i have been breastfeeding for almost 2 weeks now, at first when my milk came in both of my breasts were full and engorged.. now that it has settled in, my left breast isnt producing as much milk as my right.
i feel that i am feeding off each breast equally, well i was.. my right breast still fills up and becomes really firm but my left is always soft and significantly smaller.. still produces milk but not as much..
i have read that it is quite common and that i should always feed off the smaller side first to boost production and then top up on the right side and express a little after the feed has finished. have started to do this but not sure if it will work or not.
i need some advice on wat to do. is rather embarrassing with the size difference. will look at calling a lactation consultant tomorrow i think.
It's quite common to have differences in production and/or flow rate between breasts. There's no need to do anything about it - you will still make enough milk for your baby (women can feed off one breast only). The size difference is a nuisance, though.
You will find over the coming weeks that your breasts don't 'fill up' like the did early on. This is normal and just means your breasts are adjusting supply according to demand. They don't need to fill before you feed - you will make milk according to your babies demands. A lot of mothers worry about this change in the way their breasts feel and interpret it as a drop in supply, but having full breasts doesn' tmean you're producing more milk. In fact, the more you empty them the more they make.
Concentrating more on feeding on that side might help to boost production and the size difference, but it might not. My left doesn't flow as well as my right, and as a result DS had a marked preference for the right side, which only exacerbated the issue. I didn't worry about it (size differential aside) - he still got the milk he needed.
This happened to me too but I had a bout of mastitis that I believe brought it on. Even now after 6 months, my right breast is always smaller and even first thing in the morning it isn't hard like the left one is. I express alot and first thing in the morning I get more than 4 times the amount from lefty compared to righty. It's annoying, but your LO will get all the milk needed just like Marcellus said. I know it might be hard to believe that from the look of things but it's really true.
Erin, as you have said, this is pretty common. At this stage it might be more that the supply has settled down in the left side first, so it's not that the suppy in the left needs to be built up but that the right is yet to settle down. Feeding more from the left is still a good idea if this is the case, but it is important to feed or express for comfort from the right side to avoid mastitis. To do this, just empty enough milk out so that you are not uncomfortably full and lumpy.
Some mums find they are uneven throughout the whole time they breastfeed, but at this early stage there is still a good chance you will be even by the 6 - 12 week mark.
Great work on having feeding so well established already!!
MantaRay - I think that is the case because he seems to be satisfied with just the left breast alone. Have been expressing a little from the right side each time i feed off the left as it does get quite full and leaky (drips like a tap!! lol) Will just have to get used to the difference in size.
Left breast not producing as much as right
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