Why is over supply bad?

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

Too much milk here too. I was pumping 50-80 oz a DAY at one point! Too much!! It gave me plugs, mastitis, etc. we had some issues because I had a lot of foremilk, would fill the bottles, and baby didn't do as well as he did once I figured out to mix the bottles which balances the fats better Better to control the OS (Lauren...you might want to quit pumping as it perpetuates the OS ) and make just what you need.

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

Better to control the OS (Lauren...you might want to quit pumping as it perpetuates the OS ) and make just what you need.

Sorry for the hijack, but I agree - Lauren, I know you've been struggling with mastitis and clogs, and it can be difficult to wean off the pump when you get a clog every other day, but you're in a nasty cycle. Try more time in a hot bath massaging and expressing milk by hand, and less time with the pump, every day. I know it's hard, but the pump is doing you NO favors in the long run. If you gradually back off, and substitute massage and hand expressing, it will help you address your OS and get back on track with the clogs and mastitis too.

[@llli*angie0712]

I'm new here and only have been breastfeeding for 2 weeks now. I believe I have oversupply because the nurse told me to pump after she ate if she didn't have a good feeding! Now I have a gassy baby who spits up a lot and ALWAYS wants to eat. She will only eat for 5 - 10 min. and an hour later she wants to eat again. UGH! I wish I would have stayed away from the pump!!!! No one tells you that though. In the hospital she was having great feedings and now not so much. We are getting better but boy I am tired and stressed. I have 31 bags in the freezer already and shes only two weeks old

[@llli*mommal]

2 more reasons oversupply is bad:
- When mom has a lot of milk and it comes out very quickly, the baby never has to expend much effort in order to get a meal. Then, when/if the oversupply goes away and the flow slows down, the baby gets incredibly frustrated because he/she never learned how to work for a meal.
- Embarrassment! I remember one time when I was sitting outside my older kid's preschool, nursing my month-old daughter. My baby pulled off the breast and started wailing during a letdown and milk went fountaining all over the place... Just as our elderly male rabbi walked by!

[@llli*aprilsmagic]

I'm new here and only have been breastfeeding for 2 weeks now. I believe I have oversupply because the nurse told me to pump after she ate if she didn't have a good feeding! Now I have a gassy baby who spits up a lot and ALWAYS wants to eat. She will only eat for 5 - 10 min. and an hour later she wants to eat again. UGH! I wish I would have stayed away from the pump!!!! No one tells you that though. In the hospital she was having great feedings and now not so much. We are getting better but boy I am tired and stressed. I have 31 bags in the freezer already and shes only two weeks old

Very typical bad advice that is not right for the majority of moms.

Also typical for a baby to eat every hour.

Cosleep Nurse laying down, as it helps with OS and gets you some rest.

[@llli*maddieb]

Another reason OS is bad-the symptoms of OS get blamed on other things like GERD or food based allergy and babies are put on medication and moms told to restrict thier diets totally unnecesarily!

I had OS/OALD with both my kids, number one als odue to overpumping/unnecesary pumping. But not so bad I needed to block feed. However with my oldest where I had no idea what was going on, having never head of such a thing, it was stressful to have him spit up so much & put on GERD meds with my husband and I not really understanding what was going on....

[@llli*laurenc]

Sorry for the hijack, but I agree - Lauren, I know you've been struggling with mastitis and clogs, and it can be difficult to wean off the pump when you get a clog every other day, but you're in a nasty cycle. Try more time in a hot bath massaging and expressing milk by hand, and less time with the pump, every day. I know it's hard, but the pump is doing you NO favors in the long run. If you gradually back off, and substitute massage and hand expressing, it will help you address your OS and get back on track with the clogs and mastitis too.

Ah - yeah it really is a vicious cycle. I've been working with my LC to pump less and less. I use to pump every 1-2 hours, which was pure exhuastion for me. By the time I stored the milk and rinsed out the pump... I felt like I had to begin all over again. Needless to say, I was chained to the pump.

Now, I'm only pumping every 3-4 hours... I tried extend that to 5 hours once, but it ended terrible (got severe plugged ducts). I also only pump at work now. When I am home, I'm working with family to let the baby stay attached to me. Sometimes I wish my breasts can be unzipped. Wouldn't it be so nice to just unzip them and hand them to someone else to take care of for a few days?! The pain is unreal!!

Ergo... oversupply = evil!!

My baby pulled off the breast and started wailing during a letdown and milk went fountaining all over the place...

Oh my gosh!! This happens to me almost all the time!! I can't imagine how many times I've let the baby breastfeed and she'll suddenly pull her head back, just as I feel a knot in my breast loosen. The look of her face is so comical - a mixture of terror and confusion, as breastmilk jets into her wee face!! I can't help but laugh as I hurridly try to "stem the flow" and get her to relatch. Once, DH was sitting by and he leapt for an empty baby bottle and capped it over my nipple, while I sat there looking at him with a funny expression

I call these moments "free milk facials" for my baby girl. Why else do they have such beautiful glowing skin? heeheehee

[@llli*lllkaren]

Ironically, the best remedy for low supply is also one of the best ways to deal with oversupply -- frequent nursing.

With pumping to increase supply, you're creating more demand so your body responds by making more milk. If you're also nursing on demand and your baby is getting as much as she needs at the breast, the extra demand from the pump leads to oversupply.

Nursing more often helps increase supply (usually better than a pump), but doesn't lead to oversupply. This is because

a) your baby (unless she has difficulty transferring the milk for some reason) is much more efficient than a pump at getting the milk out, and

b) babies self-regulate when they're at the breast. They work hard at the beginning of feeding when they're hungry, and as they fill up with milk they relax, nurse less vigorously, less milk comes out, and this continues until very little at all is coming out and they lose interest or fall asleep, or decide they're still hungry and start nursing more vigorously again.

The result is that if your baby isn't getting enough milk and you nurse more frequently, she will get a larger volume of milk overall. But if she is getting enough milk and you nurse more frequently, she's not going to get more milk overall-- she's still going to take just as much as she needs, only in smaller (and possibly fattier) portions more often.

I hope that makes sense!

[@llli*tanpixie]

Too much milk here too. I was pumping 50-80 oz a DAY at one point! Too much!!

Wow that's an increible amount !!!

Can you give that milk away to people who can't breast feed?
Wow sorry that OS hurts so much - i hope no one thought my question was thought less x

[@llli*tanpixie]

Thanks Karen for info above - amazingly helpful and now it all makes sense, my LO feeds all the time but my supply just meets her demands and I was wondering why I never had over supply ... now I do - clever babies!