Our Breast Advice: Baby Impatient for Let-Down

Breastfeeding Question:

My little one, almost 5 months, is becoming increasingly impatient with my let-down. I have had to feed her breast milk from a bottle on several occasions over the last 2 or 3 days. I have also done some let-down pumping, where I pump till let down then put her to the breast.

I feel like this could become a real problem. I’m concerned for my supply and our time together breastfeeding. I do think that she is in the very early stages of teething, gum widening, and wonder if this is related.

What should I do about it?

I hate to encourage laziness and hate to give bottles when not necessary. Is this a phase? Will it pass, Should I force her to suck till let-down by withholding other means? I’m stumped as to the right way to handle this!

Answers:

Randi says…

So much happens at 5 months: growth spurts, teething, outright rebellion. If this was me, I would probably just stop offering a bottle for a few days and let her work for her meal. I would keep the boob buffet open. I would offer boob first and if by the end she is stuff fussy, then toss a bottle her way. But, if things don’t improve, you obviously have a few options to consider. You can pump full time (which I hated pumping because I was lazy), or you can switch to bottle feeding with either donor milk or formula. 

Be proud of the length of time you breast fed for. Five months is amazing!

Jennifer says…

This is immensely tough and takes me back to the anxiety I battled during these times. I would encourage you to feed her before she gets too hungry so that she’s not quite as impatient with the time it takes for let-down. Since she may be teething, she may be willing to go to the breast more frequently and that should help, too.

Another idea would be to get in the bathtub and allow the warm water and skin to skin help you both relax.

If she’s not losing weight, I’d say get rid of the bottles. They are going to continue to hinder your supply and your little one is a smart girl—those bottles flow instantly. She just doesn’t realize what she’s missing.

Kristen says…

I watched my sister-in-law have the same struggle with her little guy years ago. After talking with her more, I encouraged her to nurse him more frequently as he was going too long between feedings. That was what her little guy needed, but I really felt for her because it was her first try at nursing and she so badly wanted it to go well!

I would also be really cautious about using the bottle or a pacifier at this stage. It may be that she needs to nurse more frequently so that she’s not too hungry, and now that she has realized how easy it is to get milk from a bottle, she might need to readjust to nursing from the breast. That readjustment may not make her happy at first, but try it for a few days and see how things go before giving up. 

And good for you to make it to five months breastfeeding! You are giving your baby a wonderful start on life!

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