@keke1223 I only do one side at a feed and use huckleberry to track which one she was on last!
This started because when she was first born she really destroyed one of my nipples so I fed from one while pumping the sore one to help my supply come in but also allowing the sore one time to heal.
Since then she's always only fed on one side per feed. She does sometimes get fussy about what side she wants. She's always been on a great growth curve and seems satisfied after she feeds. I'm 3 months pp now and not had engorgement since 1 month pp.
I don't think there's any hard and fast rules though, whatever works for you and baby, and if baby is gaining weight and happy then that's great!
@keke1223 My boy has gone back and forth depending how much he wants to eat. I'd say 70% of the time he eats from only one side and is satisfied. Before bed he tends to get super super hungry and will eat from both before being able to pass out, sometimes it even ends up going back and forth a couple times (L then R, then back to L then back to R) and if he's still not satisfied my husband will top him up with a bottle of expressed milk. This hasn't been a problem yet, other than maybe one side feeling super full and so I might have to do a quick pump every now and then to let out some of the fullness and it helps to get some milk expressed for my husband's night shift when he bottle feeds him
@keke1223 I was taught one side per feeding to make sure they’re getting to all the good fatty milk. So I alternated on feedings unless baby wanted to switch. If baby is gaining weight then you’re doing fine.
@keke1223 I always offer both sides and start the next feed on the one we ended on so that if it wasn’t drained properly we’re going straight in on the next feed
@keke1223 I just do whichever side feels heavier, one side per feeding. In the newborn days, that meant I stuck to one side for a couple feedings sometimes too. For a couple weeks he’d only nurse from the left side and hated the right side altogether, so I would pump on the right side and only nurse him on the right while dream feeding because he didn’t care when he was literally asleep, lol!
Yesterday I realized I had nursed my 11 month old on only the left side all day long. Which is really just 2-4 feeds a day now anyways. So today I nursed him a little extra on the right side. I would worry about how it evens out over the course of a couple days, I wouldn’t necessarily worry about if you do a couple feeds on the same side or anything. It won’t matter in the grand scheme of things.
@keke1223 I feed only on one side at a time and that seems to be enough. They say the first part of the feed is higher in sugar and lower in fat, whereas the second half is higher in fat. If you swap too early you miss the fattier milk which can limit growth but also means baby might get a sugar rush and be more restless / gassy! That’s just what I’ve been told, and works for me
@keke1223 Baby preference. My eldest did mostly just one side and my youngest insists on both. My eldest would fall asleep on the boob, youngest would violently fling herself off when done.
It's very ok to offer both and very ok if baby doesn't want it.
@keke1223 Depends on your storage capacity, letdown, why baby is nursing (hunger vs comfort), etc.
I don’t have a huge storage capacity, so my baby took both boobs for feeds when he was younger. Now that he’s 1.5, he’ll sit on one boob if he wants to relax and space out/fall asleep, but will drink and then want to switch to the next boob if he’s actually hungry or thirsty
@keke1223 I do both sides after naps or night time feeds but during the day I'll do one side, go do some chores & have some coffee etc., then the other side.
Could be as much as a 6hr gap between a side getting emptied since last, but normally 2-4 & bubs gaining on her curve well.
I think your supply should be fine but could always offer the other one after burp & change if your worried.
@keke1223 I had a major oversupply when my daughter left the NICU because I'd been pumping around the clock. Block feeding was how I got my supply to regulate. She would eat a whole meal on one side and then the next meal from the other side. I was always lopsided but it worked great to reduce my supply! To make sure that baby gets both foremilk and hindmilk, let them unlatch on their own and then offer the other breast. Don't unlatch them and switch them mid-feed.
@keke1223 I almost always offer both but now he’s 9 months he sometimes just wants a little drink or a comfort feed so in those times we’ll just do one boob and then the next feed we’ll do the other one
