Engorgement
I just had my baby on Saturday. My breasts r soo engorged. I have tried expressing them in a hot shower but nothing comes out. I manually pumped n only got 1 oz from both breasts combined. I don't know if im doing something wrong. I just want the pain to go away so I can feed him. Is there anything else I can try???? im desperate
Comments
*Nurse often!
*Cold compresses or cabbage leaves in between feedings to reduce swelling.
*Warm showers or compresses before feedings.
*Soften breasts by expressing some milk.
*Use gentle finger pressure around the base of the nipple to move some of the swelling slightly backward and upward into the breast.
If all else fails an dyour still having trouble contact your WIC office or you can call the hospital to talk and even meet with a lactation consultant who can help you. Don't give up and don't give any bottles as this will not help with your engorgement. Engorgement usually only lasts a couple of days as long as you are nursing frequently. THis is due to your milk coming in and is normal. But giving a baby a bottle already can give them nipple confusion and plus a baby has to work harder at sucking on you than he or she does on a bottle and baby can easily get frustrated trying to nurse while it takes a little bit for the milf to start coming out , as a bottle milk just flows immediately. So baby may get too upset which then in turn gets you upset frustrated and then you'd rather just give the baby a bottle. Just try to be patient and seek some help if you can so you can be successful. It does take work on both ends so try not to stress out too much and relax while feeding or expressing milk. Stress and you being tense can also cause a decrease in milk flow. Hope this helps. This is going to be my 5th baby and I will be nursing him. I have been in your shoes before and its not easy, but you can get through it especially if you have a good support system in place. But definately seek some help at you r local WIC office or through hospital. Hope all goes well and don't beat yourself up, your doing a great job in trying!
When I first started breastfeeding, i had no idea how much I was producing until i pumped and seen only a 1/2 oz from each breast - 1 oz total every 2-3 hrs. (that went on for about 2 weeks) Just keep pumping to help the engorgement. Keep baby near u while u pump or smell one of babys blankets to help keep a milk flow while pumping. Massage the lumps in the breast while pumping. Use warm packs on the breasts prior to pumping. I also heard of putting the breasts in basins of warm water for about 10 mins prior to pumping rather than a shower. And use cold compress after pumping to reduce swelling. And make sure u are pumping frequently- atleast every 2 hrs. And empty the breast when u pump (pump until no more comes)
Good luck.