Posted in pregnancy as well, help please!?

[SchroSawMargeryDaw]

I'm 22+1, one of my breasts feel engorged and I don't know what to do, I don't want to express too much out as I don't want to make it any worse.

It's getting really painful and have horrid shooting pains in that nipple.

Any help would be much appreciated.

I've never heard of this in pregnancy. I assume you aren't bfing a baby/toddler at the moment and the milk is related to your current pregnancy. Have you spoken to your healthcare provider?
I know for engorgement I was told I had to get the milk out. Just pump enough to relieve the pain. Avoid using your hands to express as you can accidentally push milk back up and do more damage than good. Do you have an electric pump?
Since you don't want milk at the moment perhaps using some of the techniques mammas use to dry up their milk would help. Raw cabbage leaves inside your bra help with this.
Have you had a look on www.kellymom.com ? It's hands down the best online resource on breastfeeding. You might find answers there.
But I would definitely call my midwife / doctor for this if it was me.
Best of luck. I know how painful engorgement can be!

Not breast feeding at the moment but I have over production issues and ended up with an infection at around this time last pg. :(

Will try and get some cabbage leaves but don't have a pump (they do nothing for me for some reason), the only way I have ever been able to express well at all even after having DS was hand expressing. :(

I'll have a look at that site, I hadn't heard of it before, thanks.

Hmm owch you are already at the point where you probably need to get your breast comfortable rather than risk infection etc. Hot bath, hand express etc. You can try lecithin supplements in the hope they help ward off mastitis. Ibruprofen can help too.

Once feeling better use cold leaves or gel packs. Good luck.

I have never heard of hand expressing pushing milk back up and damaging the breast. Hand expressing is safe and especially appropriate when gentle removal of milk is needed. MammaCici can you say where you got this information?

OP - I think this is something you need medical advice on.

By all means call a bf helpline, but if you were calling me, I'd certainly want to know you were in touch with a doctor about this. It's highly unusual for milk to cause engorgement this early in pregnancy.

Hope you get good help to resolve it.

I apologise if my advice on hand expression was wrong. My situation was different in that it was post partum. I had a lot of milk and breast cysts that caused serious engorgement and I was advised to use an electric hospital grade pump rather than my hands for the reason above (pushing milk back up) by the doctor. It wasn't something I questioned at the time. I had to have the cysts drained with a syringe. To be honest I am really conscious of misinformation about BF and I hate to be part of it. I usually double check everything on kellymom so my apologies again.

Thanks everyone for the advice, it seems a little better just now but I did get a bit out last night out of desperation.

Where do you get the lecithin supplements Soupa? Can't have ibuprofen when pregnant, have been taking paracetamol when it gets quite bad though.

As for freezing anything expressed, would that not be too long in advance? There is certainly plenty of it but would it keep?

I tried to phone the MW yesterday just before I posted this but her phone was off, I'm with the HB MW and she seems harder to get a hold of! I will try her again in the morning and OOH or something if it gets much worse.

I have a medical condition that affects lots of things so I don't know if that is part of the reason this is happening but when I seen the Dr last pg she told me that it's just something that happens with some people. :(

Gah!

Thank you everyone.

Mamma Don't worry about it, if I had been told certain things by a Dr I would probably not hesitate to believe them, your situation sounds like it was very painful.

No, I'm glad you corrected me. I really hate misinformation about BF issues and I hate being part of it. It's such an important topic there is no room for mistakes. I hope the OP gets sorted out. I can just imagine how awful it must feel.

No worries, mamma - yes, I do correct stuff here from time to time :)

Can't help it - I try to do it politely!

I think it's good to have the reminder that i) not everything a doctor or midwife etc says is right ii) what may apply to one situation may not apply to others

It's still quite thin though, would that make a difference? It's still at the light white sticky phase.

I've been corrected on here too far too many times :)

Will have a look at that link now, thanks.

I can't comment, sorry - I think this is prob best discussed with doctors.

I'll let you know, thanks.

Will phone MW in the morning and ask what to do. It was quite bad last pg but I seem to have even more this time, I never really stopped dribbling bits though from last time and DS is 18 months, I didn't even BF for long (and always mix fed when I did) because of medication I am on not being considered safe at the time.

Thanks again, I know it's a bit of an odd problem.