BF, supply and sleeping through the night
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Topic: BF, supply and sleeping through the night
Posted By: KiwiL
Subject: BF, supply and sleeping through the night
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 7:24am
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I have some supply problems which seem to be managed well at the moment with the use of Domperidone.
Ollie is threatening to sleep through the night (well, from about 11pm to 6am anyway). While that's great on one hand, it concerns me on the other because I know night feeds help maintain supply. I also know that for Domperidone to be most effective the milk still needs to be removed from the breast. There seems to be lots of stress out there in the online world saying that it's imperative to night feed to maintain supply. But is it really? I'd really like to start getting some sleep back, but could wake Ollie for a night feed if it's really going to make all the difference. Have people managed to BF long term despite their baby sleeping though the night? Or is it the people with frequent night wakings that are the most successful at breast feeding? What's your experience? |
Replies:
Posted By: Bizzy
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 7:56am
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It wont affect your supply if he sleeps through the night. your body will regulate itself so that the milk is produced when he needs it. you might find yourself leaking or a bit engorged to start with but it will balance out. Have a bit of faith that your body and your baby will work together to have the milk that he needs when he needs. ------------- http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker"> 
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Posted By: peachy
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 8:08am
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DD slept from 9pm till 5am from around 6 weeks old, so pretty much sleeping through without feeds and I exclusively b/f till she was nearly 8 months old. I had a fantastic supply, but woke most mornings absolutely saturated which was a pain!!
Her sleeping through didn't affect my b/f at all 
------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: caliandjack
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 8:59am
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Snap what bizzy said, if he's sleeping thru the night then he doesn't need the feed. Lucky you I never wake DD during the night for a feed if she needs it she'll let me know.
No problems with supply if anything it means I have a healthy amount of milk in the morning to start the day with. I've switched to re-usable breast pads for overnight as I was soaking by the morning. ------------- http://lilypie.com" rel="nofollow">   [/url] Angel June 2012 |
Posted By: Marengo
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 9:41am
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kiwilaurie i have this problem too, Emily sleeps from about 9 untill 3-4 am and usually i wake because of the engorgement and pain! I am worried about it negatively affecting my supply as i'm on domperidone and a variety of other supplements for supply problems, if i wake up because of the engorgement i will get up and pump instead of waking her for a feed as she wouldnt feed properly anyway if i wake her when shes not ready. I have to give her top ups in the afternoons anyway as the supply drops off too much for her, so it means i dont have to give her formula at those times i can use the EBM.
i'm to scared that the supply will drop off too much if i leave it, ive worked so hard to get to this point i would be gutted if it did! ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
 Our angel Ella Louise born 13.04.
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Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 10:01am
| Agree with Bizz, Laurie! |
Posted By: High9
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 11:17am
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Agree that your supply will adjust. While Lily STILL isn't sleeping through the night and feeds anywhere from once to about 4+ times she has had several 1-2 week periods where she has slept right through and not woken and my supply has adjusted accordingly after a couple/few days. Even now she has dropped her morning feed and her feed before her one and only nap and my body has adjusted to that. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: Lucky apple
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 12:37pm
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I guess everyone & their supply is different...some needing domperidone, and some not...
As I understand, the night feed (or pump!) is most important for low supply - the hormones responsible for milk production are highest between 12 & 6am... Most that I know with low supply, who's babies are sleeping through, get up and pump in the night. I guess all that you can do for your own situation, is to experiment and see if dropping that night feed reduces your supply...if it does, hopefully you could get it back by resuming pumping... |
Posted By: KiwiL
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 5:19pm
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Thanks for the replies guys.
I have definitely experienced supply reductions several times and have always been able to come back from them, so I think I will give it a go and see how we do. It's not all the time that he's coming close. Some days he wakes close to 6am, other times it's 2am, so I guess he's just asking for the milk when he needs it. I certainly don't mind getting up to feed him, but don't want to make him wake up for a feed if he doesn't need it. However, I would rather feed him than pump... it's a million times quicker given my hopeless pumping output! Appreciate your replies. :) |
Posted By: Kalimirella
Date Posted: 07 April 2011 at 8:58pm
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I'm still BFing and K started sleeping 7pm-7am with no feeds at 3 1/2 mths, you really just need to trust that your body will adjust to make milk for your baby when he needs it. As others have said you will end up engorged in the mornings for up to a week as things work themselves out. Don't panic when this stops, it just means your body has adjusted and is now making the perfect amount and not too much.
K is now down to 2 feeds a day, morning and evening and I know she still gets exactly what she wants and needs. (She's almost a year old :D) ------------- Kiara is 3 and Teagan is 2, now we're expecting our long awaited 3rd! http://lilypie.com" rel="nofollow"> 
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