Painful let down!

Krystle - posted on 06/15/2011

Hi Laura! Congrats on the new baby!



When my milk first came in, my let-down was super painful. It only happened for maybe 3 weeks or so after my milk came in, after that it started to just be tingly. But yeah, it would hurt so bad I had to force myself to breath through it!



(Also, I had an over supply too)

Aleks - posted on 06/13/2011

Yep... I had painful ones and yes sometimes worse in the other breast... Hey, mine were sometimes so painful that if I got them when not actually feeding at the time and I was doing something else, I would stop whatever it was that I was doing and cringe and grab at my breasts.
Good news is that it does subside :-)

Jacqueline - posted on 06/11/2011

Oh and I even tried pump one breast while he nurses the other! MAGIC feeling but not the entire supply just a couple oz. In case my big boy is still hungry. And since my let downs are so powerful he only eats for about 10 min and only pump for 15. :)

Jacqueline - posted on 06/11/2011

With my daughter my let downs were tingly... but with my son my let's down are more intense. I had block milk ducts when he was 2 to 3 months old. And when I get engorged it starts to hurt again more so then usual. Try pumping after nursing. And massaging the breast when the let down comes. Or keep a cold or warm pack with me for nursing. My son is almost 8 months old lol. Its just the let down that's irritating and its a quick feeling ill take for the wonderful bonding and snuggling :) its worth it!

Jacqueline - posted on 06/11/2011

With my daughter my let downs were tingly... but with my son my let's down are more intense. I had block milk ducts when he was 2 to 3 months old. And when I get engorged it starts to hurt again more so then usual. Try pumping after nursing. And massaging the breast when the let down comes. Or keep a cold or warm pack with me for nursing. My son is almost 8 months old lol. Its just the let down that's irritating and its a quick feeling ill take for the wonderful bonding and snuggling :) its worth it!

Minnie - posted on 06/10/2011

I had painful let down with Adelaide for at least the first year and a half. With Evelyn not as long because I was actively weaning her from 9-12 months. It stopped after Adelaide started taking larger amounts of food and reducing the amount she breastfed. When she was younger I would get shooting pains through my chest to the ribs in my back. Definitely stronger on the side she wasn't nursing on. It's just sensitive nerves. Can be quite surprising and very uncomfortable, but normal.



Oversupply and hyperactive let down is something I have always struggled with and had to manage carefully.

Laura Zoey - posted on 06/10/2011

Sara, mine stopped hurting when I got pregnant too, I assume it's the lack of milk, but they came back strong!
Liz, I think you are probably having let downs just like normal, but yours just don't feel like anything.
Not a big deal, you have milk without the pain! I bet it's just everyone's bodies are wired differently.

Laura Zoey - posted on 06/10/2011

Yup oversupply here too, poor girl gags and chokes when she eats! I always have a cloth prefod diaper under her chin and my breast to protect our clothes!

Emma - posted on 06/10/2011

Yeh mine sprays everywhere as well so NIP is difficult for me too because sometimes she pulls off when the milk overwhelms her and then it sprays everywhere from the breast she pulled off of! Bit embarassing! I have a massive oversupply too...i can also catch around 1 and a half to 2 onces from the opposite breast when she feeds...no need to pump at all. Regina described it well...mine go really hard and feel like they are going to pop when i get my let down!

Liz - posted on 06/09/2011

I have never felt any letdown at all -- is that weird? I had problems with overactive letdown too (spraying everywhere, etc.), but I never felt anything.

Nicole - posted on 06/09/2011

Totally I had that all the time! Do you produce a lot of milk and have large breasts? Well that describes me and I found my letdown painful about 50% of the time. Sometimes I would take a warm washcloth and put it on the opposite breast that I was feeding from and that would help soothe it a lot!!!

*Fluffy Bunnies - posted on 06/09/2011

My letdowns were very strong and they hurt up until I got pregnant and stopped feeling them. It was very uncomfortable. I don't know if painful letdown is linked to oversupply or not. I had a massive oversupply. I could catch up to 2 oz from the non-nursed side. Made it really hard to NIP when I was leaking all over the place.

Jennifer - posted on 06/09/2011

Mine hurts too. It always does and i just have to stop and try not to think about it cuz it eventually passes.

Regina - posted on 06/09/2011

definitely try the pumping! mine ached like it was gonna pop or something :)

Laura Zoey - posted on 06/09/2011

Like oww oww oww, but not awful. Definitely not comfortable, but not like I'm going to cry. It feels like a mild contraction, maybe like menstrual cramps......
Not fun! But not even close to labor pains :D

Sara - posted on 06/09/2011

My letdown hurts also. it feels like a mild muscle cramp but I'm used to it now. How bad does it hurt?

Regina - posted on 06/09/2011

i had that problem for a while too. It quit when my daughter was about 2 months old and then of course i thought there was something wrong. When she would be eating on one side the other side would ache so bad i had to pump to relieve the pressure. Even if it was just for a minute or two it really helped.

Emma - posted on 06/09/2011

Yes I have a very strong let down. It really hurts from both breasts, but particularly the one that she is not feeding from at that moment. I have two let downs every feed and regularly throughout the day aswell. The only good thing is that my LO only feeds for 10-15mins on one breast each feed because my let down is so strong that she gets lots of milk quickly and doesn't have to work for it for ages. The bad thing is she gets a bit of wind because she has to gulp the milk down because it comes out so fast.

Laura Zoey - posted on 06/09/2011

Well I get blocked ducts too, but I'm saying that whenever my milk ejaculates it reall hurts! I'll have 2-3 let downs each feeding and every time it's the same!
The blocked ducts hurt too, but I manage them ok with frequent feeds and some massages too :)

Liz - posted on 06/09/2011

I don't know if this is what you're talking about... but when I had blocked ducts, it hurt. Not when they were actually blocked, but after I had managed to clear them a little. It was extremely painful nursing my son, and then felt better immediately once the breast was drained.