Ds2 now five and a half months is no longer interested in breastfeeding. He prefers bottles and food. I'm happy to wean. trouble is my breasts are engorged. I've been breast feeding him once a day for the past week just to take the edge off. Should I stop that as well?
Thanks
F. B.
No I think once a day is ok because it'll take a few days for your breast to figure out that it doesn't need to make milk to feed a baby. The engorging should back off in a week or so.
I had chosen not to BF, so when my milk came in, I basically lived in a hot shower for 3 days.
It would let down enough to trickle out and relieve the pressure. I then lived with ice packs (cabbage didn't work for me) in a sports bra the rest of the time.
It took 3 full days, but after that, I dried up.
Cabbage leaves applied to the breasts can help. Also, going on oral contraceptives (estrogen + progesterone) will reduce your production dramatically, typically in under 2 weeks time.
I hope you have a good pump. No, you should definitely not just stop breastfeeding cold turkey. You can end up with mastitis. You should drop no more than 1 feeding per week. If he doesn't want to nurse, pump at the other times.
So, if (until last week) he used to nurse 4 times per day, then pump (or nurse) 3 times per day for a week. Then go to twice per day for a week. Then once per day for a week. Then stop.
I know you will feel like you are going backwards, since you've been only nursing once per day. But I am afraid you could get sick, so please go back up to nursing or pumping 3 times a day, then wean down slowly from there.
You may still get engorged as you slowly drop feedings - cold ice packs can help.
By the time I got down to one feed, I had to pump off just enough to not get engorged - and within a week I think it was ok. Probably less than that. I just remember having a few days of discomfort.
ETA: I tried the cabbage leaves with my engorgement - put in fridge. I think it's the cold that actually helps you with those. They are just nice and round so fit into a nursing bra quite well.
By my last baby a friend gave me some Gerber(?) I think they were gel packs for boobs. Much easier and less produce-like feel :) They did the trick. You can use cold to soothe sore boobs or heat in microwave if you need to let down. Think they still sell them. They look like little gel donuts.
Hard to believe it has already been 5 1/2 months! :)
Here's what the nurses at the hospital told me to do when I had to wean. I know it sounds strange, but it's legit and helps. I've also read other women talk about it, which was nice, LOL!
Buy cabbage and put the leaves in your bra against your skin. Use the big leaves with big veins - slice across the big veins to open them up a little. There is a chemical in the cabbage, that when mixed with your sweat and some of your milk that leaks out, helps dry you up. When the cabbage leaves become limp and warm, replace them with new leaves.
You can get in the shower and let the warm water help with the pain and engorgement. Express just enough to relieve the pressure. Take Tylenol for the pain. I would stop nursing, if I were you. You are confusing your breasts if you doing the cabbage thing or pumping a lot.
What I'm talking about did work for me, by the way.
I weaned my kids around the 1 year mark, when they began to lose interest. I gradually reduced the feedings, first to twice a day (morning and bedtime), and later to once a day (only at bedtime). I did it over a 1 month period. My breasts continued to produce milk for months, but didn't become engorged. Your body slowly adjusts to less demand. Good luck :-)
you will produce milk as long as baby continues to empty the breast.
birth controll pills tend to reduce the supply if you wish to take a trip to your dr to get that. and cabbage leavs are said to help make the breases feel better. (i never used them though)
i weaned by dropping a nursing session at a time till i only had the bedtime one left. then i think i dried out because nither was interested anymore (i weaned when they were 12 months old)
kellymom .com is a great resourse for anything related to breastfeeding have you checked there to get more info?
its probably not hurting to have baby (or a pump) take the edge off. just make sure its not emptying the breast completely (which will tell your boobs that they are making too much and they will slow down production)
