Breastfeeding mothers struggle with uneven milk supply

“I started my breastfeeding journey with confidence and patience. My baby latched properly and breastfed from the get-go despite my supply needing 5 or 6 days to really start coming in. I've experienced breasts full to stiffness, I've leaked, I've fed my baby a bottle only maybe once a week when I really needed to get a full night's sleep. She has also been growing and gaining nicely and pooping SO MUCH (so, so much, my peeps). But in the last week, my supply has been lacking. We&”

“I exclusively pump due to my son not being to latch easily. I have been using the pitcher method and just pour him a bottle and warm it up when it’s time for him to eat. We have been having trouble with gassiness lately and he’s been really fussy during the day and hard to calm. One day I just gave him some milk that I had just pumped and noticed he wasn’t fussy at all and he actually slept really good afterwards. So the past 2 days I have been pumping and then leaving the milk room temp during”

“I have really bad cracks on the left nipple. We are three months in EBF. The baby has started refusing my right side but I get milk on it when I pump so I’m not sure why. My left side is incredibly painful. Are there any “hacks” anyone knows to heal the cracks quickly? I can’t switch to pumping that side while I’m home and lanolin isn’t helping enough. We’ve struggled with shallow latch so that isn’t helping with the pain and vasospasms to the point I’m on meds for them so my silverettes are als”

“Anyone who has a picky eater, how did weaning go? My daughter is 15 months and I’m pregnant which means my supply is basically decreasing by the day so unfortunately I have slowly started to wean. My concern is that she is SO picky and some days eats virtually nothing, I swear she survives on air some days. I’m concerned she’ll be hungry once I fully wean. Anyone who had a similar situation? Did your toddler’s appetite increase after weaning? submitted by /u/Annual_Working5502 [link]”

“My 2nd son has always been a good eater and so i was quite frankly blindsided when we went into his 6 month appointment and he weighed less than at his 4 month appointment. I previously had a minor over supply and so block fed him so he wouldn't get firehosed during every let down and had done so since he was born and so after talking with the lactation consultant his peds office had we started with trying feeding both sides to get weight up. He still seemed upset especially that night so I”

“We are three months into our breastfeeding journey with my second baby and it’s going really well, which I’m delighted about because it was a disaster with my first baby. But my left side has almost completely dried up for some reason. I have tried EVERYTHING to increase supply but it’s just not happening. My right side seems absolutely fine, baby feeds very well and is always happy. And he’s a chonky boy so I know he’s getting plenty. My goal is six months but I’d love to make it to a year. Has”

“FTM- Just took my 3wks old to doctor concerned about reflux/spitting up and gas after feedings. Doing all the right things per doctor (gas drops before feeding, burping between boobs, sitting up 30mins after feeding etc) anyways he was born 9lbs 12oz and he’s now 10lbs 15oz we are not concerned about weight by any means lol. He feeds very well I normally do 10mins on one side burp and then offer the other side let him nurse until he pops off on his own then burp etc. Well today of course of all”

“My toddler majorly prefers my left boob and I'm not sure if I should just just leave it or try to even things out. If I offer him the right he might humor me for like 5 seconds and then say all done and go for the other side. I know partially this is because I've always tended to offer the left more often and now I produce way less milk on the right which he obviously doesn't like. Something about letting one side dry up doesn't sit well with me, idk why. I also don't love th”

“I’m curious if the amount of breastmilk correlates to illness (cold and flu) prevention? I am an under supplier hitting 6 months soon and wondering if I should wean but knowing that cold and flu season is coming is making me question if I should. For context baby gets 50/50 or sometimes 70 formula/30 breastmilk. Does the amount of breastmilk have any impact on illness prevention? submitted by /u/d381m [link] [comments]”

“My 9 week old has been only wanting to eat one side when nursing. She will eat about 10-15 mins then I’ll burp her and offer the other side and she literally screams and will not latch. As soon as I stop she is happy. Is this normal at this point? I don’t want my supply to drop submitted by /u/libby_o [link] [comments]”

*Cross posting here because I didn’t get many responses in the breastfeeding group. I desperately need advice on how to increase my milk supply. A couple weeks ago I took my 3…

“I've been alternating which boob I feed from but my right pretty much always feels full. I don't know if I should keep alternating, stick her on the right more so she can empty it, or start putting her on the left more to encourage milk production. submitted by /u/Pumpkin_VVitch [link] [comments]”

“I live in Miami,fl. I know theres is milk banks moms can donate to. But can i buy from those milk banks? Or does anyone know a mom with an oversupply? My boy is 3 months… it would be a blessing ♥️ submitted by /u/Impressive-Drop1833 [link] [comments]”

“My baby is 6 months and recently when I feed her she’s just going back and forth between breasts. Like she’ll suck on one side for 2 seconds then goes to the other side repeatedly. submitted by /u/kakalapoo [link] [comments]”

“Hi all. I have a 9 month old who I’ve been combo feeding pretty much always. I had great supply but he had latching issues and then once my period returned (3mo pp!) it tanked. I tried everything to get it back but just accepted I needed to keep supplementing. He’s having 3 meals of solids most days now, and he will only nurse for 2-5 mins max every 3, 4 or 5 hours some days. We didn’t take a bottle of formula today and were out from 12:30 to 5pm and he only had a very short feed and a yoghurt.”

“Hi! New to this group. I’m 25(F) and my son is 13 months and 30lbs, I really wanted to make it to a year breastfeeding, and have been working on weening my son. He only feeds at night now and I don’t pump unless he is with his dad overnight when I would normally feed him and not to the point I’m empty; just til my chest isn’t in pain and feeling like rocks. My supply isn’t dropping. I keep ending up with lumpy hard rocks on my chest. And then they hurt. I’ve been trying over the past few months”

“Hi Seeking some insight if other parents are having the same issue. Doing some research I couldn’t find any studies or information in it. So when my wife has a blocked milk duct, we noticed the baby kept working on that nipple till the block was clear sometimes for 2hrs with a short nap time in the middle but we could tell the baby wanted to keep going for that side of the nipple. The busy bee kept going maybe 3hrs at a time too! Wouldn’t sleep in my arms and kept demanding to be put back at the”

“I had my baby September 21st. My supply came in quickly and was amazing. I haven’t been “pumping” but have been using the boon trove on the opposite side that baby eats on because he typically only wants one side. The last few days I’ve realized my left side is pretty much completely dry when I remove the cup. I’ve started to pump that side after he eats to try and up my supply, but when I do I’m literally getting a couple drops. I so desperately want to be able to breastfeed for the long haul,”

“Hi all I am really struggling to keep up with my son's milk needs and would love some advice and tips from those who might have had success increasing their supply/ baby's efficiency at drinking. I'm trying to breast feed as much as possible but it feels incredibly challenging and it is clear that he is not getting what he needs from boob alone in an efficient way. We had a rough birth and start with an extended hospital stay due to newborn jaundice, meaning he wasn't latching mu”

“Hi everyone! My baby is 3.5 months old. During pregnancy, there was no asymmetry between my breasts, and my milk came in equally on both sides. However, because my nipples were extremely sore and damaged, I rarely put my baby to my left breast. Eventually, I hardly breastfed at all because my right nipple became badly damaged too. (At the hospital, they said his latch was good, and he doesn't have a tongue tie either.) I've been pumping milk for him since the beginning. (When I got home”

“For medical reasons I had to rapid wean my right breast, but I am still feeding my 7 month old from the left The left has always been an undersupplier She is taking well to solids and drinks water from multiple different containers but will not drink milk from anything other than the boob I have tried several different formulas, goats milk formula and even my friends breastmilk to no avail. She has never accepted my milk from a bottle either. The bottle isn't the issue as she will drink wate”

“My 7 week old baby is really inconsistent about how much milk she drinks, especially in the middle of the night. She usually sleeps from 10pm-2/3 am now and then will breastfeed anywhere from 5-45 minutes and sleep for another 2-3 hours. One time she literally nursed for 4 mins 33 seconds (I remember cause I thought it was so weird she was already done), then slept for three whole hours. Other times she’ll nurse for 30 minutes and wake up hungry an hour later. This morning she woke up at 4 am, n”

“Lately I have had deep cracks on my left breast and vasospasm due to which I was not able to feed from that side. I am feeding from the right breast and pumping the left one. I am pumping around 4 times in 24 hours. I am 5 weeks and 3 days PP and I am getting around 1-2 oz on pumping. On average how much were you able to get while pumping, 5 weeks PP? And will this cause my supply to dip? submitted by /u/TargetTop3286 [link] [comments]”

“I nurse most of the day, alternating which side I start with. Sometimes offering both sides if baby is very hungry. But I also pump once or twice a day to have a stash / for occasional bottles when away from baby. What’s recommended in this situation? 1 pm: nursed on left side only. 4pm: I pumped both sides because I was away from my baby. Significantly less output from my left side. 7pm: Baby is hungry and I want to nurse. Which side do I start with & why? submitted by /u/MixGlu”

“Hi, FTM here looking for advice from others. I have an oversupply that’s made me pretty miserable for 8 weeks. I’ve gotten mastitis twice. The LC I’m working with thinks I got mastitis the second time because my baby went over 6 hours between feedings because she was sleeping. So she recommended I wake up every 3 hours at night to pump for comfort to avoid getting engorged. I’ve been doing this for 9 days. I pump 2 mins on my better boob and 1 on the slacker boob. I have to be honest I’m not doi”

“Hi all! My baby is almost 3 weeks old and has had to be on formula for the first 10 days of life for a little jaundice. During that time, I was pumping and building a freezer stash. Once she was able to have my milk, she has had a bad latch (also noted by LC in the hospital before we started formula on day 2) on me. So, I’ve continued pumping and doing bottles of my milk. However, I’m noticing as she’s growing, that my pumps don’t really keep up with her demand and I don’t know what to do withou”

“I’ve had quite a 3-month journey from EBF, to pumping/formula supplementing to now somewhere in between. When I pumped, I realized I was a “just enougher” and maybe even an under supplier because the days of cluster feeding my baby needed more than I could give. I have a chunky baby! I’ve been experimenting with EBF-ing again and had my first 24 hours with no formula. Which was a goal I didn’t think would get accomplished! But each time I breastfeed, I have to offer both sides for my baby to see”

“After 5 months my LO officially has a bottle preference and it's been a struggle to get her to nurse. She's been in a nursing strike for the past two months now and I am devastated. If I'm lucky I can get her one nursing session per day... it used to be more when she slept in her bassinet but now that she's in her own room, by the time I get to her she's already way too agitated and refuses the breast all together. I can't help but blame myself for starting her on a bottl”

“My 15 week old keeps PULLING off on the left side repeatedly while eating - first of all it hurts :) second of all why is she doing that? She eats much better on the right side. Any suggestions ? Also curious, does anyone else use the app huckleberry or something similar to time/ track their feeds etc - I’m curious how long (hours) per day their similar aged baby eats for in a day ? Thanks in advance! submitted by /u/whitesageforestwitch [link] [comments]”

“tldr: is it more important to feed as much breastmilk everyday or to stretch my frozen supply and give my 7mo old a couple ounces a day so i can feed him breastmilk longer? im 7 months pp and i dried up when my period came 2 months ago. i’ve kept pumping and can produce 1-4oz a day and plan to keep pumping as long as i can. Unfortunately he’s no longer interested in latching on the breast. we are going through my frozen stash pretty quickly and now i’m wondering if we should ration the breastmil”

“During the day, my baby will nurse on both sides during a feed with no issues. Up until this week, he also nursed on both breasts during his night feeds. Now he is only nursing from one side at a time during the night. He still sleeps for about 3 hour stretches and has wet diapers. Is this normal for him to only take one boob at a time at night after 6+ weeks of him nursing from both sides at night? submitted by /u/Ok_Reference2122 [link] [comments]”

“I am so frustrated by my inconsistent breast milk supply. I had 3 amazing days in a row where baby was getting as much as he wanted plus I was pumping three 4 oz. bottles a day that husband could use to feed our little guy. I felt great! Now, all of a sudden, I can only pump 2 oz. extra per day which isn’t even enough for a single feed. For us, this means that my husband can’t do a full “shift” in the morning to let me catch up on sleep which screws the whole day. I don’t understand why some day”

“Hello, my son is 4 months old and has never had formula, only been breast fed or bottle fed milk she has pumped. When she was home with him for about 10 weeks she built up a supply of about 30 ounces in the freezer. Flash forward to today and she has about 3 ounces and cant seem to get a good supply going. I do my best to support her but today shes told me shes really been struggling mentally for a few weeks about it. In the evenings she feeds him and puts him to bed around 8 and he will wake up”

“Everything about breastfeeding is so confusing, why does this seem like the most finicky thing to manage? why is it so hard to establish and maintain a supply that works for you? am i just destined to switch to formula feeding more quickly than i would have liked? for context: FTM to an almost 8 week old. Took forever for supply to be established because she couldn’t latch in the beginning so we started with formula Switched to triple feeding when milk started to come in Met with an LC around 6”

“We‘ve all been struck down with a bad cold and my 7mo has lost his appetite. I can get him to nurse to sleep for his naps but otherwise he’s refusing to breastfeed. He’s also off his solids and feeding way less at night. He’s never accepted a bottle. He’s not dehydrated but I’m taking him to the doctor tomorrow to get checked. The first few days I felt really engorged and had to pump (I never usually pump) but now I think my supply has tanked due to lack of demand. I tried to pump after some fai”

“I’ve had a significant undersupply with my first baby despite my best efforts, and was curious if other people have experienced that but had other babies for whom they produced enough without any trouble or even an oversupply. Hoping there’s a chance the next one might go a little easier! submitted by /u/cheerycherimoya [link] [comments]”

“I have a five-week-old with a voracious appetite, and my supply is not enough for him so we’ve been combo feeding since day 1. Almost every feed is a triple feed (I breastfeed, then pump while dad gives him a 2oz bottle) as I’m working on getting my supply up. I don’t understand how to get out of this cycle. I get one to two ounces during each pump, so his bottles are mostly now either mixed breastmilk and formula or sometimes all breastmilk, which is good I guess… but it’s still triple feeding”

“I have an almost 4 month old (17 weeks tomorrow 😭). I have much lower supply on my right side despite pumping that side extra, always feeding first on that side, etc. I wish I could block feed but I don’t think it’s possible. As just stated, every time she eats I offer the right side first to drain before she finishes eating on the left side just so I don’t lose supply on the right. For like one feed a day it will have a mind of its own and produce more milk (we’re talking 2-3 oz total instead”

“I’m wondering if anyone has experienced a drastic supply change as your baby has gotten older. My son nursed all day every day basically for the first 6 months especially before I went back to work. When I came back to work I was easily pumping 10-12oz my first morning pump, I’d nurse him at lunch break, and then id pump another 6 oz. I know this was slightly over producing but that was typical for me. Slowly as he’s had more food he’s naturally taking less milk. Now I pump 8-9oz in the morning”

“My baby is 8.5 months old and has for the most part always been exclusively breast fed. He just got his first cold and it's a rough one! I knew right off the bat to do saline and suction to clear his nose before breastfeeding. But one particular time I must not have gotten him good enough. And when he latched he coughed and even though I wasn't holding him on or anything he panicked and pulled off and lost it. I felt so so so bad it must've been so scary to him :( Well now he's 1”

“I combo feed my almost 5 week old. He takes bottles and the breast. I’ve increasingly gotten him more on the breast though, however, in one feeding he seems to only want to do one side. We just got done with a feeding and that one side took about 15 min before he got grunty and then just unlatched himself. I tried getting him to do the other side right away but he just wouldn’t. He latched on (shallowly), started to grunt and move his arms a lot and then eventually just unlatched. I tried. Now h”

“I’m 9 days postpartum and not producing enough to keep my baby satisfied. His birth was physically and emotionally traumatic, and the third degree tear I sustained has made everything (breastfeeding, pumping, sitting, standing, laying down) SO much harder. I ended up giving him formula the first night home because I just couldn’t take it anymore. I don’t regret it. His being fed is 1000x more important than my ego about breastfeeding. Since then, we’ve been increasing the number of breast milk f”

“My right boob is definitely a slacker and has been since baby was born. I've tried so many things to help encourage it, but for the past month or so, my baby has absolutely refused to feed on that side, no matter what position I try. He won't even latch anymore. Last night was a rough one, waking every two hours and refusing to sleep in his crib, so when I felt him stirring at one point, I thought I would keep him laying and I would try to get him to latch on my right boob, thinking he w”

“Hi guys, I’m a breastfeeding mom of my 3 week old son. I want to start building a supply in the fridge or freezer to have as a backup in case I have to go somewhere, have him get used to bottle feeding, and maybe have my husband help with a feed so I could sleep a bit extra. I’m a bit confused as to when to pump. My milk supply seems like it has regulated because I used to feel pain and engorged and leak often but I don’t anymore. The only time I leak is from let down on the other side while he”

“My 1 week old baby is a much more efficient eater on my left side where my nipple doesn’t protrude as much. My right nipple is MASSIVE and even after a tongue tie release my baby still seems to be having a hard time. He starts stops so much that he’s usually on for like 20 minutes. Whereas the other side he’s slurping away for only about 7 minutes or so. And I can hear him swallowing. On the harder side I can’t hear him gulping down…oddly enough my right side is my over producing side. Has anyon”

“Due to congested nose my baby nursed less. I did try to pump, but I didn't do it often enough and my supply took a hit. He still doesn't nurse that much, but I'm thinking if the illness passes he will cluster feed to adjust his higher intake? Any experience with sickness and supply issues? Did you baby cluster feed after illness to uptake the supply? submitted by /u/eumama [link] [comments]”

“My baby has always been exclusively breastfed! Since he’s 14 months now I mostly just nurse to get him to sleep twice a day and nighttime and he prefers my right side and now that he is older and more opinionated I can’t even get him to nurse the left anymore and I’m so lopsided. Especially yesterday when we were out and about so I didn’t nurse him all day, my right boob was so heavy and dull and the left was totally fine. How do I get him to nurse both again? I don’t want to be lopsided forever”

“I had no supply issues or breastfeeding issues (really) with my first. I pumped a bit so my husband could help with bedtime feeds when I was tired and overstimulated and baby was fussy (I have a fast letdown that got better around 10 weeks). Now that I have a toddler, is pumping more or less convenient if I were to buy a wearable pump, so dad can give the occasional bottle, either so I can sleep or do something with my toddler without the baby? (Though it will be winter so I dont envision us goi”

“Hi all, babe is 7 weeks old and only had breast milk since birth. I think my supply generally is fine as I had a short spell of pumping on only one side whilst my nipple healed, and managed to freeze around 3oz of “spare” milk per day. No longer pumping and only bf. The issue is evenings, my boobs get like jelly and he fusses pulling off constantly because there’s not enough there for him. It ends with us both in tears and often topping up with a bottle from the freezer. I hate doing this as it”

“I’ve been triple feeding since first week due to weight loss. The advice I received was , pump until your output be equal or close to what baby is taking as formula. This never happened. Though he baby is latching better now, still need formula. (About 70 mls per feed). I’ve been to the 2 months appointment ( I am based in the UK) , and the doctor was very happy that the baby was getting formula. I asked for a referral for a lactation consultant and he sees no problem that baby is having both, b”

“My 2 month old son spits up a LOT. I think it's over the top. He doesn't arch his back. His pediatrician said to only feed from one side from now on, and that he's most likely full after one. I did it yesterday and lots of leaking and engorgement. Will this be bad for my supply??? My pediatrician isn't a lactation consultant. I want to ask one but I don't want to pay for a visit to only ask that one question. submitted by /u/ChampionshipNice9719 [link] [comm”

“My newborn, whose latch is usually pretty good, seriously hurt my right nipple latching yesterday. It’s been twelve hours since I nursed from that side and it STILL hurts. Can I nurse only from my left side and pump my right breast for a day? I can’t imagine why that would be an issue but I’m still new at this so I’m not very confident in anything breastfeeding related. My right nipple needs a break and pumping is always painless. submitted by /u/VeronicaNOTaHeather [link] [com”

“Hi everyone! Looking for advice on a supply drop on my left side. I'm 8.5 weeks postpartum with my 2nd child, and have noticed that no matter what, I can only get about 2 oz from my left side, and it seems to take my breast about 5-8 minutes to empty. I definitely notice that while baby definitely gets milk off the left breast, her audible sucks and swallows are much less on that side. She did just get her tongue and lip tie released on September 3rd, so is relearning how to eat with her new”

“Last week I was pumping 12-17oz at work (over 4 sessions) and nursing on demand at home. On Wednesday my son came down with a really bad cold and has had difficulty nursing due to his congestion. I started pumping and giving bottles because it was less frustrating for him. Today (Sunday) I was lucky to get 1oz per pump. What is going on?! I just replaced all of my parts, so that can’t be it. I’m freaking out that my supply suddenly vanished. I did start my period on Friday, but I’ve never had su”

“I gave birth to my second just two days ago. I exclusively bottle fed my son as an infant and now I'm combo feeding. I don't even know what snacks are good on hand 🤔 submitted by /u/ThreeMoonsInTheLake [link] [comments]”

“hello writing this post in hopes someone has good advise. my baby boy is 4 months 2 weeks and has never truely breast fed. he was born with assistance of 2 vacuums since first broke. this caused him to have almost not sucking reflex mostly bitting. also had flat nipples and was hard for him to latch. after I gave birth I had grade 3 tear that stitches came undone and I spent over 2 months in a lot of pain. during this time my baby was fed via bottle and developed a bottle preference. I have desp”

“When baby was born we had to use formula, then I slowly started pumping and was getting a decent amount. Now 8 weeks in, he is exclusively nursing. He is rejecting ALL formula we have tried. I'm supposed to go back to work in 1 month, so ive started trying to pump again. I'm only getting 1 or 2 oz in a 20 minute session. Baby is getting plenty of milk so I know I am producing enough, but I just can't seem to pump efficiently. I've also tried the Haaka, and I can collect about 1 o”

“My 7wk old hasn’t had a good full feed in a while. He used to stay at the breast longer before popping off and needing to be burped. I’m concerned he isn’t eating enough. he comes back to the breast often but it almost seems like a “top off” and he isn’t getting f a full feed. He also spits up after every feed. The amount changes but it occurs after every feed and it happens for a long time after feeds too. Should I be concerned? Worried my little guy isn’t getting enough and will start to lose”

“Hi there! My baby is 4w old and is struggling at the breast when feeding. My supply is still too much and hasn't regulated yet so the flow is way 2 fast 2 furious for her and she ends up choking and unlatching a lot, swallowing a lot of air, and pretty much never empties a boob so I'm concerned she's not getting enough hindmilk. Add in congestion from her first cold and I fear it is a stressful experience for her! I'm a 2nd time Mom but I don't remember the oversupply lasting”