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Breastfeeding and surgery/meds??

mistijo79mistijo79
in Breastfeeding

Unfortunately I ended up having my apendix(sp) removed thanksgiving morning.  I had a CT scan and the dr told me to pump and dump for a few days because of the contrast dye.  Has anyone else had any experience with this??  The few days was just pretty vague...  Also I brought my pump to the hospital but have hardly been getting anything, maybe an ounce at a time, when I normally pump 3-5 ounces in less than ten minutes.    It is like I have no let down at all, I used to be pretty forceful.  Could this be because of all the medication or maybe just the stress.  Anyone's advice or experiences would be great.  My CT scan was wednesday night at 9:30pm and the surgery was Thursday morning at 7am, I was thinking about starting to nurse again tomorrow-oh it hurts me to dump all that milk down the drain!!

 Misti

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Re: Breastfeeding and surgery/meds??

  • DarcyLongfellowDarcyLongfellow member
    I have no firsthand experience, but from what I have read online, it's pretty rare for a medicine to be so bad that you really have to pump and dump. I'm on my phone right now, but I'll try to post again later when I'm on a real computer and can find my bookmarks -- I have a link to a website that tells whether medicines are safe. You could also check Kelly mom. As for supply, my guess is it's probably stress plus dehydration (did you have to stop drinking water before the surgery?). I don't think you can permanently hurt your supply in a couple days unless your baby is less than a month old. I hope you start feeling better soon!!!
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  • thehimwithherthehimwithher

    as long as you aren't on narcotic pain meds (or anyother non baby friendly meds) you can start bfing 24 hrs postop.  your bm will be deminished both due to illness AND the meds they give you during anesthesia (they give you stuff to dry out your secretions). 

    i would think it may take several days to wks to get your supply back all the way but just keep working at it and i'm sure it will come up!  gl and hope you heal quickly!! 

     

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  • DarcyLongfellowDarcyLongfellow member

    By the way, here's the website:

    https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?LACT

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  • Alexis52005Alexis52005

    I had my gallbladder removed when DD was 2 months old. I had to dump for 24 hours then I could return to BFing. The do guve you some meds to fry up secretions which will effect your supply for a few days, but if you return to BFing and continue pumping your supply should bounce back quickly. Just make sure you let your doctor know you are BFing so they can give you pain meds that are ok while nursing.

     

    Hope you have a speedy recovery.

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  • mistijo79mistijo79

    The reason they told me to pump and dump for a few days was because of the contrast dye for the CT scan.  The painkillers they gave me aren't safe either, but I am not taking them anymore, just ibuprofen now.  I wish i would have known they give you meds that specifically dry you up, I made sure everyone knew I was breastfeeding, it would have at least been nice to know...  I guess I will just pump and pump and start nursing now that I know I can.  I was dehydrated and couldn't drink anything, but they were giving me IV fluids.  Why is it that so many people are breastfeeding stupid, I mean shouldn't the medical field know the answers to all this??  Even if theya ren't pediatricians, evey type of doctor is bound to treat a few breast feeding mothers here and there. 

    Thanks

    Misti

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  • houndbabyhoundbaby member
    I had surgery when my ds was 4 mo. and had to pump and dump for 24 hrs. It took me about a week to get my supply back to normal
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