Nancy and Barbara hope to make your job easier by crafting evidence-based answers to commonly asked questions (like this post), which you have our permission to share. It offers information both you and nursing parents may want or need, and ways to express it that you may find helpful in your clinical setting.
From Nancy Mohrbacher:
Mother’s question: “I need help! My daughter is a week old tomorrow and I can’t seem to get my fast milk flow under control. It just pours out and she chokes. What do I do to make it easier for her?”
During the early weeks, while your milk supply is adjusting to your baby’s needs, your feeding position can make all the difference. If you sit straight up during feedings, your milk flows downhill into your baby’s mouth, which makes coping with fast milk flow more difficult for her. Instead, use positions like those pictured here. Move your hips forward and lean back with baby’s whole body resting on yours so your baby’s head is higher than the breast. In these positions, gravity makes milk flow easier for her to manage. Many mothers also find these positions much more comfortable.
You can read more about these positions at this post.
Lying on your side to breastfeed can also help because baby can let overflow milk dribble out of her mouth rather than having to swallow fast to prevent choking. (Lay a towel under baby first!)
Most important is never to hold your baby’s head to your breast when she wants to pull off and catch her breath. Fingers crossed these tips help!