Have you ever noticed that during a heated discussion or when you receive bad news that impresses you, an unexpected rise in milk occurs? A sudden, strong and momentary ejection of milk, which does not influence subsequent production but is limited to a few seconds.
Ejection reflex or milk output reflex, what we colloquially know as "milk rises or falls", is a necessary and normal part of breastfeeding. The hormones (prolactin and oxytocin) control the reflex and allow the milk produced in the mammary glands to be released into the galactophores ducts.
There are certain established situations that cause these milk rises to occur, however I wanted to comment on something that, in common with other moms, has also happened to them. These are unexpected milk rises, which are not given by the usual mechanisms.
Milk rises occur, in the usual way, in the following situations:
When the baby sucks when breastfeeding, there are sensory impulses on the nipple that cause the milk to flow out. It is the chemistry of the baby and the mother during breastfeeding. Nipple stimulation produces, through a neuro-hormonal reflex (the pituitary gland is stimulated) the release of prolactin and oxytocin into the bloodstream. When it reaches the breast, oxytocin causes the tiny muscles concentrated around the alveoli, which are full of milk, to contract. Thus, milk is pushed into the milk ducts that transport it to the lactiferous sinuses located just below the areola. Especially at the beginning of the shot it is usual to perceive the strong rise of milk, especially in the breast that the baby is not taking, and a visible stream of milk can even come out if the breast is bare. Mothers notice this ejection as a small stab or pressure.
Oxytocin is also called the love hormone and is actively involved in our sex life, including childbirth. Sexual pleasure causes variations in the secretion of prolactin and oxytocin, so that during orgasm uterine contractions and milk ejection are facilitated. At the time of the climax these ejections can be noticed and some milk can also flow out.
The erectile reflex It can become a conditioned reflex that is triggered by crying and even the presence of the child alone, or when preparing to breastfeed. I noticed this especially at the beginning of breastfeeding with my two daughters: it was to hear them cry and the climbs occurred.
However, I have not found information about this "side effect" of an alteration situation upon receiving a strong impression (bad news that affects us) maybe accompanied by a stomach or heart tipping and suffocation; or for being immersed in the tension of an argument that produces similar effects.
AdvertisingI want to think that it could be an instinctive response of the organism that acts in the same way as when the rise of milk occurs when listening to the crying of the baby: we know that we have to take care of it and our body prepares for it. Faced with a situation that impresses or alters us, the milk ejection reflex may be a way of anticipating the baby's possible need in a situation of "alertness".
The reflex is so strong that you notice it during those seconds in the breasts intensely, sometimes getting to soak the clothes remarkably.
Then, everything happens and milk production stabilizes, without affecting the subsequent shots. It is a punctual ejection that we perceive in the same way when one of the breasts expels milk due to the suction in the other, although it shows in both breasts. Have you noticed these unexpected rises in milk?
