Maintaining Your Supply While Sleep Training
I love sharing the good news of… “You can sleep train and breastfeed at the same time - they’re not mutually exclusive!!” However, I want to makes sure that the long stretches of sleep are not hindering your supply at all.
As a mother of 3 who breastfed all of her children, maintaining my milk supply was a top priority for me while sleep training. I didn’t want to do anything that would hinder this supply, since I had made a commitment to myself to nurse my babies (if available) until they were 1.
The amazing part about our bodies is that breastfeeding workings as a supply/demand system. The more your breasts empty, the more they’ll fill again.
When you sleep train your baby and you start sleeping really long stretches, things will change with your supply. Your body will eventually regulate to your new sleep schedule, but giving yourself relief overnight might be necessary.
Here are a few suggestions to help maintain your supply while sleep training:
Breastfeed on demand throughout the day. I find with my own babies, I would nurse them when they woke up from a nap and this would typically be a full feeding. Then 20 minutes before their next nap, I’d latch them again, but this time for more of a “snack.” There is typically a “feed every 3 hour rule” with babies (which I love to follow), but that would sometimes mean that their feeding would land in the middle of the nap. To ensure that my baby wasn’t waking up early from the nap, I started offering that second “snack” feed right before. Remember, we’re not feeding the baby to make them drowsy, just to simply give them a snack before they go to sleep.
Ensure you’re emptying your breasts at each feeding. Milk production stems from being emptied. So, prioritizing full feedings will help with that natural production.
Stay Hydrated. Drinking water is an essential part of having a good production of milk. Make sure that you’re staying hydrated throughout the day & into the evening, too.
Pump once in the evening before you go to bed. Before sleep training, you were likely feeding your baby at least once throughout the night. So adding in 1 pumping session before you go to bed can replace that feeding that you’re now missing and it can also provide some relief so you don’t feel engorged in the morning.
Pump in the morning after feeding your baby. This isn’t necessary, but after getting your first full night’s sleep, you’ll likely feel really engorged and uncomfortable. Sometimes your baby may not even be able to empty your breasts as much as you’d like to feel comfortable, so I recommend pumping both sides after your baby’s first initial full feed.
Get great sleep yourself! It can feel tempting to stay up really late once your child starts sleeping through the night because you know you’ll have an uninterrupted sleep. But…sleeping well helps your milk replenish! Setting enough time for your own sleep each night will be crucial. The average healthy adult needs anywhere from 7-9 hours of sleep each night.
The cool thing is that your milk production will regulate and there will come a time that you won’t need to pump/express for the full 12 hour period that your child is asleep & it will be okay. A woman’s body is so amazing. If you have specific concerns about maintaining your supply while still teaching your child independent sleep skills, please reach out to a lactation consultant for extra information.
