Breastfeeding Help??? - Orient,OH

Hi Daneille,

Start by cutting out one pumping completely...like the middle of day and when you pump the other times don't empty your breasts completely, only enough to relieve the fullness. Try to forget your regular pumping schedule and only pump when you feel you have to. As you start to decrease production only pump as often as you feel full. That may only be first thing in the morning and last time at night. You should begin to "dry up" in a week and take another to totally stop. Also, it helps to give your self permission to stop. I know that sounds crazy but milk production is hormonal and it is sometimes emotionally harder to let go of breastfeeding. Good luck.

I pumped for a while too, and here's what I did. I was pumping 6 times a day for 20 minutes. I started by dropping one of the sessions and cut the time back to 15 minutes. Every 2-3 days, I would eliminate a session. Once I got down to around 3 pumpings, the pumping time was only long enough to relieve engorgement (which, since I did this slowly) wasn't too bad.

The only downside is that I did end up with a plugged duct (or, what I think felt like one). It was painful, but I massaged it out and hand-expressed to relieve the pressure and buildup.

Don't 'bind' yourself - that's something our mothers used to do! It can lead to mastitis which is bad, bad news. You can try massage (yeah, I know it's hard to want to even touch them if you're really engorged, but it does help), and cabbage leaves in the bra (I never did this but people swear by it).

Congratulations for feeding breastmilk as long as you have and do NOT be discouraged to feed formula. Every family is different and you have to make the decision that will have everyone in your family happy and healthy. Good luck!

I guess in the long run it depends on how long your willing to wait. As we all know, breasts are supply & demand. If you continue pumping, even once or twice a day, your milk will still supply. I pump only twice a day & have enough to feed my 6 month old. That said, my advice is cold turkey. When I couldn't breastfeed my son, I was told by my Dr., that absolutely no stimulation would work best. Even the shower was enough. So, what work for me is that I had a bra that was one size too small & used a kitchen towel for extra support. My husband had to help. I wore this 24/7 except for showers & to wash the bra. It only took about 1 week. I don't remember it being painful, just uncomfortable. I know, they say don't bind, but not every woman is the same & nothing is black or white. This work for me.

I know quite a few that breast fed and I tried but the only way to do weaning without pain is to slowly withdraw. Sure you have a lactation expert at your local hospital that could help you but if not, just slow feedings to one less every few days. I Used to use cold compresses if I got uncomfortable to constrict the vessels. Good luck. Heres a website, believe its from the UK but there are many more and I'm sure they feed the same as we do:) shttp://www.whatprice.co.uk/health/parent/baby-breastfeedi...

Hello. I am also a mother of two and just recently had my second baby as well. I was breastfeeding and it wasn't going so well because he was having problems latching on, so I switched to pumping. I also wasn't sure how I was going to switch to formula because part of the reason that I stopped breastfeeding in the first place was because I kept getting engorged. What worked for me was whenever it was time to feed, one time I would supplement a formula bottle and then I would try to wait until the next feeding before I would pump again, but I would only pump just enough to take the pressure off. You will have some discomfort with this, but you shouldn't get engorged or be completely miserable. Your body will only reproduce the amount of milk that is expressed. After missing so many "feedings or pumpings" your milk supply will slow way down until you aren't reproducing any milk at all anymore. At the next feeding I would give him a pumped bottle and I kept doing that for about a week. After about a week I started being able to supplement more formula bottles until I eventually wasn't producing enough milk to pump at all. It took about a week or two all together. This is what worked for me, I hope this helps.
S. B

I wasn't able to nurse but when my milk did come in, several friends as well as my MD gave me the following tips:
wear a super tight sports bra (or two) and ONLY take them off to shower. Sleep in them too! Advil helps with the pain. This is going to sound strange...but place large cabbage leaves inside the sports bra. They are very soothing and something about them "draws out toxins." Roll them with a rolling pin before placing them in your bra to help them form better to your shape. The don't smell great but they're really supposed to work. Also, my doc recommended wetting two of your baby's diapers and putting them in the freezer. They're the PERFECT shape to place in your bra when you need a little "ice pack" since ice also helps with swelling and discomfort. DON'T stand facing the water in the shower...it'll only make things works and stimulate milk production. GOOD LUCK. I had minimal pain and within 48 hours was back to normal. Good luck! OH - you can find a lot of information supporting the use of cabbage leaves on-line. Who knew?

Congrats on your new baby!

Your best bet is to cut out 1 pumping session every couple of days. Eventually, you'll just be down to one and your supply will taper off. Yes, your body will continue to produce if you continue to pump even once/day, but it's not going to be so much that you should get engorged, etc. It will be much more manageable, and comfortable, than binding or going cold turkey.

One other thing...Which, of course is completely up to you & it sounds like you have already made the decision to stop giving breast milk, but if you're still interested in breasfeeding, not pumping & bottle feeding, (since you said it was going well until you saw this group of specialists)there is a lot of good info on how to nurse a baby with a cleft lip. La Leche League and Kellymom.com are great resources for this.

Good luck!

I went through a similar stage as I went back to work after my daughter was a few months old. I pumped for awhile but it became a huge nightmare and I could never get enough anyway as a pump is never as efficient as a kid. :) With my daughter, I just started slowing the number of pumps I did per day (at first lengthening the time between pumps, then removing a pumping after a week or so) and while it wasn't perfect it was much better than the engorgement aches.

You might ask your OB/Gyn and pediatrician as well. Your pediatrician, especially, should be kept up to date on nursing status just so they can help watch for signs of trouble. They may also have more to say about not nursing at all (that sounds rather odd to me).

Good luck!

My daughter just turned 1. We stopped breastfeeding a couple of weeks ago. I went slowly and never felt any discomfort. We went from 5 feedings to 4 to 3, etc. Until there was just a bedtime feeding and then stopped about a week after that. I imagine you can do the same with pumping. Good luck!

have you tryed to wear a bra that is a size smaller than you actually wear for a week that works .thats what my doctor told me .

I ran into a similar problem. The best thing you can do is to make the transition slowly. Start by replacing one bottle a day with formula and gradually increasing it. Also, ice packs and cold cabbage leaves are wonderful for helping to dry up your milk supply. You'll probably still get a little sore, but don't put any heat on your breasts (even though it feels so wonderful) this will only encourage your body to let down the milk and produce more. Hope this helps

J.

Why are you choosing to stop pumping/breastfeeding? If it was going so well why are you letting a doctor sabatoge your breastfeeding relationship with your child? Most doctors want you to continue because breastmilk is easier to digest and is tolerated very well, esp. after surgery. It is also very comforting to the baby when you are in a strange place like a hospital. As for knowing how much baby is gaining...easy response...have the doctor or nurse weigh the baby first, tehn nurse the baby and weigh the baby on the SAME scales after teh feeding...the difference is how much baby drank. Contact LLL for information on nursing with a cleft palate/lip. www.lalecheleague.com and find a leader in your state.

Hi D.,

My son too was born with a cleft lip so if you need any advice on the upcoming surgery, please email me at ____@____.com. I would be more than happy to share my experience with you.

As far as pumping, I pumped for about 8 weeks as well and put the breast milk in the bottle therefore we knew exactly the amount of ounces he was receiving. I am little puzzled as to why you couldn't continue to do so. Regardless, I decreased pumping over a two to three week time period and I had no pain or trouble. Hope that helps.

K.

Why are you choosing to stop pumping/breastfeeding? If it was going so well why are you letting a doctor sabatoge your breastfeeding relationship with your child?