Stopping Breastfeeding - Advice Needed

[kenlaney]

My wife just recently stopped breastfeeding and she is in a lot of pain from being engorged.

Do any of you mothers who have stopped breastfeeding have any advice for her to help alleviate the pain (aside from taking Tylenol)?

Also, about how long will the pain last? How long until the breasts stop producing milk?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[momathome]

It sounds like your wife may have stopped nursing too soon. If she was too quick to eliminate feedings, engorgement can happen. I went through this when I tried to stop nursing my first daughter at 10 months-old because after going down from 2 feedings to 1 feeding, I only waited a few days before trying to stop altogether. The pain was severe and I was advised to keep nursing my daughter for just 1 feeding a day for a few weeks. I did this for 3 weeks and when I stopped again, I had no pain from engorgement. If your wife would rather not continue nursing your baby, she could try pumping off just a few ounces a day for a week or two to give her body time to adjust. Good luck!
-Lauren

[atlmom]

Sounds weird, but cabbage work wonders. Put a few leafs in your bra and they will relieve engorgement. A chemical in the cabbage actually slows milk production.

[gdota]

I second the cabbage remedy - it really does help!

Also, If she doesn't have a pump, hand expressing in the shower (warm water makes it more comfortable), can help relieve some of the pressure.

[KathyO]

I agree with the above posters - if your wife can go back to breastfeeding and take a more gradual approach, engorgement will not be a problem.

However, if this is not an option, my Mom recommends a technique she was taught when she had to go cold-turkey. Your wife can wrap her torso as tightly as possible with a towel, and pin it in place. This works better if she lies down on the towel and someone else does the pinning.

When this is done really snugly, it means that the suffering Mum must learn to somehow breathe with the portion of her lungs that's north of the collarbone ;-), but it really does help the pain, I am told.

Best of luck,

KathyO

[kenlaney]

Thanks for your help. I'll pass it on to my wife.