Day 4: Red hot breasts of steel. Remind me how long this lasts...

[norktasticninja]

I'm BF DS on demand and now I've got milk (yipee), but picking up my wriggly 18 month old DD with enormous engorged norks is not a pleasant experience. Anyone care to remind me how long this phase lasts?

It can vary - my DS2 was an efficient feeder, so I never got this stage. DS1 was not so efficient, and it lasted a few days. Wearing a bra 24/7 helps, if you're not doing that already.

Congratulations on your new baby - and having the mental focus to come up with funny thread titles too! You're doing very well!

oh not long a few days at most iirc

They will settle down really soon. I would reckon 3 days max.
Congratulations!

Ouch. Yep, good bra including sleep bra should help (even if you're not huge, engorgement notwithstanding) and a few days I think I remember, then it settles. Until the first growth spurt in a couple of weeks and then there might be another couple of days [profit of doom emoticon].

A bit of breast massage in a hot shower can take the pressure off for a few hours...

LOL thanks all!

Wearing a bra 24/7 and industrial strength breast pads is the only way I stay vaguely dry! I fell asleep mid-feed this morning (laying down) and woke to find DS and a big patch of bed saturated with milk. My breast still felt normally full

I tend towards over-supply (or I did with DD anyway) so I'm wary of expressing in any way... I'm giving my shiny new breast shells a go as we speak, I've never tried them before though.

Ah, ok, if you have a history of oversupply, there are things you can do to reduce your supply, particularly once you're sure your DS is getting enough milk.

From what I remember, the basic idea is to feed repeatedly on one side for a while, then switch to the other. Something like three hours per side? (And, as you say, don't express!)

The one-sided feeding thing can help in some circumstances - see kellymom.com for info on that, tis a really helpful site all round.

Wasn't suggesting expressing as such, just encouraging a bit of flow to ease the pressure