Swollen and Sore.

I have two suggestions that people swear by but I can't say they work or not since I am bfing. Cold cabbage leaves are supposed to work wonders (yes weird, but everyone says it helps) or the more expensive root is to go to Babies R Us and look for Medela cold compresses.
Good Luck!

E.,
I'm sorry to say that it is normal to feel like you have rocks in them with swelling and pain. I found the best thing for me was to make sure I wore a snug fitting bra and did not drink a lot at one time. Also, don't drink too much caffiene, this will also make it worse. It will last how ever long your body takes to realize it doesn't need to produce milk and you begin to dry up. Also, you might want to put the nursing pads in your bra until you do because you will most likely leak. Good luck and congratulations on your newest addition.
Debbie P

HI this is J.. When i was swore and swollen the doc told me to take sinus medicine or even birth control and that would help them dry up. I know what your going through. I hope that this advice helps.

This may sound a bit strange to you but I swear to Goodness it WORKS!!! I am the mother of 5 children and have done it 5 times when I stopped breast feeding the baby. Go to the store and buy a long wide ace wrap, then get 2 very large fresh heads of cabbage. Clean cabbage leaves under cold water, peel off 2 or 3 leaves for each breast. Place them over the breast just like the cup of a bra and then wrap yourself tightly with the ace wrap. Keep the cabbage in the coldest part of the fridge. Theres a natural chemical in the cabbage that helps to stop the making of milk and ease the pain. Also the wrapping keeps you from being engorged and producing what you dont need. Change the cabbage leaves every 2 or 3 hours. Do this for 3 or 4 days. When you shower away the smell of the cabbage, DONT allow the hot water to run on your breasts for a long time or you will lactate and start to produce more milk. It sounds wierd but I was instructed this by a doctor. IT WORKS

I had the same trouble when I was breastfeeding, but just getting started. I made the shower just as hot as I could stand it, laid a washcloth across my breasts and let the hot water run over it. Then I had to express a little milk, just to let off a little pressure. Since you aren't breastfeeding, you probably shouldn't express very much so you don't encourage production. Taking Tylenol for the pain should help. Don't hesitate to call your OB/Gyn, they don't mind to help you with things like this. Hope you feel better soon!

Hi! I had the same problem. A month after my son was born I had to have surgery. I had to take medication, so I had to stop breastfeeding him. I became engorged & misserable. I read about an easy cure. Take two large cabbage leaves & put them in each side of your bra. Wear the bra as tightly as you can stand it. Something in the cabbage takes away the soreness, while wearing something tight around you somehow makes the swelling go away. You can also use a large ace bandage & wrap yourself tightly. I did this & within 2 days I felt 100% better! Try it & Good Luck!

try cool cabbage leaves in your bra, also tylenol or ibprofun. you can express just a little too. itll probably last a few more days. congrats on the baby girl too

I agree with the cabbage advice. I used it last year with my first child & will do it again w/my second. You want to also have a very tight fitting bra. DON'T express any milk out if you obviously want to stop the milk flow! If you express some, more produces. You would want to call the doc. if it gets really hot & has a burning feeling when you touch them. There's not a whole lot they can do--you just have to wait it out. It only took about a week for it to go away. Good luck!

This is going to sound strang ebut I have friends who swear by this.. Take cool cabbage leaves and place them on the inside of your bra. change them every so often. This will help your milk to dry up. Also wear a good tight sports bra or (I wrapped myself with an ace bandage TIGHT) that should help.

I think breastfeeding is super overrated. But completely understand your pain. I had a lot of people, including my mom, tell me not to touch my breasts, yes you are engorged and in a lot of pain but if you start messing with them you will lactate and just produce more milk.
Well let me tell ya sister, I would be sitting in a chair minding my own business when my shirt would suddenly become soaked with milk. Those breastpads you can buy at Babies R us or Walmart or Target, the cute little sand dollar shaped ones? Yeah those are a joke. I ended up using a sports bra stuffed with maternity underwear I never used (big enough to absorb what was leaking out) and ice packs. It sucked SO bad. My boobs were rock hard and on fire for about a week.
And of course my mom had her kids in the late 70's, never took pain killers short of ibuprofen and never had an epidural with any of her kids, so I had no real sympathy, it was a "suck it up and deal with it" thing!
Just hang in there, you'll dry up and feel a lot better soon. I feel for you!!

OUCH! I totally feel your pain girlie. Since you never really breastfed, it won't take as long as it would have if you ended up breastfeeding for a while. With my first, I only breastfed for about 2 weeks, and it only took me about 3 days to totally feel better. With my son though, I breastfed for 3 months, and I was thinking that it would take 3 days just like before and it took a couple of WEEKS! I about died! It was awful. So, just hang in there! It hurts horribly, doesn't it? Imagine what the women go through that breastfeed for a year or more! OUCH!

Use ice packs or small bags of frozen vegetables to ease the swelling. What has happened is that your breasts have become engorged with milk since you are not breastfeeding. If it keeps up, you could develop mastitis, which is inflammation of the milk ducts. You can also use lanolin if your nipples start to crack and bleed.

Okay, I've done just about everything all the other women suggested. Cabbage leaves worked some, but not great for me. However I didn't do the ACE bandage trick I just wore a tight bra. So maybe the bandage can really help enhance the cabbage leaves. The ice packs worked wonders. I used frozen veggies at first then got the ones from Babies R Us. They are white, round and look like a flattened donut. They have the center cut out for your nipples. You can put them in your bra. As for the expressing milk ... if you express a lot yes you are going to produce more milk. But if you have the hard rocks expressing a little while you are in a hot shower won't hurt and you will feel worlds better. In case you don't know how (I know I didn't), massage the duct towards the nipple (like playing a piano). Then place your thumb and index finger on outer edge of nipple and roll fingers towards the nipple tip (like you're making fingerprints). And of course the meds are a good idea, too.
Good Luck. Congrats on the little angel.

Ok, first let me say that I have been there. The swelling will eventually go away. Try taking hot showers and letting the water help ease the pain. When I had my 2nd, the only advice I recieved was to bind my breast. Use a large towel or ace badange. just wrap yourself firmly and the milk will dry up in a few days/weeks. It is painful and I wish you all the luck.
K

I didn't have to deal with this kind of pain, since I'm breastfeeding, but I know how sore mine get when they go a long night without my daughter feeding... I can barely imagine what it would be like to go for days with all that milk building up. Just hang in there! Try not to express any if you can help it... The milk is produced to resupply what's taken out of the breast, so if you express milk, more will be made to replace it. If they gave you any good pain meds after your delivery, I'd suggest taking some. I've also heard that the cabbage leaf thing works well. Just peel them off the cold head of cabbage and keep them in your bra until they get warm. Also, there are some soothing pads (not sure which brand) that I've seen in Babies'R'Us and the baby section in Target that are made to go inside the bra like a nursing pad to help with pain. I'm not sure how well they work, but it's probably worth a try. Good luck, and hang in there!

its normal what your feeling. I felt it for about a week each time. the best thing for me was a warm washcloth (or 2) laid across my chest