Weaning--in Pain!

Why wean completely? Why not just pump and give him the expressed milk via bottle/sippy cup? Then he can continue the benefits he receives from breastfeeding.

Dear K.;
This may sound crazy but go to the grocery store and buy some raw cabbage. You can tear the leaves offf and keep them in your frige. Place the leaves on each breast. This will relieve the pain and sweeling. Do not pump your breast because it will only cause more milk! Warm showers with the water running on your breasts will also help you.
I hope these tried and true remedies will help you.
Good luck to you!
K.
The M.O.M. Team
www.enhanceyourlifeonline.com

I can vouch for the cabbage leaves. Tear out a hole foro your nipple and put in inside your bra. Since you quit nursing cold turkey, you may want to "pump" a few times a day for 2-3 days, then 2 times for a few days, then once etc, to simulate natural weaning.

I have heard tight bras help -- like a sports bra. But tylenol and cabbage leaves did the trick for me.

If you do pump, you may want to call a local hospital to see if they have a breast milk bank, and you could donate the milk, or I guess give it to your son in a bottle.

I had to wean my son for the same reason. None of my other four children were biters, so it surprised me how consistently (and painfully) my son could bite. He was about 9 months when I weaned him. Next week he will turn one, so it hasn't been all that long. The "cold turkey" method of weaning is definitely painful for the mother. I suggest you go ahead and pump now (perhaps after a hot shower) to relieve the pressure. Your body judges how much milk to produce based on the average demand over the past three or four days (that is why it takes about that long for your milk to first come in). Yes, it will take slightly longer for your milk to dry up if you pump now, but it will be worth it if it helps you with pain management and keeps you from getting a plugged duct or mastitis. (Mastitis is horrible and fairly incapacitating.) Then go back to binding your chest and cabbage leaves, etc. Also drink plenty of orange juice. I don't know why, but that is supposed to help prevent mastitis. Actually, you could pump once every day or two for another week or so. Then it will be as though you did the gradual weaning method, which is highly preferred. Yes, it takes longer, but it doesn't hurt. I would give it a couple weeks to a month before shopping for new bras. (At the very least until all your milk has dried up.) It took me about two to three months to start my periods after weaning. Good luck.

It is okay to pump. I went through the same thing. If you want your child to continue on breast milk, give it to him in the bottle so he won't be biting you. Pump just enough to relieve the pressure. Gradually you will decrease the milk production. Just a fair warning...once you stop breast feeding, you are more likely to get pregnant. Trust me, I know. If you do not want to have another child soon, I would be careful. Unless you are already on birth control.

The extra milk? Wasteful, but pour it down the drain if you do not plan on giving it to your child. Unless you have cats. Good luck and the pain will subside. It just takes time.

Hi K.,

I agree with Lisa. Go ahead and pump as if he is weaning. You need to relieve the pain and prevent any possible clogging or infection. Your body will recognize it and your milk will come in slower. Don't get anxious about new bras yet unless you buy sports bras to bind you. It'll take a while to get back to normal size.

Both my babies weaned abruptly so I know what you're going through. Hang in there!

Regards,

M.

Hi K.!
I'm in the same place and have been there before too. Definitely pump to relieve the pressure. Not a full feeding but enough so that you are not in pain. If you don't you could end up with a breast infection and that is NOT fun. You probably won't have to pump often, but just when you become engorged. Also, the refrigerated cabbage leaves and a tight sports bra will help a lot. As for periods, with my first I got it back almost immediately after I stopped breastfeeding. And just to warn you, because nobody warned me, my first period after pregnancy and weaning was EXTREMELY heavy. I thought I was bleeding to death. LOL but really, I did. It took awhile for my body to regulate again. For my second and third, I got my periods back before I weaned, when they started eating more solid foods. So consider yourself lucky! :)

Hi K.,

I was also in a lot of pain after I stopped breastfeeding. The majority of the pain was over within a week, but I will warn you that I still had bouts of sharp pains/tingling and tenderness in my breasts for several months afterwards. I asked my OB/GYN and he said that it was normal for the pain and leaking to last months. So be prepared! Wearing a sports bra 24/7 seemed to help a little. Hang in there, this too shall pass. Good luck!

Cabbage.

Seriously, when I weaned my son, if you place cabbage in your bra it will decrease engorgement. Also, you can pump just enough to make it bearable.

It took me about a week to get my "normal" chest back, and they are the same size they were before I had my son.

I got my period about six weeks after I'd weaned my son.

Good luck!

I never breast fed but after both children women who don't breast feed and choose to let their milk dry up experience that pain the first few days after giving birth and it last for a few days.Try one or more of these:

A hot shower or bath
A hot rag
massaging the milk out (not pumping it out)

If you keep pumping it will just continue to produce.Now Im not sure if the pain will last longer for you since you were breast feeding for awhile and it is use to producing a certain amount and may need longet to dry up but those things helped me alot until it finally went away.

Hi K.!
I didn't breastfeed, but when the milk did come in the dr said to bind my chest with an ace bandage, wrap it tight, and wear a sports bra. The other thing i did that my a friend of mine told was to put cabbage leaves over your breast, that absords the milk. From my understanding if you keep pumping, it will just keep your milk coming back, you just have to go through this pain, my lasted about a week and a half.
Good Luck, and feel better!!

I recently went through the same thing..........Cabbage was my saving grace! I pumped just enough to relieve my pain and used refrigerated cabbage to help dry me out. My pumping time gradually decreased. I wore a sports bra to hold in cabbage in place and just changed it when the cabbage became warm/wilted. Just a warning- the cabbage is stinky, but worth it.

Since the milk that I pumped was just foremilk, I've stored it in the freezer to hydrate my little one when it is hot (it wouldn't fill him up because it's so watery.)

I took a pain reliever several times per day and also used an ice pack to help my discomfort.

Also, it's been 6 weeks since I weaned by son. My periods have not returned.

Hope this helps! Good luck.

Ouch! I would not recommend pumping as that is only going to make you continue to lactate. Or you could pump a little bit at a time, and gradually work your way down. I found that a nice warm shower or a warm wet cloth applied to the breasts did a lot to alleviate the pain. You will likely "let down" and leak when you do this, but it does let off some of the pressure. Good luck!