What it is
Oversupply means your body makes more milk than the baby takes. Forceful letdown means milk comes out fast and hard. They often travel together. The baby coughs, chokes, or sputters at the breast, pulls off, gulps air, and is gassy or spits up a lot. Poop may be green and frothy. Breasts feel full all the time and leak between feeds.
What's typical
It is most common in the first six to twelve weeks, while supply is still settling, and in mothers who pump on top of feeding. Many cases ease on their own by three months. Block feeding, offering one breast for a set block of hours, is the usual approach. It lowers supply, so it is used for a few days, with guidance.
What's known
The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine has a protocol on oversupply and advises confirming it first. Many babies who sputter at the breast have a latch or tongue issue instead.
What helps
- Laid-back nursing or a koala hold, so the baby is above the breast and milk flows uphill.
- Let the first fast spray go into a cloth, then latch the baby back on.
- Ask a lactation consultant before block feeding. Done wrong, it can cause clogs or drop supply too far.
When to call someone
- Nowa hot, red, painful area on the breast with fever or chills.
- Todaythe baby refuses the breast, or is gaining very slowly despite all that milk.
- At your next visityou want to try block feeding.
Who helps
Tools: Feeding Prep
Related
- Clogged ducts and mastitisPostpartum: Your Body
- Reflux, spit-up, and feedingFeeding Your Baby
- Breastfeeding positionsFeeding Your Baby
- Engorgement when milk comes inPostpartum: Your Body
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Sources
- Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine — Clinical protocol 32: management of hyperlactation
- La Leche League International — Oversupply
- Australian Breastfeeding Association — Too much milk: oversupply
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