Please help - How can I dry my milk up quickly?

amtay825 · September 2014

My sweet baby was born sleeping at 31 weeks on 9/21/14. I'm still recovering from the C-section, and my body and emotions have already been through hell and back. Now, my milk has come in. This is so very sad, as I was so looking forward to nursing again. Please, someone tell me there's something I can do to make this go away. Its just not fair that we should have to deal with this after our baby has died; I wish our bodies could figure this thing out on their own. The hospital said cool cabbage leaves; does this really help? Anyone else have methods that truly worked?

Thanks so much....sorry you're all here and sorry I'm forced to be here too. This really stinks!

lexusolsen · September 2014

I'm so sorry for your loss. My milk coming in was quite tragic. I struggled to nurse my dd and then here was my milk when my ds was gone.

I did cabbage leaves and a tight bra. It still took a couple of weeks. I tried to avoid them in the shower too since I heard the warm water stimulates production.

CheesyPeas · September 2014

Cold cabbage leaves did not reduce my supply one bit but they did still help with the discomfort. I also took Sudafed and Benadryl which are supposed to help dry you up, and I took Advil and Tylenol like it was my job to help with the inflamation. Unfortunately nothing provided noticable relief from the engorgement except for time. It was hellish for a good week or so before it started getting better.

I'm so sorry for your loss. What is your son's name?

Littleowl913 · September 2014

I'm so sorry for your loss. It seems so cruel that we have to deal with milk coming in while trying to grieve for our babies. I have been wearing a tight sports bra 24/7, cold cabbage leaves and ice packs. It has been about a week and a half and I think I'm almost all dried up. Also, just like PP said, do not let warm water run on them in the shower, it'll stimulate production - stand with your back towards the shower head and let the water run down from your shoulders. The first week is tough and super uncomfortable but relief should come soon thereafter.

Mel&John2013 · September 2014

****siggy warning

I don't have any tips, just wanted to send hugs your way. I'm so sorry for your loss.

soulcupcake · September 2014

I'm so very sorry, mama. I'm part of the N14 group. My heart broke when I saw your announcement. My thoughts are with you.

My milk came in around day for or so, and I used cold cabbage leaves to reduce swelling and drink a lot of sage tea. I know Sudafed works for some as well.

(((hugs)))

msunshine123 · September 2014

I am so very sorry for the loss of your son. Keeping you and your family in my T&Ps. The PPs gave all the tips I used for engorgement and I hope yours is gone soon.

stefuge · September 2014

I am so sorry for the loss of your sweet baby. If you feel comfortable sharing, we would love to know his/her name and share in their precious life. PPs have given good advice, so I won't add anything more other than that we are so sorry for your loss and that we are here whenever you need us.

lexusolsen · September 2014

You mentioned a c-section so I wanted to caution you about adding other Otc meds. Check with your dr first, especially if you are taking some of the heavier drugs they give you (I'm thinking of the Norco I was on). Keep taking the pain relievers, it will at least help with the discomfort even if it doesn't slow production.

amtay825 · September 2014

Thank you all so very much for your kind words and advice. I was worried about taking anything else since I'm already on pain meds. I may call my OB and see if Benedryl is ok to take, since that is usually pretty safe with most meds. I actually think they just might be getting better. At least one is....not as big or tight feeling. The other one is still painful and engorged. This just seems like some cruel joke. Seriously. When I had my first loss at 20 weeks, I don't remember my milk coming in like this. A little, but nothing like this. I struggled with supply when my son was born 2 years after our first loss, now I feel like I could nurse like a champ. What I would give to do just that....

You all asked about my story.... I'll share but not sure I'll be sticking around as not sure its healthy for me right now. My son's name is Brody. He was a surprise to us, but of course we fell in love with him right away and couldn't wait to welcome him into our home. I have always had nightmarish pregnancies and after I had my DS 8 years ago, who is truly a miracle, we said never again will we go through another pregnancy. We lost our first baby at 20 weeks due to IC; where we discovered I was so unhealthy during pregnancies. Then lost our next baby at 12 weeks. Our third baby is our DS, the pregnancy was horrible though. The top specialists in my state told me from Day1 it was just a matter of time before I lost him too. I was there every week, and every time I went in the office was shocked I was still pregnant. When we'd make the next appnt, the dr was sure to tell me that we'll make this appnt but I really don't think you'll still be pg by then. We ended up delivering at 36 weeks; I had been on complete bedrest for 6 solid months at this point. There's way more details but I won't go into them right now; just wanted you to understand why we said NO MORE. I had the copper IUD placed because I have a clotting disorder so I can't take anything with hormones. It worked for 8 years; then failed and we were expecting again. Big surprise, complete shock....that eventually led into complete joy. At 16 weeks, our baby boy was diagnosed with CDH, Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. Basically, his diaphragm didn't form completely therefore his abdominal organs were able to move up into his chest cavity. This prevented his lungs from forming like they should. We had many, many doctor visits with several different doctors. Many, many tests....and we were told there was no reason why we shouldn't deliver him full term. With this condition, we won't know how bad it is until birth, so it was just a wait and see game. I started measuring high on amniotic fluid around 25 weeks. It continued to increase, and at my last appointment it was 38; it should have been anywhere between 14 and 25. The reason it was high was because of his abdominal organs being up, it made it difficult for him to swallow and 'breathe' the fluid in. I was absolutely miserable, measuring at 4-5 weeks ahead. I was in so much pain, and was so incredibly uncomfortable all the time. At our last appnt, Brody was still doing great. (We had had 2 echos and his heart always looked great, no problems at all.) He always measured on time, was such an active baby all the time. It was there that the dr told us that my life could be in danger as well. Because of the incompetent cervix, I had the cerclage. The cerclage alone puts you at risk of your water breaking early. Because my water was so high, that made the risk even greater. So we knew we had that to be concerned with. What we didn't know, was that because I had had a c-section with my son, the increase in fluids were putting a huge strain on the scar tissue where I had been cut before. There was the chance the high fluids would rupture my uterus, causing it to separate, and the fluid and baby would then float freely in my abdomen. I would then have 10-15 mins to get to a hospital or I would most likely die from shock and the fluids would essentially drown me, and they wouldn't come out like normal when your water breaks. This was scarey to hear in the least. So I quit work and began moderate bedrest on my own. Last Friday I noticed a decrease in movement. He was still moving, just not the hard kicks and jabs like before. I monitored his heartbeat constantly and it was always great. They had told me and I had seen on the millions of ultrasounds that I wouldn't feel every movement because of all the fluid so I wasn't too concerned. Saturday came around, same thing. Saturday night though, I went to monitor his heartbeat again but I couldn't find it. My husband and I spent 2 hours trying to find it; thought maybe we heard it in the background a couple times. I thought he was moving just a tiny bit, but nothing like before still. We went to bed, still thinking since we thought we heard it in the background all was well. I woke up around 3am tried for an hour still no heartbeat to be found. Finally my husband got up and I told him I thought we should go to the hospital, we were sure everything was fine but I just needed to see him again and make sure. When we got to the hospital, they weren't able to find the heartbeat on the monitors. So they did an ultrasound. No heartbeat. He was just laying there, no movement. The heart was right there, looked beautiful...but it was moving. Nothing. So we had to do the C-section that night. It was horrible to say the least. He was beautiful and perfect in every single way. I held him almost the entire night after delivery, and will treasure that night my entire life. He was 3 lbs 2 oz, 16.5 in long. Chubby cheeks, long toes...perfect nose. He was just soooo perfect. We're not sure why his heart stopped beating, not sure if we'll ever know. I requested an autopsy, so we'll see what those results are. It could have been his condition, could have been a fluke. This was our last baby, I had my tubes tied because we just cannot go through another loss. I don't want to put my son through that, my husband, or myself. We have to go to the funeral home to make the arrangements; no mother should ever have to do that for her child....let alone twice. Twice....for two babies. Its just awful. I am praying for peace, comfort, and understanding.....and leaning on God. He will get us through this, I know....it will just take time. Sorry it was so long, kudos to you if you made it this far. God bless each of you, I'm so sorry for your loss.

stefuge · September 2014

Thank you for sharing Brody's story with us. Know that we are here if you ever feel like you need someone to talk to.

msunshine123 · September 2014

I am so sorry for the loss of your Brody. Thank you for sharing your story. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers. I wish none of us ever had these things happen. I'm glad you got to hold and cherish the time you had with Brody after his delivery. It meant the world to my husband and I to have that time with our son. I agree - I think our son looked so perfect and I'm sure yours did too - a true angel. ((hugs))

Littleowl913 · September 2014

Thank you for sharing your story. Thoughts and prayers to you and your family.

Please help - How can I dry my milk up quickly?

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