Not even sure if this is a feeding issue but it's knocked my confidence a bit

[washnomore]

DD is 7 months and EBF with a small amount of solids (BLW) and for the last 2 weeks has been waking frequently at night for no apparent reason, just chatting and rambling around the cot. I do tend to feed her when she wakes anyway, and prior to this she was waking at roughly 10, 2 and 5 for feeds.

She's been mostly happy enough during the day - she never feeds much in the daytime anyway, too distractable - but has at times become really distressed at night before eventually settling back to sleep, sometimes hours after first waking up.

My breasts feel really soft and the period of fast sucking after a letdown is really short, then the milk is gone. I've got a history of really severe oversupply and she's always been satisfied with one breast per feed, but the last few days she's had 2 or 3 breasts per feed. Normally allowing her more than one breast means I'm flooded with milk again a day or two later but that's not happening this time. I've been having some pain and bleeding for a week or so now, not really a proper period, and while I remember periods affecting my supply last time I BF it was very transient, a day or two max.

Any ideas? Feeling really insecure about my ability to feed for the first time ever.

Soft breasts don't mean empty breasts, the longer you bf for the less likely you are to become engorged as the supply has settled into more of a pattern.

I believe a period and ovulation can change the taste of your milk and sometimes children don't like the change so they don't feed as much.

I would just carry on and let your dd dictate what she wants from you and in a few days things will probably return to 'normal'. Try not to analyse it and go with the flow

Thanks. I'm normally very confident in my boobs - they're more about function than appearance, put it that way - but it just seems like a sustained low spell and coupled with her crying a lot and being so wakeful I've been really doubting myself. And of course the more I concentrate on the letdown the harder it is for her to get any milk to come :(.

I maybe need to chill a bit. Won't have time today but could have a bath with her tomorrow afternoon, see if that helps.

I started a thread a couple of days ago about my 8 months old swapping between breasts lots during feeds - I was worrying about supply too but actually it might just be because he can

Is your DD mastering/looking like she's about to master any new skills during the day? My DS has started randomly waking in the night since he's got more mobile - I often go in and find him sitting or standing in his cot looking all confused. I think maybe he gets moving in his sleep and wakes himself up?

My boobs are really soft and I haven't felt a letdown for months either.

Yes Rita! She's desperate to crawl (shame she's so fat her limbs barely touch the ground ) and has just cracked rolling back to front and front to back. She's often found pushing herself up on one knee when she wakes, and doesn't seem particularly unhappy at first. So it's not the night waking that bothers me so much but the fact she's less satisfied with a feed and is cranky in general ... but that could be tiredness of course ...

My boobs are really soft too. I kind of miss that hard feeling in some ways.

Might she be teething? My DD was really cranky, I can't remember how long for, and she wanted to feed for a lot longer than normal, but more for comfort than actual feeding. After a while I saw in her mouth and she had a tooth coming through!

really wouldn't worry. just feed her as you have been. my boobs went totally soft and ds would just drain the milk in a couple of minutes - if you have quite a quick let down it wouldn't take long to get enough milk at this age. offer multiple sides. supply might be affected by periods but i still wouldn't really worry. post a year they went even 'emptier' and would just let down milk as and when.

as far as the waking goes, its probably developmental. my ds did this too. would wake up and stand up and wouldn't lie down etc etc would crawl round the cot and get stuck in all sorts of positions .

Thanks :)

I think it's maybe teeth. I'm also used to having wild excesses of milk - the feeding adviser had me expressing before feeds (DD had lactose overload due to my oversupply) and I could easily get 5oz of foremilk before the fatty milk came. It would have been funny if it wasn't so troublesome.

I will try to calm down and let her do her own thing (even if that is feed all night and never during the day :)

I agree it sounds developmental. Also breast after 6 months do seem to go through a softer stage (think of the 6 week transition)

Also ANYTHING can effect their sleep IMO if they're not sleeping through (well does my DD )

Well, problem solved. The half-hearted period has turned into a tidal wave of flow, and with its onset came milk (chronologically, not literally!). DD possibly a bit more settled, definitely faster letdown and a proper gulping phase, and both of us much happier. You'd think, now I've notched up almost 3 years of BFing, I'd have learned that whatever's going wrong usually sorts itself out if you just keep feeding! Thank you!