Starting to wean...problems with Painful Engorgement

Portia B gave a great response. My daughter received this advice from someone from La Leche and it worked great for her. Cabbage leaves sounds really strange, but she got tremendous relief with them.

Many years ago, my mom was keeping my son This I thought was going to be a problem,but my mom just warmed the bottled formual,tucked it in her brest where he(my son) thought brest milk would be, and my son took to it.He went back to sleep not knowing the difference.This I hope will help.

Green Cabbage leaves.

Strange, but true.

The following instructions were found on a Q & A on ivillage.com :

Cabbage leaves are a very old remedy that has received much renewed interest from lactation professionals over the past 10 years. Though admittedly, there is not a lot of research on the effectiveness of using cabbage leaves to treat engorgement, they have been used and recommended for many mothers in hospitals all over the country. From our observations and mother's reports, it does seem to be quite effective at relieving engorgement, while having little chance for side effects.

To treat engorgement, place a cold cabbage leaf (see preparation methods below), covering each breast, and securing inside the bra. Change leaves when wilted, or approximately every two hours. As engorgement subsides, discontinue use. Continued use can dramatically reduce the milk supply.

When using cabbage leaf compresses, it can make it easier if you prepare enough leaves for several changes ahead of time. Wash the cabbage leaves, allow to dry, and place in a zip-lock bag until needed. There are several recommended methods of preparation to choose from:

* They can be applied as is, using one or more, as necessary to cover the breast.
* The leaves can be crumpled in your hand to crush the veins prior to use
* Leaves can be softened briefly in hot water to make them more pliable, and then chilled
* Veins of the cabbage can be scored with a knife before application
* Warmed, rather than chilled cabbage leaves offer better relief for some mothers

I hope by sharing this information and the references listed below, you will feel better equipped to further discuss this issue with the Head Nurse and Lactation Consultant working at your hospital. Best wishes!

Yes, my advice is to stop weaning! It is recommended that babies nurse at least until they turn one, and preferably until they turn two. The nourishment, antibodies, closeness and comfort they get from nursing are not to be matched! If you persist in weaning and giving your son inferior nourishment in the form of artificial milk, your supply will eventually stop -- many women who have lost babies have had to go through that -- but it will take some time. In the meantime, you can pump or express enough to get some relief. But seven months is far too early to begin weaning just for the sake of weaning (although you may have a good reason for it, not stated).

It sounds like you are trying to wean too fast. Your body may need you to wean the baby at a slower pace. Your body tends to respond on a subconscious level to the needs of the baby. Your baby may still need to be nursed a little more than you are wanting to nurse.

This is what I did and it worked for me. It may or may not work for you. I slowly weaned the baby. I nursed first thing in the morning and then dropped the nursing at breakfast when he started eating baby cereal and taking a sippy cup. The next week I dropped the nursing at supper time and fed him baby cereal, baby food, and a sippy cup. The next week I dropped the nursing at lunch time and fed him baby food and a sippy cup. I slowly dropped nursings as he was eating more meals.

I nursed him first thing in the morning, at naptime, at bedtime, and when he woke up in the middle of the night until he was about a year old. I weaned the first thing in the morning nursing by feeding him breakfast as soon as he woke up. Then I started weaning the naptime nursing and switched to a sippy cup and a book at naptime. The next week I weaned the bedtime nursing and switched to a sippy cup and a book. By that age he was no longer waking up in the middle of the night.

That system worked with all three of my boys. It did not work with my daughter. She was a "nursy baby." I was not able to wean the bedtime and first thing in the morning nursings until she was two years old.

When I weaned slowly I did not have any problem with engorgement. Every time you are engorged nurse the baby. If you do not you will have something more painful--infected milk ducts. Every mom that I know who weaned too fast had infected milk ducts.

.

I have always had great success with weaning my 5 children by taking one feeding a way--doing that for a week, then taking the next one away, doing that for a week. It always took me a month to wean them, and usually the last feeding I took away was the night one and I usually could just nurse at bedtime for awhile that way. You are probably trying to do it too quickly - your supply can't adjust so easily.

I haven't read through all of the responses you received so I apologize if someone already suggested this. Anyway, when you find yourself painfully engorged, try pumping just enough to reduce the engorgement slightly. Don't pump too much or you'll start producing even more milk. But you CAN pump a tiny amount and still "train" your breasts to only produce milk at night.

When I weaned my son, this was what I did and it worked very well. I was comfortable and the weaning process was simple.

It sounds like you need to go a little more gradual. Give your body time to get the message and also give your little guy time to adjust. Can you do that? (job wise/schedule wise?) If so, I would cut back a feeding at a time, and be able to still nurse him a couple times a day, versus making your body go all day. You may have to wait several days before you try dropping another feeding. I would encourage you to do this slowly, especially since he is 7 months, and the breast milk is still best for him.

Also, i'd be more than glad to share our experience with getting our one year old to sleep through the nite. I completely understand him wanting ONLY to nurse when he wakes. Let me know if you would like to talk about this.

Good luck. I'll pray for you now.

A.

I took my belly wrap that I purchased after I had my baby and wrapped it around my breast. It really helped with the pain and engorgment. You can use any kind of long cloth and wrap it TIGHGTLY around your chest. I also started the weaning process, when my daughter ate more solids, so the milk just kind of slowly reduced itself. Also, I read several responses and I just want to tell you no to feel bad about wanting to stop nursing. It doesn't really matter what your reason is. There are many mothers who don't ever try to nurse, some stop after two weeks, six weeks, or maybe even 6 months. My daughter is 1 and I did it for 13 months and probably would still be nursing if I did not just put my foot down. I just got plain tired of doing it. I loved the bonding and I kind of miss it, but I got tired of making milk. She also liked using them as a pacifier in the middle of the night; it had to end. One more thing, formula isn't going to make your child less intelligent or more prone to illness. You have been nursing enough for your baby to have the benefits. All children get sick sometime in their life. I nursed my daughter for 13 months and she got sick. I keep a clean home and washed my hands and made everyone else wash their hands as well. My daughters cousine had an ear infection at 6 months and shes still nursing. Anyway, binding your breats is the best thing to do if you are ready to stop. Good luck!

Are you working, is that why you can't nurse him all day? If not, I would start nursing him again and take one feeding out at a time. Decrease by one feeding a week until you get where you want to be. If so, Nurse him in the morning, then nurse him again when you pick him up at day care (nurse in the car if you have too!) Then again at night. This is how I weened all three of mine with NO ENGORGEMENT!

Coodos to you for starting with sippy cups!!! If he does not like formula, I wouldn't push it if he is there with you if not, he will get use to it or just have the sitter feed him more baby food during the day. At 10 mo you can start giving 4 oz a day of whole milk.

I truly miss nursing my baby (she is 13 months old) But I nursed her for a full year and stop on the day after their birthday.

Hi K.,

I second the advice to gradually take one feeding away at a time and your body will adjust slowly, without much engorgement. Cabbage leaves work well for engorgement too. I don't have personal experience with engorgement during weaning because my first two children self weaned and my soon to be 20 month old is still going strong. ;) If you're not into self weaning and need to wean now, remove one feeding each week and you should find you're getting more relief in between feedings.

Peace,
J.

Why do you want to wean him so early? (Rhetorical question). I nursed 4 babies for at least 12 mo ea (the first one gave up bottles AND breast on her 1st birthday, but the other 3 went a few more months). He should only be nursing 3-5 times a day by now, so I just wondered if there's some real reason you choose to stop because their babyhood is over before you know it (and I always wished I could go back and do it some more! Our youngest is 20 & just left home in June leaving us with an 'empty nest'. *sigh* . . .

Warm/hot compresses or showers may make your milk 'run' and give you some relief. I also agree that completely emptying the brests each time makes you produce more. Just have him quit before you are empty each time. I never had ANY engorgement while weaning -- only when my milk was first coming in for the new baby.

K.,

I did that with my daughter and had a hard time too. What I did was bind my breasts during the day and took it off about 4-5:00 pm. By the time she was ready to nurse at night, I had just enough milk to satisfy her. I stopped engorging after a few days and the mild supply became less. I was able to get her completely off the breast in 2 months because one night I would pump and put it into a bottle and the next night I would breast feed. I changed over to formula at night gradually and it worked well. It just takes time and patience. For the engorgement sometimes you can apply moist heat and express a bit so it doesn't hurt so much. Your body will adjust after a while.

E.

I had a hard time trying to dry up my milk. My Doc. told me to take a ace bandage and wrap it around my breast and my back and then put an ice pack on it. Sounds cold, but I stuffed the ice pack under the bandage. Man did this help me alot try it its worth a shot. by the way I had to quick nursing early. so don't worry if it is too early from someone elses standards it is what is best for you, and your baby. Good luck

K.,
you need to bind your breasts tight. your milk supply will not completely diminish until you completely stop nursing, and you will continue to get engorged. bind your breasts(do not unbind them ecxept to shower) and when it becomes painful, take motrin and/or tylenol for comfort. the process usually takes 2-5 days(could be a little more-everyone is different), but you will eventually start feeling better. remember, before you do this, be sure you really want to stop feeding. if you want to continue feeding only at night for a few more months, you may need to pump mid-day to prevent engorgment and leaking. this should get you through the day and night. i did this with my now 1 year old and my soon to be 3year old. i also worked on a labor and delivery unit for about 5 1/2 years and did breastfeeding teaching to numerous patients.

What I did was go a long time before the feeding and then allow them to be emptied. The next time, I went even longer, then emptied totally. I repeated this until I was actually going a couple of days and then letting her empty them once again. It is painful at first but after they get emptied you won't fill up as quickly. Finally when you go about a week and then you empty, they just don't fill up anymore. That is what I did. I am not sure if there is an easier way but that is what I did.

Are you returning to work or something? Weaning at 7 months is rather early. The American Board of Pediatrics recommends nursing until 12 months, and the World Health Organization recommends nursing even until two years! That maybe be why you're having such difficulty--your body wants to keep it up. I haven't read all the other responses, maybe they have some good ideas for calming your engorgement, but maybe it'd be worth it to just keep nursing for a while.

Op, have to write some more after looking at a few of the previous posts. They've given you some good suggestions that should work for you. (esp pumping just a little at the times you're trying to cut out a nursing, hot showers, compression, only try to cut out one feeding at a time. DON'T yet try to stop nursing cold turkey, as that will just make the problem worse and could actually lead to breast infection if you get a clogged duct; I've been there, it's miserable. Take it slowly). Don't feel like I'm trying to pressure you into continuing nursing, I was just worried that you'd been given some misinformation. It used to be that formula was toted as being better than breastmilk, which it most definitely isn't! Weaning at 6 months and moving on to formula used to be encouraged. (And some hospitals used to have women discard their colostrum, which is seriously liquid gold for a baby's health!)

You know yourself and your situation, though. Formula is incredibly expensive, but is a decent replacement for mother's milk, so if you really want to wean this early, hopefully these suggestions you've been given will help. Good luck!

Oh, WAIT, actually, I just re-read your posting..Wow, guess I need a nap, sorry.....Okay, I'd actually recommend nursing during the day--at least in the morning because that's when you produce the most milk. Milk production typically tapers off during the day: more in the morning, less in the evening. Maybe that's why you're having just a horrible time??? Also, your little one I think is technically old enough anyway to have no more nursings during the night, which will make things much easier on you if you can teach him to fall asleep in other ways at night. So, NURSE IN THE MORNING/DAYTIME, WEAN THE NIGHT FEEDS. THEN start cutting out day feeds if you want to continue weaning him. Hubby is definitely the one to pull into this if you can, as he'll learn faster from daddy who's not holding the goods in front of him the whole time but telling him no mama milk. You can check out babywhisperer.com's breastfeeding message boards for more info. That's my favorite site!!! Sorry to blab so much!

Don't loose faith, your breasts will gradually adjust to your new schedule. Gradually being the key word here. Try temporarily reintroducing one midday feed, perhaps with is nap, so that your breasts are not going quite so long between feeds. When my 1st son was 6 months old, I went back to work. I nursed him thru the night, once or twice, once right before I left for work, as soon as I got home, after dinner and bedtime. I did this for 6 months. For the fist week, I pumped during the day, just enough to relieve engorgement, after the 1st week, my breasts had adjusted to this schedule and I didn't need to pump anymore. After 6 months I was able to quit working away and stay home with him, so we went back to nursing during the day too.
BTW, I never gave him formula, as he was still getting plenty of breast-milk during my home hours. The babysitter gave him bottles of water and juice during my absence.

I spent a whole week away from my kids, when my 3rd was just one yr old. Again, I just pumped enough to revieve engorgement that week, which was three times the 1st day, twice the 2nd day, once the 3rd day, and didn't have to pump the rest of the week. I did leak whenever I heard a baby cry though, which was frequently, since I was in a maternity center for advanced midwifery training. But that leaking was easily stopped within seconds of starting, by direct pressure. When I got home, she nursed right away, and my breasts got readjusted to where we left off the week before without any problems. Breast are such wonderful, adaptable, useful things!

I can't even imagine why you would stop nursing at 7 mo!
So, If it is to be, stop altogether, because you are whacking your system up. Cut way back on your fluids, take something for pain, take a hot shower and express if they get too painful. If it was me, I would continue till he is at least one.

It sounds like you're weaning too quickly. With my oldest 9now 4yrs.) I cut out 1 feeding every 2 weeks as we approached his 1st birthday. I wanted him weaned at 12 mths. If you need to pump to relieve pain do so, with an electric, manual or even hand expressed. Hot showers always help me start leaking and would relieve the pressure. Pumping by whatever method you choose can be a great remedy. You don't want to empty your breasts though. Just remove enough to alleviate the pain. If you empty them your body thinks you're still feeding the baby and maybe even need to make more. If you leave them partially full, you're telling your body you're producing too much and it will slow down. I had painful engorgement only for a few days each time I eliminated a feeding and then my production would slow and the discomfort would pass. I'm currently starting to wean my 9 mth old and have not had engorgement problems at all this time around.

K.,
You need to get a breast pump. You can pump your breasts then maybe feed it to him in his sippy cup at night. That way you will be relieved and maybe this will wean him.
E. B.

I taught school this past year and by the time I got home, I was horribly engorged, even though I pumped while at school. I was only nursing my son in the mornings and at night, so for the time being, I had to pump when I got home. It took my milk about 2 months to dry up completely, even after I had quit nursing completely. You just have to hang in there! You could take this opportunity to pump your milk and save it for a bottle on those nights your son wakes up, rather than giving him formula.

It sounds like you may have tried to stop too quickly. Replace just one nursing time with a formula. Then every 4-5 days replace another nursing time. Don't quit all daytime feedings at the same time take it slow even if it takes a few months. Your Son is still young enjoy this time together. You can save the night time feedings for last. Hope this helps. I did this to wean all 3 of my boys and never had any problems with engorgement

each time you nurse him you are telling your body this is what you would do all the time if you could and the supply rebuilds. Your body doesn't understand the start and stop routine you are doing and it is preparing for a starving baby. You have to go completely cold turkey to turn off the cycle. Your doctor may be able to help you with medication for the pain and even meds to help you dry up. Talk to him/her and ask what is available.

I can definately help! I had similiar problems, and even got breast infections.
But a breast pump ...not one of those expense ones, I just used a little battery powered one ... you can store the milk you pump in the freezer to give to your child instead of formula.
This helps because you can pump a little less every time.

I don't know how you feel about breast feeding or why you might be weaning now, but it is fine to continue to breast feed your baby, actually studies have shown that giving your baby nothing but breast milk for the 1st year can help to prevent allergies. I feed my child for 18 months and he was always one of the healthiest children.

The small little pump, it only cost about $25, saved me a LOT of pain!
I hope this helps!

If can just hang in there a little longer... it would be much easier. Right now your son still requires a lot of liquid nutrition. In a couple monthes he will start eating much more "food" and drinking less milk. That will make the weaning process much easier for you. I don't know of any other way to relieve engorgement other than to "get it out" and that will just continue your milk production. I think my daughter was about 10 monthes old when she started to wean herself. She was eating more regular food, and she started walking. She was much to "busy" to sit still to nurse. And we eliminated one nursing session at a time, and spread them out. Eventually she was only nursing in the morning, and last thing before she went to bed, then only bedtime, and then none. By the time she was down to once a day I was hardly making any milk at all and it was more for comfort than for food. Hope that helps!

I was a giver in!! Inursed for 13 months till my daughter decided to wean when she bagan walking! But, Cabbage leaved helped whenI was engorged. It sounds weird and gross but, get a head of GREEN cabbage and put it in the refrigerator. You can reuse the leaves a few times. It feels great. Just stick them in your bra. I wouldn't advise going out in public.

First question is do you have to stop nursing? You've made it 7 months. Weaning may be difficult for him as he is comforted by the breast and it probably tastes much better than formula. I tried to wean my son at 9 months, but he absolutely hated formula and he wanted BM. If you still feel like weaning is still the plan, you may have to try to pump a little just to get relief. The space of time that you drop feedings may have to be longer, such as every few weeks rather than every few days. My experience is the older the child is, the harder it is to try and wean, unless they do it on their own. Usually babies under 1 do not wean themselves. Good luck!

P.