Can oversupply cause fussing and breast refusal?

[sleeplessbunny]

3wk old DS has fed well so far (EBF), with good weight gain. He has been very windy though and the MW suggested it may be because I have a fast let down, causing him to gulp. He does feed very fast (5min feeds) and sometimes does choke a little at the beginning of a feed. Also he has had a lot of green poo which I am told by the HV is likely to be due to him getting too much foremilk and not enough hindmilk, a symptom of oversupply.

For the last few evenings he has been extremely fussy when feeding, taking a few gulps and then arching his back to pull away from the breast, screaming, he then refuses to latch on but keeps rooting. Its horrible because I know he's hungry but there's nothing I can do if he won't latch on. Could this be down to oversupply and/or a fast let down?

This evening I gave up and DH has just given him a bottle which he has taken and he's calmed right down. I'm not sure how to feel about that, I really want to continue BF but I fear if DS gets used to the flow from a bottle he might be even more likely to refuse the breast. I really can't be arsed with expressing either.

Any advice on whether this is really an oversupply problem and if so what to do about it would be very welcome!

FWIW I never had these issues with DC1.

When my LO does this its wind. A quick pat and she usually burps and is happy to latch on again.

I do think it's more than just wind, I do wind him a lot, he burps a lot but the screaming continues.

you could try block feeding, so only offer one side each feed. This ensures baby gets hindmilka instead of two sides of foremilk and it will reduce your supply.

Another thing which worked fo me was to pump a little before each feed. Just a few minutes. This gets baby to the hindmilk sooner and should help with the forceful let down. abs the green poo.

mind you, after 4 months I had to start offering both sides as he was by then able to fully empty one breast, so keep an eye on appetite and offer both sides later down the line if necessary.

net to much milk than bit enough.

If you don't want to get the breast pump out every time, hand existing is effective, too. Though perhaps not as acceptable in public.

you can ignore that random half sentence. I'm on my phone.

Don't blame you for not wanting to express. Can be such a faff.

Am not an expert, but until one comes along, the things you could maybe try are block feeding, (so feed on one side for say 4 hours, then switch to other side,) laid back feeding where your prop yourself up on pillows so you're practically horizontal and then place your baby on top of you to feed so gravity works against your milk iyswim? and maybe hand expressing off initial let down into a muslin before you try latching your DS on? Should help stem the fastest bit of the flow.

I'd definitely try and get someone qualified to observe you irl. Think it's quite an easy thing to fix with the right help and once sorted you could have future of very fast, easy feeding and no sterilizing to bother with.

Xpost about block feeding.

Thanks everyone. Am trying the block feeding, kept waking up in pools of milk in bed last night! Hoping it works

I had the same thing with DC2 as seemed to just have a lot more milk. I just persevered, sat quietly with DC2 with lots of shushing and rocking and waited for fussiness to recede then tried again. Milk would have been leaking everywhere (used a muslin to soak up) while we did this so the initial fast let down and gushing wasn't I suppose quite so bad the second or third attempt. We didn't mix feed at all, just kept going. If anything she seemed really cross rather than windy or whatever when it was too fast, esp once a few weeks older - this lovely comforting thing they adore is hard work sometimes and not so relaxing! As she got bigger, she was more able to manage as well so it did stop. But I can remember some very frustrating feeds for both of us. Good luck.

Yes! I had this problem and solved it with "biological nurturing" which is basically feeding baby sitting up (resting against your chest as you lean slightly back with such a wee one) so baby can pull away and not feel drowned. Will cut n paste below all my oversupply tips:
Oversupply
I had this problem for 10 months so here's lots of tips: Biological nurturing (leaning back) worked for me too, possibly you can look at it on youtube or get expert advice to find a comfortable position? Also feeding lying on my side facing ds. Also lansinoh breast pads (ocado) are the best. I also bought silicone cups from medela that catch excess milk, I used them to catch the spray sometimes while feeding & poured it into a nearby container. I also bought nursing clothes with two complete layers of fabric at the front, you lift the first up where it stays clean then feed, so any drips etc from feeding are then hidden away when you finish feeding. www.mamaway.co.uk/?action=products_detail&prod_id=1315&color_code=B I also bought lots of cheap bibs at mothercare that were towelling on the front and waterproofed at the back. In public I could spray against the bib when ds moved away to cough. Block feeding didn't work for me, I found it impossible to get a balance between too much & too little supply, I ended up donating milk for special care babies for 6m-very rewarding. And it does get better as your supply will either settle down or your baby will grow to handle it better. Ds never fed longer than 20mins and grew very big very fast-sure he'll be great at downing pints in his teenage years!

Had the same problem with DS. When he was very little he would get very distressed about the fast and powerful let down, gulping and choking. Now aged 10 weeks and that bit bigger, he is much better able to manage it. I also try and feed him as upright as possible and let the crazy first milk from the let down pour into a muslin if really bad. It's hard to see them struggling with it but the HV convinced me not to worry too much and that he would learn to cope with it and she was right. Congratulations and good luck!