spraying milk!

[Danni88]

Hi, I'm a new mum to a 10 week old girl, I'm successfully breastfeeding but havin problems with forceful let down / oversupply. My daughter will start to feed and my milk will literally spray out, this causes her to choke so I have to take her off and press a cloth over my nipple until it stops, which is a nightmare, I need 3 hands. Does anyone else have this problem or a better way to deal with it? I can't feed in public as I'm scared my milk will shoot out

[kristine007]

Same here. Have no advice though, sorry.

[Poppytime]

I have the same - tricky isn't it?! I now tuck a Muslin over my folded down bra (nursing bra) if that makes sense? It picks up any drips and I can quickly hoik it up to press over the spray/wipe babies face. It's not a perfect solution but minimises mess!

[cornishglos]

Same here. Just have a muslin to hand. Most people are looking away when they realise you're breastfeeding so I wouldn't let it worry you.

[nearlyteatime101]

Once I nearly shot my uncle in the face with breastmilk when the baby pulled away for air at the wrong moment. So embarrassing. No advice on how to stop it but would just like to say that it will calm down eventually. Promise.

[theconstantvacuumer]

Can you express a bit first, just to take the pressure off a bit so to speak? I

[Roobix04]

Ditto to the whipping up a muslin cloth. I've shot sleeping dp in the back and the wall in Costa Coffee with breast milk. Fun times

[5madthings]

I was always the same, expressing a bit off first may well just encourage your boobs to make more milk.

Feeding laying down or leaning back so it's going against gravity can help. Also breast shells to collect if you leak from the other breast as you feed. Muslin cloths lots of and in the end as my babies got bigger they got better at coping with the flow of milk.

I once sprayed someone sat opposite me on the tube when my eldest pulled off the boob mid feed... That was interesting!

[DatsunCogs]

This is me too - second feeding lying down so it can drip out - not always practical! I use a nipple shield as it then drips from the end of that rather than spraying horizontally, you may be a bit far down the line to start that though!

It is a pain but in the plus side, guessing feeding is quick?!

[louise987]

OMG I am so relieved to read this! Totally the same boat, it's amazing how far it can go!
I do the Muslin thing to catch the sprays. They get soaked.

if I'm honest my DD always ends up with dried BM in her hair/ears...

[ANiceSliceOfCake]

I managed to stop this by block feeding, so basically feeding of each boob twice. I had over supply and fast letdown and this corrected it. I know some people say speak to a breastfeeding support person before you try this though bit it worked for me.

[Zinni]

I use a BebeChic breastfeeding cover. It's just a big square of cotton that goes on like an apron, with a rigid neckline so you can see baby when you look down. Looks like you're wearing a baggy top and can be folded in handbag in between feeds. Without it I'm paranoid my milk will spray people, it happened a couple of times when I was using a muslin (wriggly baby who pulls off mid-flow and pulls at things!) I sprayed a friend's legs and on a other occasion a stream of milk travelled a couple of metres
The cover gives me the confidence to feed anywhere, even next to a stranger on the bus.

[Danni88]

Thanks for your advice and tips! Glad I'm not the only one. No one told me about the 'cons' of breastfeeding, my daughters just started sleeping through 11pm-7am, which is amazing, but I still have to get up in the night and change my soaked bra, put a towel on my wet bed, n express a few ounces off each solid painful boob!
I get through SO many breast pads!!

[Poppytime]

I just bulk ordered some breast pads from Amazon - I swear I am one of their best customers. DS is almost 15 weeks and I can't see not having to use them in the near future. I also keep finding them around the house stuck to things (including myself)

[Danni88]

Poppytime wich ones do you use? I currently use sainsburys ones, £1.50 for 40 pads. I tried tesco & asda and hated them

[jessplussomeonenew]

Have you considered reusable pads?

[Poppytime]

Lansinoh - I've tried loads and found these the best.

[Poppytime]

Jess - I tried reusable (Tommy tippee I think) and they just leaked through , also they were kind of bulk and got worse after washing. Do you have any recommendations?

[Zinni]

Lansinoh pads are best IMO

You can also get rubber shield things from Boots that you wear in bra to collect milk (no more damp bed)

Around 14weeks my supply settled and I stopped leaking at night, it takes a while to adjust when they start sleeping through

[Doublebubblebubble]

Ds is 13 weeks and its still happening here... I use Sainsbury's pads too (tried Superdrug and they were a pile of poo)

[Dixiechick17]

I used to lean righy back to feed, practically laying down so that it wouldn't hit the back of her throat. The sainsburys breastpads are useless, personally I prefer boots ultra slim or the tommee tippee ones as they are much wider and more absorbant and don't crumple up to the size of your nipple after a few hours. I also have reuseable bamboo ones. Expressing a bit off before a feed can help too sometimes.

[DatsunCogs]

Lansinoh are the best but I use reusables too, got some bamboo ones from Amazon which are okay.

[OnceAMeerNotAlwaysAMeer]

we had the same problem. Lying down to feed helped as a couple of people have said. Also expressing a bit first.


Otherwise the poor baby would pull off the boob half choking and shortly afterwards as if he'd been under a whate-water garden sprayer.

[villainousbroodmare]

It will settle down soon. I was exactly the same, drenched pyjamas and all, but from about 4 mo I could get away without even wearing a bra to bed (oh, the joy!)

[Dachshund]

My people! I too have been doing the muslin cloth catching the overspray thing... Hoping that it will calm down. My other new mum friends keep telling me to be grateful for the oversupply and not having to fall back on formula but the let down is SO painful and lasts a good 15 seconds! It comes on all the time too, not just feeds. She could cry and then my top is soaked Lansinoh is the best for me too

[MumToBe2015R]

I had the same problem. I found it easier to express first because that stopped the force of the milk coming out. My LO also used to start choking because of the spray! Embarressing!!