Stupid Question

[mom23girls]

I know this is dumb but I just started to ebfeed after epumping and can't figure out how to tell if my dd is emptying out my breast. They do feel softer but I don't know when to change to the next side - I'm also terrified I'll get mastitis again if I only nurse on one side and then the other at the next feeding.

Can you guys offer advice?

[Tashena]

I switch sides when the 1st is soft and LO pulls away.

[Cyann]

The general rule for young babies is that they should be allowed to nurse on one side until they either pop off on their own, or fall asleep. After that, you offer the second side. If they want it, great; if they don't, that's also great. You probably won't have trouble with mastitis if you do this, even if your baby turns out to be a one-side nurser. However, if you're really worried about it, it couldn't hurt to pump a little bit whenever you start to feel overly full. Your supply should regulate to your baby's needs eventually.

Another thing you want to do is to watch/listen to your baby's nursing. Can you tell when she's swallowing? If you can, you'll probably notice that once she gets a let-down, she'll swallow very evenly and steadily for a while -- every suck, or every two sucks. When the let-down tapers off, you'll notice the swallowing rate will slow down. If she stays on the breast, you may even notice a second or third let-down after a while, with faster swallowing again. Eventually you'll get a feel for your daughter's nursing patterns -- she may turn out to be a comfort nurser, who likes to stay on the breast even when let-downs have spaced themselves out to every fifteen minutes or more; or she may be all business, and demand the second breast as soon as the flow from the first starts slowing down. For most babies and most mothers, either pattern is fine, and will wind up with just as good results.

[ButterflyChicBoutique]

You can still pump after each feeding

:0) you can use the milk for DD or freeze it or donate it :0)