Engorgement Issues

Hi Jennie~
I'm sorry, but I don't have too much advice for you. With my first son, now 5, I didn't breastfeed him. My breasts were HUGE and sore for just under 2 weeks. I tried tylenol & sudafed also. The only medicine that really helped me was Aleve. I would take the aleve consistently--every time I was able to according to the directions. I actually used warm compresses rather than icepacks & it helped a lot. I made sure that they were handy & accessible any chance I got to just sit and relax. When it got really bad, I would hop in the shower & just let the warm water beat on my breasts. That actually helped quite a bit.
Sorry I couldn't be of much assistance, but rest assured that within the next couple of days you'll be feeling much better.
And congrats on your new baby!!
~J.~

I feel your pain, I have two children myself and breastfeed for about a month or two before going to formula and I had to basically take the cloth wrap that people use to wrap their hurt ankles and wrist in and wrap my boobs up for several days or find a tight fitting sports bra and that will do the trick and take Motrin for the swelling and pain. That's what my mom did and told me to do and it works but takes a few days. I know they also used to give shots to stop the milk production but I'm not sure if they still do but if you keep having problems I'd ask your doctor about it.

Do not take the pp advice and bind your breasts. That can cause you to get a terrible breast infection. Cabbage leaves should help. Change them out of your bra every other hour or so. Also, the herb sage is known to inhibit milk production. You can try eating foods with sage in them and see if that helps.

Hi Jennie,

I am a mother of three and I have never been able to breastfeed. So needless to say, I had engorgement issues which almost bring me to tears because of the pain. I found that alternating ice packs and heat packs every couple of hours, taking warm showers, and tylenol for the pain helped me tremendously. Please don't expect the engorgement to go away instantly because it's not. These are just temporary solutions. Good luck!

I have "heard" of wrapping your breast in a tight ace bandage can help. Maybe someone else can weigh in on that.

Hi! Congratulations on your baby!!! I have a 5 month old and had the same problem. Tried the ice packs, etc. What worked for me is wrapping an Ace bandage (as tightly as I could stand) around my breasts. After 1 day I felt a lot better, but it took about 3 days to get back to normal to where I no longer needed the Ace bandages. Also, when you shower, try not to get your breasts wet because the warm water will only make engorgement worse. Hope this helps! Good luck!

When you shower, do not even let the water touch your chest! Back to the water and get out fast. You must be very vigilant about this! The rest of the time keep yourself completely bound as tight at possible.

I didn't breastfeed either and had engorgement issues too. I would take a warm shower and hand express only a tiny bit to relieve the pressure. Don't do too much because it will increase milk production. It won't last too long. Try to focus on the beautiful little baby you just brought into this world and hopefully the pain/pressure will leave soon.

I feel your pain. My lactation consultant gave me CaboCreme. I was so painfully rock hard engorged my milk would just not come out enough even though I was trying to breastfeed at the time. She warned me using the stuff might take my milk away completely so to only apply a little. Boy, it did the job! I felt instant relief! I still have the package from 2 1/2 years ago because if I ever go through that pain again I will need to know where to get the stuff! Lucky you, it has a number and website on it! 1-866-301-2226 www.cabocreme.com

Wish you the best!

Sudafed!!!! It dries it up. I nursed and when it came that I had to stop cold turkey I used a tight (I wear a 38 and got a 34) sports bra with cabbage leaves in ALL the time and took sudafed 3 times a day. I was only engorged for 5 days.

Good luck!

Didn't your dr. give you a shot to dry up the milk? Mine did; then he put me in a binder.

there is a medication that i took it will dry you up. it is accually given to patients with parkinsons. I took it with both of my boys the results were fast, thank God the pain is aweful . Ask your Dr and good luck

Hi. I was in the same possition as you last week and the best thing that worked for me was to wear a really tight sports bra and to make sure you don't get them wet in the shower. I have read some people tell you to use heat and to express a little and i personally have to respectfully disagree as that would only incourage your milk to come in and thats the last thing you need. Hopefully this will be your last day and you will start to feel better tomorrow. Congratulations on your new baby.

Hi,

I felt your pain! Get yourself some ace bandages and bind yourself up. You might need some help in doing so , but wrap as tight has you can handle around your breasts. It will make you feel so much better. This is what my doctor had told me to do. I took quite a bit of advil too.

All I can say in regards to "binding will cause infection" is that when I called the doctor I had pain, fever, and flu like symptoms, an infection was suspected. I was told based on these symptoms to bind and was given antibiotics but the fever and flu symptoms broke and they were not necessary. The binding creating more relief then anything. You can always contact your doctor if you question it.

Good Luck!!

Hi Jennie,
You pour thing. I do know how you feel. Have you tried getting the shower and massaging the breasts. It worked for me. Even though it will be painful try pumping, hot wash cloths.
I hope you find relief soon.
J. H

Cabbage leaves and a tight underwire bra worked for me. If you haven't already, try the bra.

I don't know about "binding" your breasts with an ace bandage but I do know that wearing a fairly tight fitting sports bra helped me alot. (this was advice from my Dr.) Luckily just when I thought it wasn't going to end it just suddenly went away.

First off, congratulations! Are you drinking enough water?
Contrary to belief, this will assist in the drying of the breast milk. Restricting liquid intake will cause you become dehydrated that may lead to an increase in engorgement because then your body feels as if something is wrong and it needs to kick up the production of milk to make sure the baby stays alive. Also you may want to try drinking sage or mint tea, not only will it help to calm you, the proerties in these herbs have been found to reduce milk production. Best Wishes!

I would try a warm shower and try letting just a little out of your breasts. You squeeze some or pump just a little if you do not plan to breastfeed. I know this helped when I was weaning to releive the pressure some and within 48 hours I felt better and dried up. Congrats on the new baby.

After 2 kids, and not breastfeeding, I know exactly what you are going through!! DO NOT EXPRESS YOUR MILK!! It will make the process longer. Also, no hot showers or heat at all...it will make the time longer. The best thing I found, with the help of my mom, was to buy a couple of bras in the size you were before getting pregnant. Put it on with kitchen towels over it to help absorb leakage, then my mom and hubby bought from walgreens a binder w/ice pack for back issues but we reversed it to use across the chest. With help put on bra, no matter how painful, lay towel across and then have someone else place the binder w/ ice pack in it as tight as you can handle on you. Change this out every couple of hours as it will smell and be wet. I just bought another ice pack to switch out. If you have any more children just remember as soon as you have your child and the hospital will allow, put on a brand new bra! The sooner the better. Mine took around a week to stop hurting and be so engorged, then I had to place baby washcloths in my bra for another couple of weeks to catch any leaking. It will get better. I would try straight up ibuprophen since it is a swelling reducer. Good Luck...and remember the pain is worth the little one you are holding.
PS My girlfriend did the cabbage leaves for both of her kids and it worked for her, for me I just smelled like cooked cabbage. I tried it with the second not the first..I saw no difference.

Consult with your physician and ask if there are any over the counter pain releivers that you could be using to help alleviate the pain. If it were me I would be taking something, however I don't know your history or allergies, and will not give medical advice-that should come from your physician.
Perhaps he can prescribe a non drowsy prescription medication. I know your pain, I remember it quite well. And yes, Oprah recommends cabbage leaves, but if they aren't helping I'm not sure I would continue this.

Take Advil too - I went thru the same thing in June and its anti-inflammatory made all the difference. If you're planning on breastfeeding, pump or hand express enough to reduce the pressure. This way, your body won't produce too much to replace it. If you're not going to nurse, there's a pill your doc can give you to dry up your milk.

Good luck and congrats!!