will i have to wear breast pads for the whole duration of bf.....

[mum2samandalex]

or well my milk settle down and not leak as time goes on. On top of nappies and evrything its getting expensive wondered whether you will eventually not need to wear them anymore my baby is now 6wks.

I'm now at 17 weeks and don't wear them anymore. Not worn them for a few weeks now. It will settle down!

no you don't need them once things settle down

you can buy washable ones which work out cheaper

i don't wear them anymore and haven't done since my baby was around 4 months ...although there is still the odd, ahem, 'wet patch' if she hasn't fed for a while

I'm still wearing them at 6 months. Don't need them all the time but you never know...

Don't remember needing them this long with previous babies though.

Washables?

You milk will start to settle down soon. Everyone is different though. Some people never leak at all, others leak for months.

Just compare the prices of breastpads v's formula, bottles, teats etc.

Consider re-usable pads... i found lansinoh really good.

or if you prefer disposables heavenly pads are on offer.

I always did. 10 months of disposables with DS1. With DS2 I invested in a load of washables and used them right through to end of breastfeeding. I always leaked from the other side when feeding.

I only used them for about the first 4 months and used washables when wearing thicker tops and disposeables when needed something thinner. Def got less leaky with time anyway.

I bought LOADS before DS1 was born - fed him for 14 months and only used a handful of them.

Didn't buy many for DS2 (didn't use them at all - but he was FF from 5 days old)

Bought a small box for DS3 and had to buy more - I leaked like a tap and would go through 4/5 a night! Didn't feed him exclusively for long though (3 weeks, and then 1/2 times a day until he was 4 months old) so don't know what it would have been like "long term"

I'm still using them at 2.9 months. Have only recently dared to occasionally go without at work

that's 2.9 years . 2.9 months would be nearly 3 months?

oh now this is interesting. I don't seem to need them after two months, but my friend still leaked a little after nearly five years if she missed a feed

no, i think i stopped at about 6 months.

I stopped using them at about 10-12 months. Still feeding now at almost 14 months.

6 weeks is nothing and milk just established so it will be up and down for a while yet, I imaagine you'll need them for quite some time yet.

Can I just mention here that I never leaked, not at all, ever.

3 dcs, all bf.

Not at all helpful (sorry for that mum2 ) but felt i had to share.

At first I used green baby pads & disposables when I didn't want any risk of a leak or at night. I was pouring for the first six weeks which slowly settled down by about 4 months when I could happily go without pads, now at 11 months don't see a whiff of milk at all but dd is happily gussling away.

Recon every mum is different but supply definately settles eventually, for now patterend tops?!

10-12 months I stopped too but can have a few accidents sometimes. It does get better after 3 months or less.

I leaked like mad at first, and got through so many pads. I used washable ones at night, which were great and saved money too! Things settled off after about 3 months, and only leaked when missed a feed.

I have a gap of 4.5 years between my babies, and found that breast pads had really moved on since having my first. Then they were gigantic very obvious discs, but discovered the Tommee Tippee ones this time round and they were so slim you just couldn't see them under tops. Fab. Patterned tops are a must for disguising leaks.

Has anyone tried the lilypadz pads??

What about breast shells for when you are just at home. they have the added bonus of saving all that leaked milk. Here

I didn't after a few weeks with ds and never with dd

As I get a whopping let-down if I even think about my LO, I think breast pads are with me for the duration!

I think I stopped using them at 6 months this time round.

With DS1 I had to wear them 24 hours a day, every day until a week or two after my final bf (at 4 months).

i think i wore about 3 pairs in a total of 19-odd months of bfing (3 dc)

stopped at about 2 months, dd is now 6 months. have only had about 3 wet patches since I stopped.......

It seems from this thread that everyone is different!! I fed for about 5 months with both my DDs and I needed to use pads throughout and washable ones were absolutely no good for me (I'd be leaking everywhere whenever I tried them). That said, the leaking did settle down considerably after about 2 months - i.e. I didn't have to change the pads constantly. After 3 months or so my biggest problem was my let down reflex occasionaly kicking off at unexpected moments (e.g. if I fopund myself looking at DD and thinking how cute she was - off it would go and I was soaked through!) and also the expolsion from the breast I wasn't feeding from each time I started a feed. I could certainly manage without pads sometimes, e.g. as I stopped the 10.30pm feed at about 5 weeks with both girls and they both slept through the night early I found that in the evenings my breasts were fairly reliable as no feeds were iminent. So by about 3 months I was confident that (on the rare occasions!) I was going out in the evening and wanted to wear a nice dress or top I wouldn't have to ruin the line with hideous pads in my bra!