Sleeping through the night and milk supply.

[Writerwannabe83]

DS is 10 weeks old and over the last week he's really improved with his sleep to the point that I'm now going 8-9 hours without giving him a feed.

It's great I'm getting a good sleep but I'm obviously worried if this long gap means my supply will go down. Everyone says the night milk is the best, better quality, optimal for milk production etc so I'm concerned that these benefits aren't happening for me anymore.

Also, it used to be if DS even went 4 hours without a feed my boobs would be rock solid and leaking milk - whereas now, even after 8 hours of no feeding they are no different to how they normally are. They aren't soft but they certainly aren't hard, sore, tight or leaking - hence why I'm worried about my supply.

He typically goes between 9pm-5am without feeding.
Do you think I should start expressing somewhere in that time frame to encourage production?

Thanks in advance for any words of advice or reassurance.

I don't really have experience of a baby sleeping through like this - long may it last for you! But I was going to suggest expressing, maybe just as you go to sleep?

Hey writer, dd2 has been similar for the last few weeks (hence I have been absent from the night feeding thread!). Tbh, I am just going with it. At first my boobs were painful in the morning, but they havs adjusted now and are full when I wake, but not too excessive. I do tend towards over supply though. And I don't like expressing. You could always keep an eye on weight gain?

I can't remember at what point my boobs stopped getting that rock hard full feeling, but they do just stop - doesn't necessarily mean your supply is dwindling, just that you're adjusting to your baby's needs.

DS2 is now nearly 20mo, he doesn't feed at all during the day but has a bedtime feed, sometimes one in the night if he wakes up (He doesn't always) and a morning feed. The milk is produced on demand and he doesn't seem to have a problem getting enough.

My daughter did exactly the same at 10 weeks and it made no difference at all to my milk supply, continued to feed her to 12 months. She was efficient enough at feeding during the day and clearly getting enough to sustain her for the night. I had one or two uncomfortable mornings (I'd express before she woke up) but you adjust very quickly. As and when they need to increase your supply for a growth spurt (often happens around 20ish weeks) you'll probably find they'll wake in the night again for a week or two then settle back down.
It's nothing to worry about - enjoy the sleep!

How is your baby's weight? If that is fine and you are comfortable then no problem.

Milk at night is no better quality than milk produced during the day. Night feeding can be important for increasing or establishing supply because one of the hormones- prolactin - produced by the pituitary gland in the brain is highest during the darkness hours.

My 12 week old baby has varied a lot with his waking at night - he slept 8-3 for a week or so but it didn't seem to be a problem in terms of supply when he started waking sooner. There was no way I was going to deliberately wake up to express I'm afraid!

Thanks everyone for your replies.

His weight has been fine up until now but I haven't had it checked since this change in his feeding/sleeping patterns. I might book a clinic appointment next week to get him measured.

I definitely wouldn't wake myself up to express - but I was thinking of doing it just before I went to bed myself about 11pm-ish. Plus it's always good to have some milk in the freezer in case of emergencies?

I'm glad though that nobody has come across any difficulties, it makes me feel much more reassured

All sounds normal.

If your supply decreases he'll just start waking in the night again anyway.

Enjoy the extra sleep for the moment as IME things tend to go a bit tits up around 4 months with the growth spurt/sleep regression.

My daughter's now 12 weeks and has been on that sort of pattern since about nine weeks with bedtime sometime between 7.30pm and 9pm and waking up between 5 and 6am. (Fingers firmly crossed it lasts!)

I've been trying to make sure she has a really good feed just before bed and then I express before I go to bed, around three hours later. Boobs are full when she wakes me up for her first breakfast but not uncomfortable any more.

I'd just enjoy it - DS2 did the same and then started waking again with the aforementioned 4 month growth/development extravaganza. Had absolutely no effect on my supply.