Nervous about BF'ing with giant boobs?

NatureLovers · October 2014

Pre-preg I was a 36G. I'm at least a H-I now. My hubby is marveling at my giant boobs, with dinner plate sized nips that are also super dark. I know these are good signs for BF'ing, but I couldn't imagine how I was going to do it without smothering the baby. Well, if you follow The Leaky B@@b on FB they have a post where Moms posted pics of themselves BF'ing with very large breasts. Check it out, I found it very encouraging! I won't post the pics here since I don't know if that's allowed.

CanukMam · October 2014

I am 36D and I had to be careful. Sometimes they would cover LOs whole face and he couldn't breathe. I found side laying the best and most comfortable position to nurse and when he was done then he would just push off or roll over (of course this applies after they are able to do this). I consider my boobs pretty average...I think unless you are really small, you are going to have to be conscious of this while nursing. In fact everyone probably has to worry about this.

NatureLovers · October 2014

saiven said:
Paging @YaMrWhite‌. We're talking boobs.

Lolololol

NatureLovers · October 2014

CanukMam said:
I am 36D and I had to be careful. Sometimes they would cover LOs whole face and he couldn't breathe. I found side laying the best and most comfortable position to nurse and when he was done then he would just push off or roll over (of course this applies after they are able to do this). I consider my boobs pretty average...I think unless you are really small, you are going to have to be conscious of this while nursing. In fact everyone probably has to worry about this.

One lady showed how her 4 month old learned to hold her boob up off her nose while she nursed. It was cute.

4littlebears · October 2014

I have huge knockers and I bfed 3 kids already. I do have to hold them a certain way to make sure baby's nose isn't covered while they're eating, lol. But it works just fine!

Edvent · October 2014

I did the football hold a lot with DD, that seemed to smother her the least! But I remember saying exactly that in the hospital to a nurse "I feel like I'm going to smother her!".

ETA: Just looked at the FB page and holy shit those are some big boobies!!

NatureLovers · October 2014

I'm going to post this and hope I don't get reported. My husband swore this pic had to be photoshopped, and can't imagine how my boobs will actually get to this size. I told him just to wait, lol.

4littlebears · October 2014

NatureLovers said:
I'm going to post this and hope I don't get reported. My husband swore this pic had to be photoshopped, and can't imagine how my boobs will actually get to this size. I told him just to wait, lol.

Yeah, looks about right.

NatureLovers · October 2014

How cute are these twins?

NatureLovers · October 2014

And I'm pretty sure this is what I'll look like.

NatureLovers · October 2014

LOL

csjsmom · October 2014

I went up to a 38i or j maybe when I was bfeeding. I only went down to an h between kids and after my 2nd. They are ridiculously big and at about 3 days after when I got engorged they were almost square!
Anyway, I had issues with my first because my nipples are not huge and don't stick out that far. The lc said it would be like trying to latch onto a beach ball! I had to pump first for a minute to sort of "reshape" the nipple (make it stick out a bit more) then latch ds. I really only had to do that for the first few weeks. After that it got better. And once I could nurse lying down that was the best!

rainbows · October 2014

Thanks for the post, id been wondering about it myself over the last couple of days. Mine will be bigger than his head.

Eyefrog · October 2014

a little trick in the beginning is to place a rolled up hand towel underneath the breast to give it a little more lift so you can see better where baby is latching on. It can be done

the breasts will settle down again when everything balances out and a good rhythm is found. I was always suggested to do the football hold but i dislike it a heck of a lot and manage to do a tweaked cradle hold that works when I am not laying down nursing

Not much longer to test those tata's out!

NatureLovers · October 2014

Thanks for the towel tip!

shannjohnston · October 2014

I was a 34/36 H/I when my milk came in in DS. I found my nipples grew longer to accommodate, and DS also learned how to push my boob around so it didn't totally squish him.

I'll add I never used my nursing pillow. I tried a couple times, but with my massive mamomories it was just awkward. The towel might be a better fit, though I never tried it with DS.

YaMrWhite · October 2014

Ooh boobs! Ya I don't think I was as big as any of those pics but I shot up from a D to an F/H depending on the bra and how their sizing worked and I felt like I was smothering my daughter. She would burrow in and I would use my free hand to push gently on my boob where her nose was bc I was so paranoid.

sfgiantsgamerbabe · October 2014

I'm glad you brought this up because this would have never crossed my mind. I'm a 38F right now and I will probably only get bigger. The towel tip is a great tip!

mandikins27 · October 2014

I was paranoid about smothering them but was just first time jitters and i just pressed on my breast where her nose was and all was good

YaMrWhite · October 2014

Speaking of positions, I found laying down on the bed on my side with the nursing boob closest to the mattress to be really nice for feedings. Baby would lay next to me and then when she was done and passing out, I could just get up and do stuff without being afraid of moving her or putting her down and waking her back up.

4littlebears · October 2014

YaMrWhite said:
Speaking of positions, I found laying down on the bed on my side with the nursing boob closest to the mattress to be really nice for feedings. Baby would lay next to me and then when she was done and passing out, I could just get up and do stuff without being afraid of moving her or putting her down and waking her back up.

Yes!

NatureLovers · October 2014

YaMrWhite said:
Speaking of positions, I found laying down on the bed on my side with the nursing boob closest to the mattress to be really nice for feedings. Baby would lay next to me and then when she was done and passing out, I could just get up and do stuff without being afraid of moving her or putting her down and waking her back up.

Yes, nursing while laying down is a skill I hope to work on, assuming BF'ing works out for us.

kellyfo14 · October 2014

Edvent said:
I did the football hold a lot with DD, that seemed to smother her the least! But I remember saying exactly that in the hospital to a nurse "I feel like I'm going to smother her!".

ETA: Just looked at the FB page and holy shit those are some big boobies!!

Did the football hold too, definitely worked the best for me to keep their noses clear.

mandikins27 · October 2014

Laying on your side feedings at 3 am are glorious as opposes to sitting in a chair

NatureLovers · October 2014

HappyMonkey817 said:
@NatureLovers‌ - We're the same size. If you find any bras/nursing tanks/etc. that are comfy, please tell me. I'll do the same.

Yes please! I got a couple from Walmart (don't judge please!

that are comfy for wear at home, but give that awful uniboob look as your boobs slide towards the center.

NatureLovers · October 2014

@Edvent‌ I know! I started to feel like my boobies are petite compared!

dstaylor2007 · October 2014

I'm currently a 32 JJ... Could probably go up a cup size too and I'm sure I will after birth. This will be my 4th one nursing and has always been a struggle, but do-able! I know you can find nursing and regular bras on eBay as well as a shop called Barbra's. Not sure if it's just local or also online, but it's the only place I shop!

4littlebears · October 2014

I've always gotten my nursing bras at figleaves.com and I'm a 38H when I'm not pregnant. I can get up to a 38J

They have a big selection of bras in larger sizes, nursing and regular. And no, I have no affiliation with this site. It's European I believe, though they do have distribution in the US I believe.

BookitBoo · October 2014

Love this post

I was def worried about smothering DS in the beginning!

sanbry · October 2014

I'm a DD not pregnant and God knows what size now. I wear sports bras and prefer not to think about it lol. I didn't nurse my daughter very long but my biggest problem was supportive nursing garments. I plan on getting some good ones this time around and trying again.

robsbabygirl08 · October 2014

I must have too many hormones lately. @NatureLovers‌ those pics are absolutely beautiful and may have made my eyes tear up just a teeny bit. I hope I can BF this LO since my milk never came in for DD.

mandikins27 · October 2014

My daughter learned at a very early age how to unsnap my nursing bras and there is nothing worse than being big chested and having a blow out in public so i think im going to go with sports bras this time

AggieMom0809 · October 2014

If you latch them "correctly" the size shouldn't be that big of an issue. Though I did see something on zulily that was supposed to help make it easier. I would never try it, but to each their own. https://www.zulily.com/p/breathe-baby-breathe-band-95854-12522366.html?ns=ns_704564423|1414326016535

LaBellaVida · October 2014

I've got big boobs too, but was never worried about smothering. While I'm nursing I just push down on my boob with my finger where his nose was at so he could breath.
I also nursed in bed laying on my side with my boob that was closest to the mattress. I still had to create an airway though.

I only noticed having to do this is the early stages of BFing. Once he was a master eater, and was bigger I no longer had to make an air way for him.

aerotigergirl · October 2014

I worried about this when DS was born too. And like others have said, I just made sure to hold my breast in a way that didn't smooth up against his nose. The football hold seemed to make this easier and that may have been why the lc taught me this hold first. I didn't find it very comfortable though and I switched to a cradle hold shortly after coming home from the hospital. After he was just a few weeks old it got a lot easier.

Edvent · October 2014

I think the football hold helped me at first too since I was recovering for a csection and didn't have to have her lying on my tummy. I was able to do the cradle hold more once she was bigger and my incision had healed well. I never master nursing lying down even though I tried many times. It's like my nips point in the wrong direction and it just wasn't comfortable for either of us. Maybe this time it will be different (honestly I hope a lot about breastfeeding is different this time).

Trek3 · October 2014

I am not a giant boober by any means. However I found that even a regular boob can have the smother effect - it depends on how you hold the baby.

When latching on, you kind of hold them pushing on their upper back so that their head is not straight forward but that their chin is lifted up. This means that the nose moves away from your boob, and their throat is more open for swallowing.

You have to move their whole body in, and not just push their head forward.

Hopefully this advice applies for big boobs too! It made a big difference for me.

BackseatDriver · October 2014

I had a very strong let down so I always nursed reclined. Worked great for me. I've seen moms nurse in lots of different positions. If your interested check out your local LLL meeting because there are probably several larger chested moms that could demonstrate techniques. Plus don't be afraid to ask for help at the hospital.

TXUltraRunner · October 2014

OMG this is a concern???? One more thing to worry about....... I was a B pre-pregnancy. Now my DD bra is too small and I need to go up a size. I've never had to deal with large boobs before so this is new territory

BackseatDriver · October 2014

TXUltraRunner said:
OMG this is a concern???? One more thing to worry about....... I was a B pre-pregnancy. Now my DD bra is too small and I need to go up a size. I've never had to deal with large boobs before so this is new territory

My boobs aren't big enough to cause an issue, but I think it might depend on where your nipples are. If your nipples are still up high I don't think big boobs will cause you any problems at all. If bit I think there might be certain techniques or positions that make it easier.

hotsun · March 2015

Where can I get a one piece?For my big f cup boobies thanks ladies

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