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nipple shields effecting supply?

marianthebmariantheb member
in Babies: 3 - 6 Months

Hi everybody! I have really been suffering a hit in my supply (I EP) but my breasts feel full all the time and are a little painful so I called medela (I have the freestyle) and she said I probably need bigger nipple shields because the nipples should not touch the inner walls of the shields. Anybody have this experience? Will it help with my supply?

Also, the Medela complany is sending the shields out tomorrow so it will arrive in 2 days. I am worried that in those 2 days, my supply will take a nosedive permanently. I am a FTM and still not sure how supply and demand with breastmilk works. All I know is that it is bad to not empty the breast and mine have not been emptied in a few days and  probably will not be until I get the nipple shields (hopefully that will work)


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Re: nipple shields effecting supply?

  • aliciarosetaliciaroset member

    Are your nipples touching the tube of the flange (sometimes called shield, but not to be confused with nipple shields which cover your entire nipple) or is your areola? If your nipple  (the part of your breast that pokes out) is brushing the sides then the flange is too small and you need another size.  

    And yes, your supply will go down if you don't pump.  You need to express milk every time your baby would feed if you want to keep your supply up.  If your pump isn't working I see two good options for you 1) go buy a cheap manual pump with the correct size flange or 2) hand express. It's not pleasant to do but it can be very efficient and you shouldn't hurt yourself doing it.  Here are instructions:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZViuYKX5LU

    So it's not the size of the shield that would affect your supply, but not pumping will.  If you can stand it, you should pump for those two days and any feeding.  Not only will this help you keep up your demand, but it will also help you avoid mastitis, which can happen if you're engorged too long.

    How old is your LO?  What makes you think your supply is dropping?  Full breasts is a sign of too much milk, not too little.  If you're stopping pumping because it's too painful, hand express until your breasts are empty.  It's not even important that you save the milk (though it'd be nice!) but it's REALLY important that you empty your breasts, both for your supply and your health.  

     

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  • marianthebmariantheb member
    Oh I am definitely still pumping! I try to pump even more now to empty them. I am just worried that the not being emptied completely by the pump will effect my supply. Hopefully the nipple shields will work!

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  • countrywedcountrywed member

    How old is your baby and how long have you been EPing?  If you have for awhile this most likely isn't the problem. 

    That being said I EP for 6 months and every once in awhile I would use the smaller flange for a day or two if I was really sore.  It most likely affected my supply but it gave me relief if I had a sore spot on a nipple.

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  • tinydancingqueentinydancingqueen
    You can use the shields you have now, just massage your breasts while you pump to help manually express milk and empty your breasts fully until completely soft.  It may take 30 minutes or more to do this, but it will totally protect your supply and even boost it if you do this every 2-3 hours.  If you don't want to or can't massage your breasts for any reason while pumping, then just pump more frequently (like every 2 hours, or at least 8-10 times in a 24 hour period) to extract as much milk while you can and be sure to pump at least two times overnight to protect your supply until the larger shields arrive.  You can also manually express milk without using a pump like PP suggested, its a lot of work and takes practice but its another great way to protect your supply when you can't pump completely.
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  • marianthebmariantheb member
    My baby is almost 4 months and I have been EPing since day 2. So countrywed you do not think it is a flange size problem?

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  • countrywedcountrywed member

    Nope I don't think it is a flange problem.  Lots of things can effect supply and since you have been using the same flanges for a 4 months it wouldn't be that.   Not to say you may be more comfortable with larger flanges.

     Some things to try, Make sure you stay hydrated, Pump till you are empty, massage breast at the end, don't skip a pumping. 

    And things you can't control like a natural decrease, hormones/period, and stress can all effect supply too.

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