Struggling to feed.

[@llli*cake]

Hi everyone,

I have a 4 month old daughter and feel at the end of my tether with feeding her. It's always a battle. Basically, I will offer her the breast and she will suck maybe 3 or 4 times then pull off and cry. Then she will try again and pull off and cry again. This continues until she is in such a state that she is screaming and milk is going everywhere. The only things that seems to help (occasionally, not always) is me feeding her while stood up and walking with her or playing white noise to her. I would say this happens about 7/10 feeds through the day. The best feeds we have are right before bed and throughout the night when we never have this problem, just throughout the day.

I know it sounds dramatic but it's really getting me down. I'm tired of the constant crying every time she needs feeding, carrying her is making me tired and I just want my baby to be a calmer feeder. Can anyone make any suggestions?

[@llli*lasbi.modeu]

It sounds like overactive letdown and over supply to me. It does get better but in the meantime I suggest nursing her lying down with her on top of you so that gravity can slow down the milk flow. Use a pillow under your arm/elbow so that you are more comfortable.

This is a good reading:
http://kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supp.../fast-letdown/

Hang in there, you went so far already and I guarantee it gets better as baby gets bigger and can control the letdown better.

[@llli*mommal]

Yeah, pulling off the breast and milk "going everywhere" does sound a lot like overactive letdown. I definitely agree that you want to start by trying reclined nursing positions. In fact, a reclined position may explain why your baby has no problem at night, if you're feeding in a side-lying position.

Do you notice any of the following:
- Strong letdown sensation
- Frequent feelings of "fullness" or engorgement
- If you are pumping, you may be able to pump a lot of milk with ease (1.5 oz per hour would be around average, so if you're getting significantly more than that...)
- Lots of leaking
- Milk sprays or streams from the breast when baby pulls off