Drop in milk supply at 8 weeks?

[LisaSimpsonsbff]

DS was 8 weeks yesterday. I was very lucky to find breastfeeding pretty easy to establish and get used to, and he's put on weight exactly as expected. In the last couple of days I've noticed that my breasts have stopped getting engorged (which was happening constantly) and now feel what I previously thought of as 'empty' all the time. I express once a day and I was getting 160-180ml off one (engorged - I'd pump in the morning off whichever one DS hadn't had his first feed from) breast, but this morning it took me much longer to get 130ml in total out of both. DS still seems to be feeding happily, though. Is this normal? I'm certainly more comfortable now I'm not constantly engorged, so is this the 'getting easier' people talk about and I just have to accept the slower expressing as a side effect?

It’s likely just your nobody settleing down into aroutine of milk production so that it isn’t producing more ham is needed.
My dd is 18 w now and I often worry about supply. Then I look at her fat tummy and wet nappies and remind myself all is well!

Ah spelling all over the place! Sorry. Can you tell I’m feeding and typing!?!

Normal. You don’t get full breasts once the supply has settled to provide exactly what your baby needs. How much you can express is never an indicator of how much milk you’re making for your baby. If baby is gaining weight and has wet and dirty nappies supply is fine.

Your oversupply of the early weeks has settled, that's all.

Do you actually need to express? If you keep it up your body will probably "learn" to respond more to the pump and you'll eventually get more, but most likely you'll never be able to get out as much as your baby did. I'm into my fourth year of nearly-continuous feeding (with a short break in the last months of my second pregnancy) and my boobs habituated to pumping at work but never responded to the pump like they did a baby.

Thank you all - I suspected this was normal but good to hear it is!

I do need to express because I'm going back to work when DS will be 5.5 months so we're giving him a bottle a day so that hopefully he continues to be used to it, and obviously I'll need to pump when I go back. I think I'll have to start pumping twice a day as I'm now not getting enough off in one session for a whole bottle, which is a bit annoying but fine. I was hoping to start building up a freezer stash soon, though, and I'm not quite sure how - any tips?

I'd keep pumping every day but switch to giving a bottle every other day and freeze the excess. Every other day should be plenty for him to still take a bottle and expressing, sterilising etc is a faff and a half. It's that or start pumping at least twice a day.

Thanks - I'm worried about dropping the bottle every other day as he's still not taking it completely reliably (we introduced it at 5 weeks) - he fussed a lot over it last night. I think that was because DH didn't warm it enough, DH thinks it's-because-he-still-sometimes-doesnt-like-it-and-anyway-youre-supposed-to-be-in-a-different-room-so-go-away-and-stop-interfering. But pumping twice a day will be really hard - and I'm screwed if DS decides he won't lie on his playmat while I do it as long as I shake things and talk manically at him (he won't nap not in the sling or pram so pumping while he sleeps doesn't work) - so it might be the best choice!