Engorged Breasts

The other day a lady came to see me, she had very large sore engorged breasts. She came to my studio shop in Auckland as she had heard about my breastfeeding website Breastmates.




One breast was heavy, and full of milk. Sore. Painful breast.


One breast was fine, normal, no pain.

You can see in the photo above, how the breast on the left is full and is very round. its sitting higher than the empty breast on the right hand side.

The treatment we suggested was a hot shower and massage just to ease out a little of the milk from the engorged breast. Then she tried some heat packs.

If the pain had been unbearable for her, then we would have expressed some milk out with a breast pump. But this would have meant that her breasts would have made more milk ready for a few hours time, which just would have repeated the problem later in the day. Using a breast pump to relieve engorged breasts should really be a last case resort.

Copyright photo with permission

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Milk Squirts

I remember when my second son was first born, I seemed to have a huge milk supply of breast milk. I felt like I had gone from a pre-pregnancy breast size 12B up to a 12E (thats what it felt like, but my Hotmilk Lingerie maternity bra was actually size 12C - I just had the Pamela Anderson feeling of engorgement).

Everything was fine when baby was latched onto my breast, but if he took his mouth off my milk would SQUIRT. It would spray out from all these tiny nozzles on my nipple, in all directions. It seems to go a long way! We have a leather couch and I would find all these white milk squirts on the cushions. If I pushed my breast while it was squirting, I get get a longer distance - at least 2 metres! That was not relevant to anything, its just something that I could do if I ever needed to!!?!!!!?

But then after about 3 or 4 weeks I think, this stopped happened. My breast milk supply was just becoming regulated.

I stopped squirting milk.

Now after 6 months of breast feeding, my breasts dont even leak breast milk anymore in between feeds. My breast just have the Supply and Demand of my baby's requirements sorted. I dont produce extra that leaks out, baby just drinks what he needs.

Very happy.

Earth Mama Angel Baby

I'm so glad that I know stock the Earth Mama Angel baby products for breastfeeding.

Breast feeding can be so painful to begin with. The feeling of milk let down and breast engorgement is big OUCHIES!!

We now stock these new Booby Tubes™ made by American company Earth Mama Angel Baby.

These are a natural, safe, gel-free breast pack made with a 100% organic cotton shell and filled with all-natural flax seed. Use warm or cold, depending on your nursing needs.

Wear them inside your maternity bra to help:

• Reduce the swelling and tenderness of engorgement
• Comfort breasts during weaning
  

These little beauties safely deliver warm, moist heat to tender breasts. They have a unique gel-free construction designed to help reduce the risk of burns. About 5 minutes before each feeding, warm them in the microwave to

• encourage milk flow
• maintain open milk ducts to prevent clogged ducts
• promote let-down
• comfort the symptoms of infection or mastitis

We also have the Earth Mama Angel Baby herbal poutice, called Bosum Buddies, which you mix up and apply to your boob. Heavenly!