should i just deal with it for a few more months?

[@llli*mommal]

Dealing with oversupply is an art, not a science. There are no hard and fast rules for how many times you need to offer breast A before you need to offer breast B, or whether you need to always start on A and then move to be, or mostly start on B and only once in a while start on A, etc. You just have to keep experimenting, and reading your baby. If she's seeming happier and struggling less, you're doing the right thing. If not, then maybe you need to change something, try something new. I know that's probably not the precise answer you're looking for!

[@llli*lizeckel]

So, how many times in a row have you given her the left first? It is possible, and not uncommon, for the breasts to have asymmetrical milk production, or even an oversupply in one breast and not the other. Does she normally favor the right side? If it is the case that the right has the oversupply, doing what you're doing - offering the left first - should help even things out. Is she happier on the right side if you letdown first before she gets on that breast?

3 times i offered the left first. i feel like it is running low on milk. it looks like an empty, long sock LOL. she always prefered the right breast, so she is having a tough time with the left one. yes, she is happier on the right if i express a little let-down. will this effect anything?

[@llli*bfwmomof3]

yes, she is happier on the right if i express a little let-down. will this effect anything?

Being happy is a good thing! Your description of the empty, long sock made me laugh. So it makes sense that your right may be more of an over-producer if LO has preferred it in the past.
By the way, you don't ALWAYS have to offer the left first. Like mommal said, it's trial and error. But it's okay to let her go for the favorite breast first from time to time too.

[@llli*lizeckel]

gosh, it is so SO difficult to follow her lead and not my own. i nursed at 5am (we cosleep, so i nurse her as soon as she fusses), then i tried nursing her when she got whiney around 10am.. so that's 5 hours!!!! she refused both breasts, even after a good let-down. it wasn't until i tried again at 11am that she was sleepy for naptime, and was willing to nurse. i'm beginning to think she only wants to nurse when she is feeling lazy and sleepy. also, she still wanted the big boob first, but when she fell asleep i let her suckle on the small boob so she would stimulate the lower supplied breast. i'm guessing she won't want to nurse again for another 6 hours, which sounds like so much time, but i guess it is what she prefers?

thanks again for all of the insight, ladies!

[@llli*mommal]

That is tough. She's nursing just... What, 3-4 times a day? Typically way below what is sufficient for an 8 month old baby. If she doesn't pick up her nursing frequency after a few days, I think I might start to really offer every 2-3 hours.

[@llli*bfwmomof3]

So... the original thought was that maybe she nurses so few times per day because you have an oversupply and she's getting more than usual at each feeding, right? So I guess the question is to what degree has the oversupply been tamed by the block feeding in the past couple days? Or do you think she might still be taking in a lot at each feeding? I agree with mommal, she does have an unusually low number of feedings per day, but up to now has been gaining appropriately... Are you having an easier time in terms of the pacifier dance and it taking 30 minutes to lure her to the breast?

[@llli*lizeckel]

she wouldn't nurse last night until midnight! i nursed her at 4, she had carrots for dinner,.... but when it was time to nurse for bed at 8, my milk wouldn't let down as quick as usual.. i tried again every hour, and she got mad that it took so long. so she wouldn't suck long enough to nurse until MIDNIGHT. i was so stressed about not being able to get her fed, i practically had an anxiety attack., my heart was racing for a full hour, and i couldn't relax. i think it was effecting my let-down. she got so frustrated, and just wanted the pacifier. finally at 12 i calmed myself down and she nursed in her sleep. then she woke me up at 5am to nurse, and i offered and she accepted again at 8:30. i think she is really getting less now, but isn't quite used to being hungry as often. it will be hard to readjust, but it will be nice to not feel engorged constantly and her spitting up and all the other uglies that go along with the oversupply. just a little concerned about let-down time.. think it could be because i was so stressed about it, or is my supply dropping that rapidly?!

[@llli*bfwmomof3]

Stress definitely affects letdown. So I think that could be what was going on last night. Sounds like she did pretty well this morning?

[@llli*mommal]

Adrenaline- the hormone responsible for fight/flight impulses in the face of stress- can inhibit letdown. Dairy farmers have known this for a long time- cows who are stressed by cold teat cups won't let down for the pump. True story! And humans are the same way. When we're scared or stressed, our bodies just aren't in the mood to let the milk flow.

[@llli*lizeckel]

she did do well. she nursed last at 12:30, but isn't interested again yet. i'm thinking i might replace her dinner with a nursing session tonight just to make sure my supply stays supple. normally she gets 6am, 12pm, 5pm, then dinner puree, MAYBE nurse again at 8:30 then 11pm.
now we are trying to nurse smaller sessions, more frequently, so i don't know what the heck our schedule is going to be like now!
this is not science, i know, but it is nerve wracking!
another issue i've decided is that she isn't interested in nursing unless it is time to sleep. so since she just woke up from a nap (schedule messed up due to holidays), she won't want to nurse at her usual 5pm. we'll try a little later than usual.. ugh.. i'm feeling a funk coming on due to all of this.