Leaking Milk

[DesperateHousewife21]

Ive got a week old baby who feeds every few hours, he falls asleep at the breast almost everytime and I have to change his nappy mid-feed to wake him up a bit. The midwife knows this and encourages me to have skin-to-skin contact to help him feed more at one time. He is getting better and will feed about 10-15 mins at a time.

However I am leaking copious amounts of milk during a feed and also in between feeds, the midwife said to get a hand pump to express the milk to avoid getting mastitis. What I would like to know is if I express the milk surely my breasts will then just produce more? I thought it worked on a supply and demand basis so the more baby has the more I make. So surely expressing will make my problem worse.

Also what do I then do with the expressed breast milk? I dont really want him to feed from a bottle as he's doing well feeding from the breast.

Thanks.

agree a pump sounds counter-intuitive - try breast shells to collect the leaking milk

you can freeze it for future use - once he's 6w or so you may appreciate the chance to nip out...

Can you balance a cup under there or something to catch it? Then drink it yourself.

If not, in the mornings when I know I am going to leak, I pop a cloth nappy over the breast not being fed from and it soaks it right up.

Is your midwife actually trained as a BF counsellor (a lot aren't)? Expressing before about 6 weeks is not generally recommended, nor using bottles before then. The leakage should gradually settle down as BF becomes properly established over the next few weeks. You can use sterilised breast shells to collect it and store it for future use (you can get bags to freeze it in) if you want, or just soak it up with muslins, towel etc.

You're in the really early stages of getting BF properly set up, and it sounds like you're doing well to me.

Thanks for your replies ladies, I do use a muslin or breast pad to catch the leaks but sometimes dont always get there in time and leak on the baby!

Im not sure if my midwife is trained in BF, she just scared me a bit by saying I could get mastitis if the baby doesnt drink all the milk at one feeding, Ive been expressing by hand to get the excess milk out.

If he just takes the one breast at a feed, you then offer the other to start with at the next one, then I think you should be OK.

This is unusual advice from the midwife - leaking is normal for many women in the early days and expressing with a pump will make it worse in most cases. Are you sure she suggested this?

She is also wrong when she says the baby has to take all the milk at once.

Pumping the milk off encourages the body to make more, just as you summise.

Leaking is a nuisance, but it usually settles down.

Very few midwives are trained breastfeeding counsellors, but all should have some knowledge of bf. From the sound of it, I think there are gaps in your midwife's understanding, unless there is something more going on that makes her think what she has said is a good idea.

No need for you to express by hand or pump, and most bf counsellors (I am one) would strongly support leaving well alone at a week. It's not necessary, and it will create no harm at all to do nothing.

Hello
It sounds like you are doing brilliantly and have really answered your own questions in your original post. Follow your own instincts!

From my experience MWs aren't always right esp when it comes to breastfeeding. There are lots of bf counsellors like tiktok. I found www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk to be brilliant.

I have had two babies and leaked absolutely loads with both of them. A good thing really as it means you have plenty of milk.

Everyone is right, including you, that expressing will just encourage more milk so just let your baby feed. As far as I'm aware, mastitis is more to do with a bad latch rather than having too much milk. Don't worry about it - as long as you are feeding when your baby wants to your body will regulate itself.

Good luck!

Thanks for all the responses, this site really is so useful!

You have all backed up what I was originally thinking

tiktok the midwife def said to express the milk as the baby wasnt feeding for long enough (he is now) and I was at risk of getting mastitis.

domestic thanks for the link I will have a good read through of that when I get 5 mins

Desperate - Aha! I can see why she might suggest expressing if the baby was not feeding well , in that case. So she was not suggesting the expressing to deal with the leaking but more to ensure the breasts got the message to continue making milk, because the baby wasn't removing it. The risk if the baby doesn't remove the milk is indeed mastitis, so in that case, expressing is not the crazy idea it sounded like

Now, though, your baby is feeding more, and is not falling asleep, so you prob don't need to express at all.

tiktok yeah that does make sense now. Have just got back from a walk and he is indeed a very hungry boy!
Hes currently on the left boob and the right one is leaking like mad Ive got a breast pad on it.