Oversupply: How to Handle Breastfeeding When There’s Too Much Milk

Did you know that sometimes mums can make *too much* breastmilk? This sounds amazing, doesn’t it?! But it actually comes with some problems and can make breastfeeding tricky and uncomfortable. If your breasts are super full and sore, and/or your baby is coughing and sputtering or pulling off the breast during feeds, oversupply might be the issue. Let’s talk about how to manage oversupply for your comfort and how to help your baby manage the flow of milk. By the end, you’ll have four simple tips to help make breastfeeding easier and more comfortable for both you and your baby.

What is Oversupply and How Can It Affect Breastfeeding?

Oversupply means your body is making more milk than your baby needs. This might sound like a blessing, but it can actually make breastfeeding tricky. Babies can have trouble handling the fast flow of milk, and mums can experience discomfort like super full and sore breasts, or even localised breast inflammation and mastitis. This can all feel overwhelming for both you and your baby and make breastfeeding so stressful. Plus, the discomfort you feel can take away from the joy of those quiet bonding moments.

A true oversupply is when you’re experiencing symptoms of oversupply, and your baby is older than 6-8 weeks. Most mums make more milk than they need in the early days because your hormones are on autopilot and driving your milk supply. This is a bit of an insurance policy. More milk is better than not enough, right? This is normal and usually settles down by the time baby is 6-8 weeks old. If the symptoms below are still happening when bub is older than 6-8 weeks, you probably have an oversupply.

Signs of Oversupply

If you’re wondering whether you have an oversupply, there are a few signs to watch for:

• Your breasts usually feel full, lumpy and tight. They might feel slightly softer after a feed, but not much.
• Baby coughs, sputters or even gags when breastfeeding, especially at the start of a feed.
• Bub is gaining a lot of weight very quickly (more than the expected range).
• Baby is having a lot more than the expected range of wet and dirty nappies each day (5-8 wet, and at least 3 poos is considered normal – poos can often be huge and explosive)
• Some babies might have lots of large, green, frothy poos – this can be a sign of lactose overload from oversupply. Lactose overload happens when bub is getting so much milk that the natural lactose in your milk moves through bub’s digestive system too quickly and ferments in the large intestines. This can cause a lot of gas and discomfort for bub. If this is the case, your baby might be quite fussy a lot of the time.

How Can You Manage Oversupply?

Here are four strategies that can help make breastfeeding easier and settle an oversupply:

1. Slow Your Milk Flow

Lean back so bub is on top of you, especially at the start of a feed when milk flow is fastest. Gravity will slow the flow a little and can help bub cope with the fast flow. You can also hand express or pump for a few minutes to get your milk flowing and then put baby on your breast once the flow slows down.

2. Treat Engorgement

Let baby finish when they’re ready so they can empty your breasts as much as possible (don’t time or limit feeds). If your breasts are still full and sore after bub has fed, you can pump for a few minutes until your breasts feel comfortable (not to fully empty your breasts – see next tip). Get more tips on treating engorgement here.

3. Avoid Pumping

It can be tempting to pump out the extra milk to relieve the pressure and discomfort, but this can make the problem worse. Pumping until your breasts are empty tells your breasts to make even more milk. If you need relief, you can pump, but only do it for a few minutes – just enough to feel comfortable, but not to empty your breasts completely.

It’s also good to avoid using the Haakaa pump to catch milk. Because it’s actively drawing milk out of your breasts, it can actually cause oversupply or make your oversupply worse. If you’re leaking a lot and want to save that milk for later, just hold the Haakaa under your breast (without suctioning it on) to catch any leaks so you’re not telling your breasts to keep making more milk than you already are. Check out this blog post for more info on problems caused by the Haakaa pump.

4. Talk to an IBCLC About Block Feeding

One way to handle oversupply and lactose overload is to use the block feeding technique. This is something to try if all the above tips aren’t helping. It’s important to talk to an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) before starting this because block feeding is reducing your milk supply. We want to be absolutely sure that too much milk is the problem before starting this, so you don’t end up with low milk supply and not enough milk for your baby. It’s also important to have a plan about when to stop block feeding which an IBCLC can help you with too. You can book a home visit or video call with me to chat about this here.

Final Thoughts

Dealing with oversupply can be frustrating, but with a few adjustments, breastfeeding can become so much easier and a happier, more comfortable experience for both you and bub. Remember, slowing your milk flow, treating engorgement, avoiding pumping (including the Haakaa) and getting in touch with an IBCLC can help balance your milk supply and make breastfeeding smoother for both you and your baby.

If you’re struggling with oversupply, I’d love to hear what you found helpful from this post. Send me a DM on Instagram and let me know how these tips are working for you!