Weaning in a short time period

lesuth · May 2014

I have a son who will be 1 next Wednesday. I have to wean now because I have to have a CAT scan in the next couple of weeks. The dye that the doctor needs to use is not good for my son and is going to require that I not breastfeed for a whole week. It is likely that I'll need surgery after the CAT scan.

My son has formula during the day at the babysitters, but will stop going to the sitters next week because I'm a teacher and will be off for the summer. My son is used to nursing on demand whenever I am around and I've unfortunately gotten him in the habit of sleeping with us and nursing whenever he wakes up at night. I am okay if my son transitions to his crib now, but I don't know if it will be easier to wean and transition to crib at the same time, or too much change for one time period.

I know that we are in for a difficult couple of weeks. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to wean under these conditions? Thank you in advance for any help!

vvvvvfee · May 2014

i have always read that you do NOT need to wean if you are having a CAT scan (unless you are getting a thyroid scan with radioactive materials, more on that here: https://kellymom.com/health/mom-health/thyroid-treatment/). most doctors are not very well informed about this and will just recommend you stop to cover their own asses. if you want another opinion, your pediatrician might be more knowledgeable.

here are some sources:

X-rays, MRIs, CAT scans, Intravenous Pyelogram (IVP), ultrasound, mammograms, etc. do NOT affect breastfeeding or breastmilk.

Barium is sometimes used as a contrast agent; it is not absorbed orally and thus does not affect breastfeeding.

Sometimes radiocontrast (contrast) dyes are used to aid the imaging – these dyes do NOT require that mom interrupt breastfeeding.

from: https://kellymom.com/bf/can-i-breastfeed/meds/radioisotopes/

Breastfeeding and Radiologic Procedures: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1952588/

Breastfeeding after a CT scan with contrast dye: https://www.hamiltonhealthsciences.ca/documents/Patient Education/BreastfeedAfterCTScanContrastMedia-lw.pdf

Breastfeeding myths: https://pediatrics.about.com/library/breastfeeding/blbreastfeedingp.htm

opheliainwaders · May 2014

I was going to post exactly the same as PP. I had to get a CT scan in February, and the hospital's lactation consultant just recommended I pump and dump for a few hours if I wanted to play it really safe (I was already dumping that day thanks to a massive dose of antibiotics, so it didn't really change anything).

lesuth · May 2014

Thank you so much for responding. My doctor said that it was Radioactive Iodine and thwt I'd have to stop breastfeeding for a week after the CAT scan. He said that he would need to use the radioactive iodine because it will give him more info than the alternatives. Now I don't know what to do...

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Weaning in a short time period

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