Is my milk supply dropping?

[cookiemonster100]

Hi,

Quick q, I feel like my milk supply is falling / LO needs more & I can't meet it.

The past days My boobs do not fill as full as they normally do in the mornings. Yesterday he took 2 boobs worth of milk in a session as I could tell he was hungry, he then slept for 4 hours. During the night I fed him & he awoke 2 hours later hungry so fed him again. He is 6 weeks & I know he is due a growth spurt but i am not sure if I am producing enough.
Should I offer him the 2nd boob on each feed? I have tried to resist because I am worried there won't be enough for the next feed, especially if more frequent cluster feeding happens.
Another reason I think I am not producing enough as it seems harder to settle him to sleep after a feed so wondered if he is still hungry.
Advice gratefully received,
X

Dd takes both boobs at every feed. She is 3 weeks.

If he hungry offer him both and you will make more in time for the next feed.

OK. Milk production slows when your breast is full, when baby suckles it stimulates the breast into producing more. If you offer both boobs in turn, more than once if necessary, til your baby is full then your breasts will react by making more milk.

Cluster feeding is your baby's way of upping your supply as they grow. Putting in their order for future amounts if you like.

If you feed less, you will make less. If you feed more, you will make more and if you let baby feed til they have had enough you will have the right amount for their needs naturally.

cookie, here's a bit of directive telling-you-what-to-do :) sorry.....you MUST offer him both breasts at least at every feed.....and it is essential that mothers are told this from the start.

Milk is not 'saved' in the breast until later (your reason for not offering up until now) - quite the opposite. Unused milk 'tells' the body 'stop producing milk' and repeatedly only using one side per feed reduces supply....this is what is advised for women struggling with over-supply and it's how women stop breastfeeding.

Not every baby will take the offer of the second (or third, or fourth) breast. Some will zonk out after just one. But in the early weeks, it is a sensible precaution to at least offer.

Cluster feeding boosts supply massively - you go from breast to breast, back and forth, with the baby dozing in your arms between these smaller feeds which are back to back.

If your baby seems hard to settle, put him back to the breast again.

It's not possible to tell from your post if your supply is dropping, but you can combat this easily by using both breasts more often.

Hope this helps.

Thanks ladies. Will give this a go.
I was advised one boob per feed & let LO come off on his accord. We were going through a stage of producing more formilk then hind milk plus he suffers from trapped wind.
I will have to wind him between boobs.
Thanks for coming back to me
Xx

cookie, good luck with this :)

Are you in the UK? No one should be telling mothers to use one breast only. And the thing about producing more foremilk than hindmilk.....breastmilk production normally doesn't work like that and whoever told you that has not really understood things.

Tiktok - sorry to gate crash, but how long should you offer both boobs at every feed for? DD is 7 weeks and I've stopped offering the second boob as she seems satisfied and my supply is plentiful ... Although I know this can change quickly!

Just as the clock doesn't help with happy bf, neither does the calendar, Anything :)

If your baby is doing fine, if you feel you and he 'know' and understand each other well, and you are flexible enough to make the 2nd breast available any time he looks like he might want it.....no problem :)

Thanks TikTok - I don't know what we'd do without you

:)

Oh....and your lovely bountiful supply wont change 'quickly' (if that's what you meant). Happy, effective bf is not fragile. It is pretty robust once it gets going!