Pregnancy Tips - Things No One Tells You

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The things no one tells you no.23:
Milk letting down

Mumofsix` featured blog about things no one tells you.

`I thought I would, every now and then,
add a little bit of info that
took me by surprise with my first baby.`

My mood while writing this blog:
Ok

With my first baby I really had no idea what to expect when my milk let down, in fact I didn't think I would feel anything.
Everyone describes a different feeling so I can only describe how it feels for me.

After baby has been latched on for a short while and sucking away, I begin to feel a tingling sensation almost like champaign running through my breasts. It is an unusual sensation, almost painful but not really bad. My breasts will then start to jet milk into the babies mouth. Baby can find it all a bit much and may splutter and choke and may even come off the breast causing milk to spray everywhere. As baby gets bigger he will be able to deal with this a bit easier. I may have two let downs per breast per feed time. Remember that the other breast will also let down so keep a breast pad handy if needed.

Baby will still get milk from the breast when the milk is not letting down but will feed a lot faster and receive more milk during a let down. If you ever express your milk you will see how it all happens.

I just need to hear another baby cry or think about my baby and milk will let down. I always need to wear breast pads until the day I stop breast feeding.

6 Comments on Milk letting down

CarolineS - Monday, 23 Mar
Haha, my son is now 5 months old, and I think I'm a strange one! My milk doesn't let down if I hear another baby cry..but rather for sounds like the shower running! Thankfully I don't leak (I haven't since the first month..so no nursing pads for me!)! I do have a question, when my milk lets down, if I think about it, I can make the sensation last a short time or a longer time. Does the amount of time that it lasts determine the amount of milk that is released or is the same amount released regardless?

krystasappleseed - Thursday, 22 Jan
I didnt know that both breasts would let down at the same time until my milk actually came in and i would discover wet spots on my bra. now I just push on the other nipple during feeding for a couple minutes and it stops ( i hate wasting my milk). at first it was kind of a itchy feeling and now its more like a tingling sensation. although I have heard not all woman can tell or get a let down feeling.??

coliflower - Friday, 5 Sep
When I first started nursing my milk would drip out of my breast while nursing. I think it is worth mentioning that this did not continue for me past around 10 weeks. I think I worried that my milk was drying up but it was probably just my supply leveling off to the demand of the baby.

dasha - Monday, 18 Aug
ok. one more question, and then i'll try not to bug you for a bit....i've had several different opinions on what is a "normal amount" of time to breastfeed before switching breasts, or not to switch, or whatever. One book says a maximum of 30 minutes per boob, another says let the baby go as long as he wants and let him let go when he wants, and then offer the other one to see if he wants more....Twice today I've tried the 30 minute thing, and when I offer him the other he's not interested, and then I end up feeding him again within an hour and a half. Just now, I tried letting him go and made it 50 minutes on the same boob before my butt went numb and I pried him off (and I still had milk coming!). What's your opinion on this? Personally, I think the letting him go thing works, but what if he'd kept on going for an hour and a half? That would be crazy..... Please let me know what you think. (btw, thank you for all your other responses...since i did away with cushions and pillows and stuff, and just hold him in my arms, we latch on very quickly (well, within 5 minutes, anyways) and with much less pain...mind you, my shoulders are killing me....) Have a lovely day!

-newnaam - Thursday, 24 Jul
I found this post quite halarious!
My milk always lets down and I can feel it. I constantly hope my daughter doesn't let go of the nipple or else there's milk everywhere. THe other day she was eating and decided to let go, well needless to say, there was milk splattered all over her face lol. She started to cry.. then she got back on. She feeds for 10 mins and she's done! SO i guess the milk let down does help. Is that also where the hind milk is stored??

*Baby-Mine* - Monday, 2 Jun
my mom said the same thing, that she'd be in the grocery store or somewhere, and hear another baby cry and her boobs would leak like crazy! that is so bizarre! thanks for the info!<3