My son is nearly 4 weeks old, and since the day my milk came in I have been experiencing anxiousness and a feeling of dread right before the "let down" reflex whilst breast feeding. It can last a few seconds or go on for about a minute. The first few times it happened I thought it was the baby blues but it has carried on with nearly every feed. It's hard to describe but it feels like something terrible is about to happen and I need to do something to stop it but can't and I feel like crying. After 1 minute max, I am fine again and carry on breast feeding normally. I don't have any latching issues or nipple pain, nor do I have PND.
The other day I googled "feeling anxious whilst breast feeding" and to my suprise there is an actual name for what I am experiencing. It is called DYSPHORIC MILK EJECTION REFLEX.
The D-MER website describe the condition as follows:
Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex is a condition affecting lactating women that is characterized by an abrupt dysphoria, or negative emotions, that occur just before milk release and continuing not more than a few minutes.
Preliminary testing shows that D-MER is treatable if severe and preliminary investigation shows that inappropriate dopamine activity at the time of the milk ejection reflex is the cause of D-MER.
I thought I would post on here incase there are any other women experiencing the same. Apparantly it is a new concept - case study was only published in 2010.
What is scaring me slightly is that my Dad has Parkinsons, so I'm a bit afraid that this is a sign that I may go on to develop it in my old age, if studies are correct that dmer is caused by low levels of dopamine.
dmer website
wiki definition