Quick Q on Slow Let down.

[Munz]

Just wonderin if anyone knew how to speed it back up again?

I used to have a fast let down (being able to get 4 oz ebm in apporx 5 mins) however now, i'vbe found a) not expressing so much (bearly covering the base) and b) I have literally no leakage anymore as opposed tot he 1oz when Joey was first born.

the main prob thou i'm finding is Joey bobbing on and off until the milok comes down, obviously he must have worked out this is how to get mummy's boobies to work now, and that would be fine if he didn't keep turning his head away with my boob still in his mouth. he'll bob on and off, taking perhaps 10 sucks each time (althou no swollowing) then he'll really settle into it and have a nice 5-10 mins or so before the same again, when I put him on the other side which usually he'll get milk from straight away.

I've also noticed I can no longer feel the let down on the otehr side as it used to be rather strong and sometimes quite sore.

nighttimes seems to be the worst when he's tired and doesn't want to work for his dinner! i'm sure this is the prob we've been having as he's started to get really arsey at his night feeds when the milk's not there straight away, which leads me to get arsey cos i'm tired (even thou I know I shouldn't do). I was thinking about going back to doinbg the EBM but what's the use if i'm not expressing and besides which it used to take an hour to get back to bed doing that as opposed to the 25 mins it does now. (and also my boobs never feel full/firm/hard any more no matter how long he seems to go without feeding - is this just my body getting used to it now? he's 18 weeks btw.

any help/advice would be appriciated.

Hiya Munz.

Your boobs don't stay getting hard and full of milk forever with bfeeding. They adjust to produce just the right amount of milk.

Your body's also got used to your letdown - I don't feel mine any more, even though it was toe-curling in the early days.

Because your body's got used to producing just the right amount of milk, it gets harder to express (this was my experience with DS1 anyway).

And I'm afraid Joey is just developing like a normal baby and has realised there's a world beyond the boob - look here for info on distractible babies and how to feed them more successfully. They pretty much all go through this stage, I think - helps to feed in a quiet room, I think. DS2 now only has snack feeds during the day, but a lot of them. He makes up for it by having longer more settled feeds at night.

Go with the flow and you'll both be fine. Don't worry about how much he's getting, your boobs feeling soft or firm, etc - just feed him when he wants it and offer if you don't think he's fed much for a little while.

HTH.

your body has become more efficient in making just the right amt of milk for Joey so there is no 'overproduction' unless he 'demands' it. hence why you don't get engorged anymore and barely/rarely leak. At this time I remember telling myself 'relax - calm mummy = calm baby' over and over again. I would also hum to her and myself as a soothing thing.

search kellymom for 'distractible baby' as key words.

these days (at 14 months) i only feel a strong letdown if my dd has not fed a while and i am engorged.

things will change again with him. he will soon learn how mummy's body makes milk and he will learn to be patient. remember that both of you are always changing so your relationship is very dynamic. (give him at least 2 wks to learn)

at 20 wks I went back to work so at around 18 wks I started expressing an extra feed at night to build up a supply for her.

an hour after she went to bed, i expressed for her. it has to become a routine if you want your body to build in an extra feed for the pump. all i did was pump and mn for a half hour. I got an oz after half an hour the first night but by the end of the week i was getting 4oz in 10 mins.

thanks guys, I looked at the site, it helps if I talk soothingly to him but look away, we had one nice feed today! least I know it's just him learning and developing etc and nothing major to worry about with my supply.

i've been offering the boob every 3 hours unless he wants it sooner or he's asleep, my h/v said every 2 hours is still fine for a BF baby at this age.

Sounds fine, Munz. He might want to feed more often when it's hot - just let him. He might not feed as long - often they just want a quick drink when it's hot.