Favouring one side - how bad is it to do this?

[Stefka]

I am struggling with badly cracked nipples and at the moment I have one side that is much worse than the other. I have therefor been using my good side more. I had been going on my bad side only once a day and expressing the rest of the time but my HV told me to stop doing this as it will effect my milk supply. I just wanted to give it a chance to heal a bit but I have noticed that my good side is producing more milk. How can I strike a balance between resting my really sore side and not messing up supply?

HI there....as long as you give your sore side some stimulation you should be fine.
Your good side is obviously making up for the bad side right now and once you can use the other side more again it will all balance out again.

Hi again Stefka

Do I take it from your message you mean 'going on your bad side' you mean mean the baby actually feeding? And then expressing from that side at other times?

Sounds like the usual HV bllcks to me since I'd imagine, even though a pump not necessarily the same sucking action as your baby, if you're still expressing regularly from that side, your supply shouldn't be affected too badly at all.

And I bet 3J is also right - even if you were feeding/expressing on one side, you'd probably be able to change things later when nipple is fully healed. I'm really surprised though it is taking so very long for your nipples to heal and given this, hope you'll consider seeing someone really expert again?

Check it out with Tiktok & co but it sounds like another half-truth made up...

My right side is making good progress and is well on the way to being better, but it was never in such a mess as my left. I am hand expressing as the HV said this was more like a baby. She seems to think resting it is not a good idea. As for seeing someone expert again I honestly don't know who I would see now. I've seen so many people and the all say different things but they also all say the latch looks ok.

And yes I mean the baby feeding on it and I hand express from it and give him a bottle when I want to rest it.

Hi Stefka I'm no expert but personally I found hand-expressing more uncomfortable (and slower) than using a pump. But I think you should do what is most comfortable for you...

I think the 'more like a baby' bit is made up and a red herring; it might have felt like that for her but not necessarily for you? DOES it feel like your baby feeding? I find my Ameda double electric pump, on full speed with suck at full strength, ONLY JUST approximates the strength of my boy's suck and though I've found hand expressing useful when engorged, I've never found it helpful to get lots of milk out. But that's just me and you might be completely different. Trial and error and see how you get on? Try and catch Tiktok again (hijack her on another thread?!) and see if she can advise you specifically about the supply thing on one side?

I'm really sorry I can't be more help on the latch thing since I don't know what else to suggest but if it still isn't healing enough for you to feed regularly on, it doesn't sound healed to me... Just spoke on here to someone who expressed only for 15 months and is still going strong! Not to depress you but you do have alternatives for a while until you can get that side sorted. And I think I've said, I've still got problems, also on my left side for some godforsaken reason I can't work out either so we're in it together!

It's so frustrating isn't it. I am obsessed with looking at the latch everytime he feeds but I can never figure out what the problem is. It is better than it was but it still really stings when he goes on that side as the cut part gets irritated.

I don't get huge amounts hand expressing either. Perhaps I will have a go with my pump again. I will try and find ticktok.

stefka - how old is your baby?
how well established is your supply?
I knowlots of people (inc me!) who fed from one side long term. one breast is enough to feed one baby well supply is established.

He is 6 weeks and five days at the moment. I don't really know how well established my supply is - how can I tell?