Oversupply Diaries:

i broke myself.

i pushed the pumping too far.

and i paid for it.

oversupply. something i never thought id have nor be sad to have.

but it hurts.

i had JUST started getting M to latch and nurse, and the Overactive LetDown combined with too much Foremilk and not enough Hindmilk in her feedings...it overwhelmed her. she would cry and sputter and spit. she was getting gassy and fussy. and i couldnt pinpoint it. until i googled. and then i realized the problem. the search results all said the same thing: Block Feeding. i didnt like that answer. especially since M was refusing the breast and in what looked like physical pain when we'd nurse. i didnt want her hating the breast.

i called LC; she said the same thing.

the fact that i was pumping and there was NO information online about how to modify the "block nursing" and correlate it to pumping was not helping.

Block Nursing, for those that dont know, is retraining your milk makers. you feed off of one breast for a block of time starting usually around 2 hours. you nurse your baby as much as they want in that two hours on the left breast, and then at the next 2 hour block of time you feed off of the right breast.

the concept terrified me. i was engorged. nipples achy. and my baby wouldnt latch. sok i improvised. maybe not the best idea. i pumped, every 2 hours switching which breast and i relieved only 3-4 ounces each time. i was pumping off about 4 ounces each breast every 2 hours. this started on Monday. I did it all night, setting my alarms every 2 hours. it HURT. ice packs on my boobs all the time i waited for the sweet release of the breast pump.

Tuesday Morning my breasts, both of them, were SO engorged! i tried to nurse M, but it was NOT going to happen. i felt like there was NO progress.

i kept up the same schedule. 2 hours left, 2 hours right. it wasnt the consistent release that block nursing would provide, but i hoped it would help lower supply enough to nurse comfortably. i began to pump out the foremilk, and then change bottles after about .5 ounces. i noticed the milk fuller and creamier, thank goodness. M was staying fuller longer with those bottles and i felt slightly better. i kept the pumping schedule through the night and was relieved when i awoke this morning, Wednesday, with relief in my breasts! It wasnt completely resolved, and i fed M a bottle right off the bat since i was full and needed to pump. but 2 hours later i was able to nurse her on the other side! she pulled off and refused after a little while, but i put her back on when she was hungry again. it seems to work! i FEEL like she isnt eating a full 3 ounces like she normally does, but i know babies are MUCH MORE effective suckling than a pump and can remove milk more efficiently. she seemed full and content and when she wasnt, id plop her back on.

only downside? my nips are SORE and the repeated latching on the same side does NOT help.

but i feel confident! i think this is going to help.

im glad too because i was getting SO STRESSED. thinking that it was just one thing after another and feeling SO defeated. :(

but, seeing my girl HAPPY and FULL on MY MILK?! priceless. it hurts something fierce, but i can overcome this. they're just boobs right? :) more on that later.