Rachel has asked about personal experience with burping a baby mid-feed so
I thought it might be helpful to share my limited experience. (Hi Rachel!)

I'm now nursing Edmund, who will be 3 months tomorrow, my third baby. (As a
side note, I love catching up on Lactnet during nighttime nursing
sessions.) In the early months I tend to experience oversupply combined
with a strong letdown. My newborns and young babies have all had a bit of
trouble dealing with the letdown and they often pull off or choke when the
milk flow increases. I watch them closely as they nurse, and if they have
had trouble dealing with the letdown and then immediately afterwards seem
unhappy at the breast I will often take them off, place them up to my
shoulder (high enough so that their tummy can firmly press against my
shoulder) and I rub their back in a circular pattern with a gentle
pressure. Usually if my babies have gulped too much air during the letdown
they will let out a large burp almost immediately or within the first 30
seconds, sometimes I need to stand up and bounce them a little bit which
helps get the burp out but I usually don't need to do that. If they don't
burp quickly and easily or if they seem to be very upset at being taken
away from the breast I will put them right back to the breast. If they do
burp quickly I also put them back to the breast and often they are happy to
continue nursing. Sometimes if my baby has fallen asleep at the breast and
I lay them down right away (without burping) they will toss and turn and
begin to fret. Before they begin crying I pick them up and do the shoulder
hold plus back rub and often they will quickly burp and then be happy to
settle down to sleep in a horizontal position again. This burping pattern
wasn't suggested to me by anyone it just seemed to develop naturally over
time as I discovered what worked to calm and sooth my sweet babies and help
them to be more comfortable at my breast.

Thank you all for sharing your wonderful experience and knowledge!

Sincerely,
Elizabeth Packard, Breastfeeding USA BC, CLC
Bellingham, WA

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