Lactostasis symptoms
Lactostasis ( from lacto - "feed milk" and stasis - "immobility, stagnation") - this is a blockage of one or several milk lobules and ducts with thickened stagnant milk.
Although lactostasis itself is not yet a disease, it can provoke a serious inflammatory process of breast tissue - mastitis.
Stagnation of milk in the chest, manifested by a pronounced sense of heaviness and swelling of both breasts, which leads to the fact that they become very heavy and painful - this is the signal given by your body that the demand-supply mechanism is out of balance. Stagnation of milk is a problem for both the mother and the child. For a mother, this can be very painful, and if you start the process, it can go into a serious chest inflammation.
A full chest is also uncomfortable for a child. If your chest is full, the angle of the nipple is reduced, and the baby can not take the breast correctly. When this happens, the baby sucks only one of your nipples, but can not grab your mouth with enough of a sucking mug to squeeze the lactiferous sinuses. As a result, the child stimulates your body in such a way that more milk enters the breast, but it can not empty it, which further aggravates the overflow of the breast and closes the vicious circle. As the breast tissue swells, milk can not flow freely. The child receives less milk and requires that it be applied to the breast more often;the mother's chest is full even more, and the pair is at a dead end. You can prevent breast milk stagnation by following the tips for the correct initiation of breastfeeding: joint stays, feeding on demand, and not on a schedule, the correct positions and techniques of breast grabbing.
If chest overflow occurs while you are still in the hospital, use an electric breast pump to pump out a little extra milk and soften the areola( okolososovy circle) so that the child can normally take the breast and more successfully empty it.
Usually in the first week the amount of milk in the chest slowly and steadily increases, and the baby should empty the chest at the same speed with which it is filled. Some swelling of the breast is common, when in the first week the amount of milk produced by you grows, but it should disappear if the right positions are taken and when the baby's breast is properly seized, provided that you will often feed and have a lot of rest.
It happens that the milk rushes suddenly, about the third or fourth day, and then mothers exclaim: "I woke up with these two painful cobblestones on my chest."Immediately request an electric breast pump to get rid of stagnation before complications arise.
Earlier we recommended warm compresses, but now that milk stagnation in the breast is better studied, it is clear that heat can actually do more harm by increasing bloating of tissues. It is better to apply cold compresses or packets of crushed ice( lay a thin cloth between your skin and the ice pack to avoid frostbite) until the swelling does not drop enough for the milk to flow. This cold treatment also relieves burning sensation and chest pain.
Upon returning home, you can prevent the transition of breast overflow into milk stagnation, standing under a warm shower, immersing your breasts in warm water while taking a bath or applying warm compresses for ten minutes before decanting milk or feeding. This helps to start the reflex lactation so that when you attach to the baby's breast, the milk flows more quickly and the baby can better empty your breast. If your areola is too full for the
to allow the child to grab it correctly with your mouth, give a little milk before feeding to make the areola softer so that the baby can take not only the nipple, but also the areola.
If the overflow becomes stagnant, do not sit and wait until the stasis passes by itself. Between meals, always apply ice to reduce pain and relieve swelling, and if possible, rent an electric breast pump and use it until you contact a breastfeeding consultant to help you correct your feeding technique.
Acetaminophen and exactly matched, well-supporting bra, not tightening the chest, and also a lot of rest will help.
The most important thing, do not stop breastfeeding! Breasts should be emptied. Breast milk stagnation for a considerable time often leads to inflammation of the breast, which is called mastitis. Symptoms are almost the same as those of the flu: fatigue, heat, chills and pain. Your breasts can swell completely or you can feel for a localized swollen, painful, reddened, inflamed area.
For treatment, use moist heat( a warm towel or a jet of warm water from the shower) on the affected area for ten minutes at least four times a day, take acetaminophen to relieve heat and pain, as well as a prescribed antibiotic( both are safe duringbreastfeeding), and rest. The situation will be facilitated by continued breastfeeding, unless the breastfeeding adviser advises you to temporarily stop breastfeeding. Breast should be emptied( either with the help of a child, or with the help of a decantation) so that the inflammation disappears.
If you have been breastfed successfully for weeks or months without any complications, and suddenly you have found milk stagnation, check your feeding technique or take it as a signal that your home is too crowded or your daily routine is too congested. Listen to your body - he wants to tell you something.