[COLOR="RoyalBlue"] takes her off and 'lets down' for a bit.... then puts bub back on and she gets the fuller milk at the end.

Hi Kirley, do you mean your friend expresses for a bit? I can let down whenever but particularly from one side when baby is feeding from the other. DD would have a fit if I pulled her off mid feed!

Googling for info is ok but confusing. It led me to block feeding which didn't work. I've found talking on the forums much more helpful and interactive

I'm feeling for DD being uncomfortable and constipated. MIL gave DH a bottle of prune juice for me to drink to help the bubs poo. Does this method of indirect laxative effect work I wonder..? Ew I can't stand prune juice *shudder*

[Shades]

As far as I know it's very unusual for exclusively BFed babies to get constipated... they can poo less but that's because more of the BM is utilised and so there's less waste to get rid of - but it's not constipation really... what led you to thinking it's constipation?

(I would be avoiding the prune juice like the plague btw)

[Kirley64]

Hi Kirley, do you mean your friend expresses for a bit? I can let down whenever but particularly from one side when baby is feeding from the other. DD would have a fit if I pulled her off mid feed!

Googling for info is ok but confusing. It led me to block feeding which didn't work. I've found talking on the forums much more helpful and interactive

I'm feeling for DD being uncomfortable and constipated. MIL gave DH a bottle of prune juice for me to drink to help the bubs poo. Does this method of indirect laxative effect work I wonder..? Ew I can't stand prune juice *shudder*

no she doesn't really express as such. she just lets down into a towel or cloth. I think she literally puts bub on for like two seconds just to get started then pulls her off.. but i'm not sure of details because i've never actually sat and watched her closely.

Colic in the Breastfed Baby
Not the best website but there is a little info about rapid let down.... I think she also did the lying down while feeding for a while too when she was at home.

[inky]

Hi Shades, DD didn't have a poo for three days. Then had one big (mustard colour slightly foamy) explosion this morning and nothing since. ECHN says this is very common and bubs is putting on weight nicely. I hate seeing her bloated & in discomfort. She strains & arches her back bearing down.

I don't think it's fast let down as I have no spray, however I do feel let down on the other breast while feeding her. Still don't know if I have oversupply, but I've reduced expressing so I'll see how my breasts settle over the next few days..

[Acacia]

Hi inky,

It sounds like you are doing a wonderful job feeding your little bubba, congratulations! You've received some really great advice here too.

WRT your DD's poos - constipation is not defined by how often your baby does a poo, but what the consistency is like. So if she's not going for three days, but then does a really mustardy liquidy/foamy poo (which is completely normal poo for BF babies, BTW) then she is not constipated. Your BM is so expertly tailored to what your DD needs that there is very little waste and sometimes babies don't need to evacuate their waste as often when they are using up so much of your goodness!

WRT to her straining and being bloated and in some discomfort, this is really quite normal for many babies too, and does not necessarily that they are constipated or that anything is wrong. Babies have such tiny bodies and their little digestive systems are only just learning to work properly when they are newborns, and often this includes learning and being able to use their bowels properly. Many babies do have to learn how to let the muscles relax and the ones that need to tense to eliminate poos and wind. My DD went through this for a number of months - she was often very distressed with poo and wind, but she was growing and putting on weight like a trooper and was generally very well otherwise, and as she got older - as Arcadia said - she outgrew it and coped with my large volume of milk and how she digested it much better.

I've been through pretty full-on oversupply also and it's really hard because you want to be able to make things better and more comfortable for your baby but sometimes it's just simply a matter of riding things out. Your body will start to settle down in it's milk production as your body respond to the supply and demand process alone and the hormones settle (It took 4 months for me, but is usually less than this as others have said - 6-8 weeks), and as your DD gets older she will digest BM with much less stress and strain.

At this stage, the extra stimulation you are giving by expressing will mean that you are continuing the cycle of being oversupplied. If you stopped expressing altogether for a little while you might find that your body makes less and starts to match what your DD needs a more little closely over the next little while, and you might find she gets more fatty, rich milk which she can access when she really drains a breast well which can help the digestion process. Could you try not expressing at all for a little bit? - give it a few days for your breasts to react to the change in demand/stimulation. You will find that you'll feel quite full, but your breasts will quickly adapt, and provided that your DD is feeding regularly and draining lots of milk from both sides, you shouldn't end up with any problems from engorgement.

Perhaps when your body is working better with the supply and demand of your baby's needs and settled into making just the right amount you might find that you can start expressing again to build up a supply of EBM if you need to. I did this after my oversupply stopped properly at 4 months. You can always build supply up with the stimulation, but it's very hard to allow supply to drop without stopping additional stimulation.

I definitely understand where you're at, and I hope the info is useful (sorry it's so long!). It's hard when you're worried about engorgement, worried about how your baby is doing when they seem in discomfort, but remember that you're learning about your body and your baby, your baby is learning about her body and her relationship with your breasts, and the most important thing is that you are doing a wonderful job feeding her with your precious BM, and she is GROWING! So you're doing brilliantly

Oh, and P.S. - it's very normal to feel letdown in your other breast when feeding in the early days. For many women this disappears over time - I never feel any letdown at all from either breast when feeding my DD now, but I know it's there from hearing her gulping away!

[inky]

Thanks Acacia and everyone for your info and caring advice.

I just got back from a much needed long weekend away during which time I reduced my expressing.. to give your advice a go. It seems to be working and my breasts are gradually settling down much more than the early early days.

I'm nervous about venturing out into the world relying solely on booby for feeding and not having the back up bottle, I'm guessing I'll get over it! I'll google the best mothers rooms in Sydney as a start hey..

DD is up and down with wind, constipation & the runs. Had a minor freak out when I saw blood spotting in a nappy but was assured it's all normal.

Thanks again
inky x

[Kirley64]

DD is up and down with wind, constipation & the runs. Had a minor freak out when I saw blood spotting in a nappy but was assured it's all normal.

Thanks again
inky x

Just keep an eye on what you eat and when the blood spotting occurs... cuz it can also be an allergy to food such as cows milk or egg protein.