>I have a mom who said she feels she has an unequal milk supply. One
breast pumps 1/2 oz and the other 3 oz, baby is 3 weeks old, she feels baby
stays longer on the one breast that pumps more milk. She is leaking from
the breast producing less milk. No breast surgery, mom is in her 20's,
first baby. Baby is gaining wt.okay. I encouraged her to nurse longer on
the less producing breast. I searched the archives, couldn't pull anything
upon the subject. Have any of you experienced this in your practice.I
thought maybe one breast has more ducts and glands and may need evaluation
later, but if baby is gaining on both breasts supply it may not be a major
problem at this time. Mom does feel one breast is larger now, didn't notice
this before pregnancy.<
I would say this is normal. Indeed, it is probably ususal that two breasts
don't produce the same amount -- like two eyes might have different vision in
your eye test, your tow feet might be slightly different sizes, etc. The
largest differential I have experience of is my firsnd whose rough estimate was
that one breast produced four times the amount of the other.
This meant that (this was a decade ago) she really had to throw out the 'switch
breast each feed' type advice then common and go with what worked for her body.
Seems to me this is just common sense application of what we know about breast
physiology, e.g. Fisher and Woolridge. I have often explored this idea with
women who are relieved to know that their experience of breastfeeding -- which
didn't seem to match up with the text-book picture of two equally producing
mammary glands -- actually fits the real life picture that the cumulative
experience of breastfeeding women have fit together.
If this baby is gaining ok, and is happy and the mother is satisfied with the
quality of the breastfeeding interaction, and she can find a bra to work for her
differently sized breasts (WHEN are they going to do bras in halves, which can
just be hooked up together, front and back??? -- I know some folk have to get
shoes in two different sizes, this is essentially the same idea), I would say,
more than 'this is not a problem at this time' but 'this is not a problem.'
Having recently re-read van Esterik's book: Motherpower and Infant Feeding
(1989) I was struck by something she says about medicalisation / the biomedical
paradigm: in this view of our bodies, things which were just considered to be
part of normal expereince -- sort of part of the continuum of normal physiology/
behaviour -- are 'pathologised' in biomedicine which sets defined limits of what
conforms to 'normal'. I, for one, am all for shaking off the shackles of
biomedicine!!!
Magda Sachs
Breastfeeding Supporter, BfN, UK
***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html
|
