How do you not pump or feed at night?

IBackBevo · June 2014

I hear about women sttn as baby gets older. I even know of one lady on my bmb who pumps before she goes to bed, her husband gives their baby a bottle in the motn and she is able to sttn. I just feel like I would get so engorged and it would lead to clogged ducts and eventually losing my supply. In fact, when I EP my first son my supply (which was always poor) completely tanked when I cut out the motn pump session.

Right now, my infant is sleeping longer (sometimes even 5-6 hours) but pretty much no matter what I wake up after about 4-5 and feel like I need to pump or feed...lately I have been pumping and letting my dh give LO a bottle when he wakes up. So how does sttn and bfing work?

mommatotwo2 · June 2014

As long as your LO is feeding MOTN, you would need to either be the one feeding them, or pump to replace that feeding. Once your LO does start STTN (which has never really happened yet, for us), then your body will adjust within a few days and you won't feel so engorged MOTN.

As far as the mom on your BMB, what she's doing is ok- but may need some modification to not hurt her supply in the long run. There are moms on here who pump just before they go to bed about 2 hours after baby goes to bed, let Dad (or SO) give the baby a bottle a couple hours later and then mom wakes up for the next feeding. If baby is eating about every 3 hours, this would allow mom to get a 4 hour block of sleep, or longer if baby only eats every 4 hours overnight.

ex:
8 pm- mom nurses baby and baby goes to bed
930 pm- mom pumps and leaves bottle for dad
10 pm- mom goes to bed
11pm dad gives baby pumped milk bottle
2 am- Mom Nurses Baby (mom has now slept from 10 pm-2 am)
5 am- Mom nurses Baby.... and so on

Personally, I think this is a lot of work for a 4 hour stretch of sleep, and I honestly found it a lot easier to just pick baby up and put her on the breast.

mommatotwo2 · June 2014

Right back at ya @Casey78!

eggmankate · June 2014

I totally had the same thoughts and often welcomed it when my DD woke in the MOTN to feed because then at least I knew I could go back to sleep without the worry. DD started sleeping 11 hours straight about 3 weeks ago (just shy of her 6 month birthdate) and I was on sleep meds at the time so I wound up sleeping peacefully and not waking up in the MOTN even though I was full. It took a few days of feeling really full before I finally felt like my supply adjusted just a bit. It's been 3 weeks and I still wake up with a pretty full boob (I nurse with only 1 boob) but I don't feel worried about it because it's not that bad. It sounds like you have some fears based on what happened with your first child so rest assured that what happens with 1 kid won't happen with subsequent children. Don't worry about this now as your baby is so young. It'll all work out fine. If you do find that once your child sleeps all night long and you're waking up with a full boob maybe you could take a Benadryl or something so that you're tired and sleep through those first few nights (if you feel comfortable taking a sleep med).

NatesCupcake47 · June 2014

Mother's Day DH started taking DD's first feeding most nights. I pump a bottle every morning (this was what built my freezer stash the first 8 months) and he gives her that bottle when she gets up between 10pm and 12am. The first few nights I was pretty uncomfortable, but now I sleep from around 10pm-2/3am each night without having to wake up and it's fabulous and I haven't seen a dip in supply. DD is 9 months and I'm ok with not adding anymore to my stash from here on out. I think I have around 2-3 weeks worth...

Guennie · June 2014

Well I'm one of those people who was able to adjust to sttn also but I think it's because I always had such a low supply anyway. I EP and for the first 2 months I pumped round the clock, but after my second round of mastitis I realized I couldn't go on the way I was going. So I started letting myself sleep and it didn't take long for my body to adjust. I don't know if it would have been as easy if I'd had a full supply.

Valancyy · June 2014

We tried having my husband give a pumped bottle so I could sleep more...but I also decided it just wasn't worth it. Not only do you have to pump, but you have to clean the pump parts and bottles...I'd rather just get up and nurse.

I just followed my son's lead, once he started STTN at 3 months old, I did too. I woke up leaking for at least a month. I don't remember exactly, but it took FOREVER to stop leaking by the morning. I had to sleep with a towel under me. It finally did regulate. Luckily, by that time he was old enough where it wasn't a problem for him to latch onto a very full breast.

We also dealt with him waking up again to nurse after he'd been STTN for a couple of months. I tried to get him to go back to sleep without nursing, but it ended up being easier to nurse and put him back down. That way he wouldn't wake the whole house.

BootsOrHearts · June 2014

Just follow your baby's cues. If LO wants to eat, nurse. Otherwise sleep. Pumping and then giving bottled milk in the night complicates things because you're messing with the natural supply/demand signals to your body. If you must pump, it's best to pump at the same time baby is getting a bottle, which in the MOTN defeats the purpose of pumping.

If you want to pump to build up a freezer stash, pump for 10 minutes after baby nurses or if you wake up in the night because of engorgement. Otherwise sleep. That's my 2 cents.

mcgeeva · June 2014

Hi Ibackbevo! I pump right before bed and when ds gets up on the am after I feed him. My boobs seemed to have regulated on their own now but I pump before bed to keep my stash up. I no longer get that engorged hurting feeling where I have to pump or I'm leaking like crazy. But for some reason this second time around I have t had really any engorgement at all. There is milk but never can tell if they are full. It's odd. Or this kid is that much more efficient.

Designermomma · June 2014

I was EP since I went back to work. My husband works from home so doesn't mind a night feeding here and there. How I did it was... I was pumping at 10pm , 2am, 5am then went to work and pumped there. So I just gradually increased the time gap at night by 30 min each day till I cut out the 1-2am pump. Now I pump at 9:30pm and then again at 5:30am. I get about 10oz with my morning pump and about 4 with all the others. Sometimes I'll wake up with leakage randomly but it works for us.

brooksfam4 · June 2014

The human body is so amazing! I was wondering this too as my LO is starting to sleep a little longer. Like others have said, he has gradually slept longer each night so my supply has adjusted. A few nights I have woken up so FULL but I love to sleep so it easy to ignore it and go back to sleep!

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