Holding Breast while Breastfeeding?

[KristinaMarie]

Not sure where this goes so if it is the wrong place please move to the proper forum.

A question for larger breasted moms. How long did you have to hold your breast while breastfeeding? Supporting it and keeping it away from his nose so that he doesn't suffocate?

I am a 40I (my breast are bigger than his head) and can't nurse my LO without holding my breast with one hand and LO with the other. It makes NIP impossible without showing everyone everything. I wish I could just cradle hold him and nurse but my breast just falls down. Even when we are nursing in bed I have to hold my breast so that he doesn't suffocate.

It may be something that I have to do for our entire relationship, and I am okay with that I was just wondering if it ever got easier. Thanks for any insight.

[Viola]

I didn't always have to hold mine, and mine are not as large as yours, but I pretty much did hold them most of the time even when my kids were older. It just seemed more comfortable that way. I held them cosleeping in the side lying position also. Sometimes a rolled handtowel or receiving blanket underneath the breast can help, but I still liked to shape my breast a little as I was offering it.

My second daughter, however, she wouldn't latch unless I let go of my breast and let it go over her face. I don't know why that was. I'd say by the time your child is 2, you probably won't be holding your breast as much.

[bluejaunte]

Is that your pre-preg size? I was 34DD pre-preg and went up to 34H during the first few months of nursing, but they went back to normal size when my baby was ~6mo, and it wasn't a problem anymore. Those first few months, though, I definitely had to hold mine up. And I've never been able to nurse in a sling/wrap/etc. though I really wanted to.

[pumpkin]

I'm about the same size as you and I still have to hold my breast at 7 mo. Sometimes I can get things just right with the boppy and drop my hand. It makes nursing out and about almost impossible, but I keep trying.

[prothyraia]

I don't have to, but I still hold mine when nursing my 14 and 35 month olds. 36F here.

However, I don't have to hold their heads or hold breast tissue away from their faces, so I do have an hand free if I need to do something else, or position my shirt, or whatever.

[KristinaMarie]

Pre-preg I was 38F, so I have always had larger breasts. I tried what Viola said about the receiving blanket and it seemed to help. I find that my hand gets real sore and sometimes falls asleep when LO is on a marathon feed,