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Engorgement/oversupply

C12H22O11C12H22O11 member
in Breastfeeding
With DS, I made the mistake of pumping when my milk came in to relieve engorgement and set up a horrid cycle of oversupply. I vowed I wouldn't do that this time around, but I'm starting to think my oversupply wasn't completely a result of my pumping.

My milk came in about 3 days PP, and I've pretty much been in agony since then. I've tried hand expression, and that helps me feel better for about an hour. I gave in last night and pumped and got 3ozs from each side in a little under 3 minutes. I've been taking ibuprofen to help with the pain, but clearly I can't continue to do this.

At this point, I'm worried about getting mastitis. Both breasts are hard as rocks, leak constantly, and achy. I've been having shooting pains in both breasts. Talked with the LC at my pedi, and she basically said not to pump, keep hand expressing, etc and my supply would eventually regulate.

I guess what I really want to know is how long it took for your supply to regulate? Does the amount of pain I'm in seem normal? The constant leaking (I'm soaking a breast pad every couple hours)?

I reeeeealy want to pump because I'll feel so much better, but I don't want to exacerbate the issue. Any suggestions on how to get through would be appreciated!

Ethan Michael - 12/21/09
Norah Jewel - 2/26/14

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Re: Engorgement/oversupply

  • linzeek44linzeek44 member
    I had a pretty bad oversupply but I didn't really realize it until five weeks in. I guess I thought everyone was dealing with that kind of engorgement and leaking. 

    I didn't pump at all. I took ibuprofen as necessary and sometimes would put heat on before feeding, and a little cold compress afterwards. 



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  • SnoopyLuvSnoopyLuv member
    I had the same exact thing happen with DD1 and DD2. I pumped like crazy with the first baby and went through agony not pumping with the second. What I did was to pump 1x per day the first few weeks, and that was it. It helped me not to be crazy engorged and it wasn't the overkill I was doing with baby #1.

    I also did a lot of reverse pressure softening and hand expression in the shower. Now, my supply has regulated to normal levels. I don't think I've worn nursing pads since 8 weeks PP.
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  • C12H22O11C12H22O11 member
    Thanks for the suggestions ladies! I'll continue with the ibuprofen and try and pump as little as possible (confession: I pumped an oz from each side this morning just to feel a little better).

    Ethan Michael - 12/21/09
    Norah Jewel - 2/26/14

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  • C12H22O11C12H22O11 member
    AmyG* said:

    If you NEED relief, hand express or pump til you get let down, let milk spray out and stop.  Or if you are getting x number of oz, tomorrow aim to stop before you get all the way to x.  every day stop sooner, or less time or less oz, or go longer between the pumps/expression.  the overfull feeling signals your body to make less milk, relieving the overfull feeling makes the engorgement last longer.

    Make sure you are feeding baby on primarily one side for feeds, offering side 2 only for dessert.  if you've been one sided nursing for a while without change, you can consider block feeding on one side for 2 feeds in a row, then swtich and feed on the other side for 2 feeds in a row.  let the other side be as full as it wants to be, this signals TURN DOWN THE FAUCET to your breasts.

    you can do a trial of cabbage leaves in bra--they help with engorgement but are also used to dry up milk so be careful.

    you can try lowering your water intake just a little bit, cause you can't make gallons of milk if you take in less water.

    you can do a trial of a few peppermint candycanes left over from christmas.  peppermint can help lower supply but is usually only a short term relief.

    I've been only offering one side per feeding basically since my milk came in. I read a little about block feeding - if there's no change here in the next week or so, I might try that.

    AmyG*, I also read about a technique of pumping both sides to "empty", then starting block feeding. Any thoughts on that, or would that be counterproductive?

    Ethan Michael - 12/21/09
    Norah Jewel - 2/26/14

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  • fusionbridefusionbride member
    I used long hot showers, cutting out things like oatmeal from my diet (surprisingly made a big difference for me!), and ended up doing some block feeding as well.  I also got one of those plastic matress covers because the night leaking was insanity.

    I also just pumped 2-3 oz on occasion because it felt so amazing to not be in pain anymore-- this way I ended up with a good stash and when I went back to work, i took serious control of the oversupply by pumping fewer times in a day than she ate, and got everything back in sync.

    GL!

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