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Breastfeeding/I need advice about drying up

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Expert: - 7/22/2006


Question
Hello
I am a Caucasian living in Taiwan,(R.o.China)

I cannot speak Chinese, and my doctor is not proficient in English.

I delivered my daughter last week via C section.
My milk did not come in by the 3rd day after her birth, but the hospital is very PRO-breast, so they insisted that I breastfeed. I kept on tryng, but every time my daughter sucked on my nipples, I felt intense, searing pain in both nipples and breasts.
I pumped regularly, received painful massages, used heat packs (all against my will though)

I begged my doctor to give me something to stop the milk, but he said it was too late to give me an injection.

Last night, I went to another doctor. He did not examine my breasts (which are red, inflamed and as hard as rocks.)
He gave me an injection called Primodian and then prescribed Parlodel 2.5mg.

I have just read that in most countries, this drug is considered quite dangerous and not used anymore. I am very worried, as my granfather died from a heart attack and my grandmother suffers from angina.

I have taken the medicine twice, but now am very scared to continue.
I have not pumped any milk out, but some of it leaks out.
I want the milk to stop, but I dont want to take the medication anymore.

If i stop the medicine, and use ice packs and take Ibuprofen for pain, will my milk go away naturally?
PLEASE PLEASE help me, I cannot sleep, or even pick up my baby daughter.
Your help will be greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!

Answer
Dear Tamryn,

I am so sorry to hear about the problem you are having and the pain you are feeling.

Stop taking the medicine -- most of these medicines don't work, and you're right, it's better not to take anything like that. You're also right about the ice packs & ibuprofen.

The following measures are the best ones to take to dry up your milk:

*  Wear a firm, but not too tight, bra all the time even when you go to sleep, maybe in a size larger than the one you usually wear.
*  Hand-express just enough milk to ease the pressure on your breasts.
*  Apply ice packs to your breasts several times a day.
*  Take ibuprofen for the pain.

Good luck!

Sally

Sally Wendkos Olds
Author, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING: Eiger & Olds, 3rd edition 1999, published by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books, and available in most public libraries, bookstores & La Leche League chapters.  

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Sally Wendkos Olds

Expertise

What do you want to know about breastfeeding? I can tell you what`s good for the baby, what`s good for the mother -- and the father, how it`s related to a woman`s sexuality, how working moms can nurse, how to overcome obstacles, and lots more. As the author of THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING and author or coauthor of 8 other books and more than 200 articles about child and adult development, I can offer sound, sensible advice on breastfeeding, child care and family issues.

Experience

I nursed my 3 daughters and am the grandmother of 5 breastfed children. My book THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING (written in consultation with pediatrician Marvin S. Eiger, M.D.) was first published in 1972, and in 1999 came out in an updated 3rd Edition by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books. It is now a classic, with over 2 million copies in print. I am now revising this book for a fourth edition, consulting with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D. This new edition will be published September 2009. I welcome any and all suggestions for the new edition. I coauthored college textbooks A CHILD'S WORLD: INFANCY THROUGH ADOLESCENCE, and HUMAN DEVELOPMENT; both are leading texts in their fields and have been read by 2 million students. I am the coauthor of HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND VALUES TO LIVE BY and RAISING A HYPERACTIVE CHILD, and author of THE WORKING PARENTS' SURVIVAL GUIDE & THE ETERNAL GARDEN: SEASONS OF OUR SEXUALITY. My newest book, A BALCONY IN NEPAL: GLIMPSES OF A HIMALAYAN VILLAGE, published in 2002, tells the story of the way of life in a remote village in Nepal, where all the women breastfeed! My book, SUPER GRANNY: COOL PROJECTS, ACTIVITIES, AND OTHER GREAT STUFF TO DO WITH YOUR GRANDKIDS, will be published March 2009. I speak often to professional, parent and general audiences and make many radio and TV appearances.

Credentials I received my B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where I minored in Psychology, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.

Other points of interest I have received national awards for my writing, and am a former president of the American Society of Journalists & Authors. I am listed in the World Who's Who of Women, International Authors & Writers Who's Who, and Contemporary Authors, and am a member of several professional and civic organizations. I believe: that all parents are working parents; that parents employed outside the home need special support; that mothers' well-being is crucial to their children's welfare; and that the family is the best institution in the world and the one for which we are least prepared. My thrills come when parents or kids tell me they were helped by my writing or speaking or just understanding. To find out more about me, go to

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