Tips for the tits: troubleshooting milk over production
My experience of milk over-production highlighted the severity of my problem, and also the complete lack of science based solutions out there for us over-producing Mamas. I spent many hours trying to find solutions.
Before we get onto what helped, I want to point out that milk production is a spectrum. Most mamas will have regulated their supply by 4 weeks but it’s important to be cautious in milk reduction. I am not a professional; these tips are certainly not intended as medical advice and you should always consult your Dr, Health Visitor or Midwife with any feeding issues. They don’t come with a library of evidence underpinning them either, but they helped me and perhaps they might help you too.
Before the Baby Arrives
Firstly a brutal reality check – there is no guarantee you will be able to breastfeed. I recommend you mentally prepare for all possibilities. Failure didn’t occur to me. I had all the gear, but no idea. The pressure I put on myself was a fundamental part of my failure. Plus I’d had a heads up: I required breastpads from the second trimester!
Before Leaving the Hospital
Skin-to-skin contact in the first few hours of your baby’s life may help regulate your supply. So get as many bare bear hugs in as you can.
The golden hours: feed, whenever possible, in the first hour after delivery. With my first, I was apologetic. I needed midwives to pass me my mini. I didn’t want to fuss, but you should. Midwives are there to help. They are busy but you are important. Once home you won’t have specialist help with: latch, positioning, checking tongue tie, aiding skin-to-skin.
Home: The Milk is Epic
Block-feeding: Essentially feeding off one boob for a set period of time, causing engorgement in the other boob which over time inhibits milk production. See our post on Block Feeding for more information.
Feeding on your back, AKA biological nurturing, tricky to master but can really help with forceful let-down. If you are anything like me then removing a breast-pad and trying to get into any position without covering everything within a foot of you in milk is pretty tricky.
Reduce night feeds short term. WARNING: this is likely to be very effective! There are plenty of old wives tales about why babies need to feed more at night. Milk-production is regulated by Prolactin, a hormone that’s highest at night. Why this is I don’t know; cue old wives. But, if D woke between 2am and 5am I would give him milk I had collected in my breast-shells via a bottle. This reduces supply by reducing prolactin levels.
Breast pumps. What can I say about breast pumps? I am not a fan, so I will lead with the general consensus. If you have over-production you may find some relief from using a pump. With me, expressing created a vicious cycle of over stimulating. If you need relief from engorgement then hand expressing can give light relief.
Anti-inflammatories. Paracetamol is brilliant and safe during breastfeeding. Ibuprofen comes with a caution. Most manufacturers say not suitable for breastfeeding; however only small amounts can be found in breastmilk. My advice is ask your midwife or GP if ibuprofen would be suitable if you feel you need it.
Avoid galactagogues: medicines or foods that increase milk supply. these include domperidone (Motilium) which is often taken off-label to boost milk supply. Note: taking domperidone is not without risk and we strongly advise against it. It’s also said that oats, chickpeas, garlic, ginger, fenugreek, fennel and red raspberry leaf are galactagogues, although there is no evidence to back up these claims.
Cold packs: I took muslins soaked in water, moulded them into a bra shape and froze, or I used icepacks. It was lovely. Remember to stock the freezer or you will be going through a lot of peas!
Hot showers: bliss when engorged as you don’t feel like a big sticky mess. Your boobs can flow freely, giving a bit of light relief. The shower was my mama haven, 10 minutes of self-indulgence, where I cried and still do. Best therapy ever.
Where else can you get help?
You can check out the NHS guide to breast pain and breastfeeding or the NCT, and you can call the National Breastfeeding Helpline.
