What is milk spurt? 5 tips to stimulate milk spurt

Milk letdown is an experience that every breastfeeding mother will have. During a milk letdown, the milk supply will suddenly increase and the milk will flow out unconsciously. So what does it feel like when the milk letdown comes? Is there any way to stimulate the milk letdown?

Every mother will experience that there is a strong sense of nerve stimulation when breastfeeding.

1. When the baby starts sucking, the breast is soft, but after a while, you will feel a little numb inside, and the breast will suddenly swell up, and it feels like the veins are bursting. The other breast will also swell up and start to drip milk. Milk burst is a "buzzing" feeling of milk rushing into the nipple, or even gushing out. Some mothers also describe milk bursts as if there are many small fish swimming in the breast.

2. The milk flows out unconsciously and stops after a while. If the baby swallows milk, you can hear the swallowing sound. The swallowing sound and speed are obviously different. Sensitive mothers will feel numbness or itching in the nipples, or tingling, etc. Everyone is different.

3. Some mothers may also have milk bursts because they have been at work for too long and have not let their babies suck milk. At this time, the mother can go to a convenient place and press the nipple with her hand for two minutes to stop the milk from continuing to flow out. This method can help mothers who are at work avoid some embarrassment.

If the baby is sucking when the milk comes, you can hear the baby swallowing rapidly and with big gulps. If the baby spits out the nipple at this time, you can see the milk flowing out of the breast and wetting the clothes. At this time, pressing the nipple with your hand for a moment can stop the milk from continuing to flow out. Some mothers have many milk holes in their nipples. When the milk comes, the baby will not have time to swallow and will cry and refuse to eat or cause choking. At this time, the mother can pinch the upper and lower areola with the index finger and middle finger together to slow down the flow rate and prevent the baby from choking (if the baby chokes seriously, it will also be dangerous).

1. Establish a breastfeeding routine, and the milk flow will act like a "timer" and you will be ready when the time comes.

Prepare the most comfortable nursing chair for yourself, with a nursing pillow with good support. Wear clothes that fit well and are convenient for breastfeeding, drink a cup of warm water before breastfeeding, and it is best to play your favorite light music. These will gradually become part of the breastfeeding "ritual" and help you relax. Breastfeeding should be a comfortable and enjoyable process, not a hasty and stressful task. Breastfeeding should be fed on demand, but it is very important to understand the baby's "needs" and give the right response! Avoid feeding the baby as soon as he cries, which makes daily life messy and tiring. Gradually establishing a breastfeeding routine will also make the breasts like a "timer", so that you will be ready when the time comes! The better the breasts are full, the more milk will flow when the milk comes!

2. Warm up your body and breasts to make milk flow more easily

Take a hot bath before breastfeeding and use hot water to rinse your back to promote blood circulation. Let your body relax and feel comfortable, which can make milk letdown easier during the subsequent breastfeeding process. For mothers with less milk, applying warm compresses to the breasts before breastfeeding can help accelerate the induction of milk letdowns. Mothers can try a hot and wet towel, or put rice in socks, warm it up and apply it to the breasts.

3. Back massage is very effective

New mothers often have stiff bodies when breastfeeding, and they are inevitably forced to adopt awkward breastfeeding postures such as shrugging shoulders, shrinking chest, lifting elbows, and hooking wrists. If they insist on breastfeeding several times a day, or even dozens of times a day, they will inevitably feel sore and uncomfortable, and may even mistake it for "postpartum illness." It is best for family members to help mothers with acupressure massage of their shoulders during or after breastfeeding to relieve body stiffness and pain caused by muscle contracture, and use the thumbs to press along both sides of the spine from the neck to the waist to improve nerve conduction and help stimulate milk flow.

4. Nipple and breast massage to stimulate milk secretion more directly

Before breastfeeding or pumping milk, you can hold your breasts with both hands and gently rock them to stimulate milk secretion using gravity.

Put your middle and ring fingers together and use the fingertips to make deep and gentle circles to massage your breasts, or gently push from the far end of the breast to the areola.

If the breasts are astringent, you can use pure vegetable oil to moisturize and then massage until you feel the breast skin is warm, full, or you can clearly feel the milk coming.

5. For mothers who have long intervals between milk letdowns, or mothers who use a breast pump but have difficulty stimulating milk letdowns, you can try directly massaging the nipples to stimulate milk letdowns.

Use the tip of your index finger to press the nipple lightly and quickly like "pressing a doorbell". Use the tip of your index finger to rub the surface of the nipple lightly and quickly through the thinnest clothing. Use your thumb and index finger to pinch the nipple from the base, twisting it like counting money, so that the pressure is transferred from the base of the nipple to the top of the nipple, which will cause the milk to flow out slowly. When the nipple becomes relaxed from being tight, the milk rush is triggered.

1. When the baby eats milk in big mouthfuls, you can hear the gurgling swallowing sound

2. The baby pushed the breast away with both hands, and then had milk sprayed all over his face, looking confused.

3. Suddenly spit out the nipple or turn away from the milk, and then cry after drinking because he did not get enough.

4. The baby can’t eat well, grabs and kicks with his hands and feet, and his whole body is twisting