Breastfeeding question for those whose babies STTN

[Monarchgrrl]

I'm exclusively pumping but the question applies to those who are EBFing too. I'm very lucky to have a baby that is sleeping 9-10 hours a night right now, but what do you do with your boobs in the middle of the night?  Right now I'm getting up at 1am or 2am to pump. Otherwise my breasts hurt so bad in the morning and are so rock hard that it's hard to pump. Plus I'm scared of my supply going down if I don't pump. I LOVE that she's sleeping all night but it doesn't seem like I can. Not fair. So, what do you others do in the middle of the night? Anything? Or just suffer every morning, and if so has it decreased your supply? TIA!!

[peacelove&camping]

i think what you do depends on your 'pumping plan'. when my dd started sttn, i did not get up to pump. it was several weeks, or maybe even more, before i didn't wake up going 'hoooly cow', but the comfort wasn't worth it to me to sacrifice the sleep :) my supply did eventually regulate and i don't wake up engorged anymore, and i still make enough for her during the day.

if you're pumping to get up a freezer stash, go for it. if you're just doing it for your comfort, you'll regulate more quickly if you *don't*, it's probably dragging out the engorgement.

also, if you wake up too engorged to pump, like you mentioned, you can try hand-expressing a little, or putting the pump on [even if it's not on perfectly] just long enough to stimulate your letdown and then letting down into a towel.

i can't say for sure about it dropping *your* supply, because i know pumping isn't as efficient as bfing, so if you're pumping exactly as often as she's eating you may not pump enough. so it might be good for your supply to have that one extra session; or you could add one during the day, and drop the 1am. ep'ing, to me, is such an unbelievable commitment and so hard, and i totally give you props for it :)  hopefully somebody with more pump experience chimes in!

[CrunchyChristianMama]

My DD goes to bed at 7 and wakes up for the day at 6:30 without eating in between.  I pump once at 10-10:30 before I go to bed.  The first few nights that she slept through I was super hard in the morning, but after a few days, my body re-regulated and quit making so much overnight.  I would guess that if you weaned off of the middle of the night pumping your body would do the same and you wouldn't be so hard in the morning.