Breastfeeding: Engorgement Blows Sometimes

Let's talk about boobs. Specifically, your boobs on breast milk. I'm going to talk a lot about boobs on breast milk in the coming month because I had a lot of things happen when I was breastfeeding three kids, so I want to share them, in the hopes that if someone else comes across any of these issues, they'll be armed with some info, or at least be able to say, "oh, I've heard of this happening before, it's okay". 

Before though, I feel the need to make a disclaimer. I can tell that some hardcore breastfeeding advocate might read this and get all pissed off and think that I am doing some huge disservice to women and babies everywhere because by talking about the difficult, stressful times, I could be putting women off of breastfeeding. 

Actually, my intention is exactly the opposite of that. While I couldn't care less whether or not a woman chooses to breastfeed, I believed in it for me and my babies and went through hell several times over in my determination to break through the tough times I had from getting the hang of breastfeeding. So, in writing these posts on breastfeeding, it's to bring awareness to others that it's not all peaches and cream and good times and easy, but you can get through it. And go on to have a successful breastfeeding relationship, should you choose to keep on that train. I fully believe that awareness is crucial, and that somebody is more apt to power through a tough time if they are aware of the obstacles and know how to combat them, instead of being surprised and lost and discouraged.

And, I am not saying that what I experienced is going to be the case for everyone, not even close. You may or (hopefully) may not experience any of this, and some people have a WAY easier time getting the hang of breastfeeding. Some people have absolutely zero problems with it. I wasn't one of them.

Moving on, it's come to my attention over the years that not many people are willing to offer up to pregnant moms what exactly happens to your boobs after you give birth and the milk comes in. Well, I'm willing. And trust me, the baby books can gloss over what really happens and kind of under-exaggerate the severity of what some moms go through.

One under-exaggeration being that when your milk comes in, your boobs will be "full" and "tender" and "uncomfortable" and "some moms find them to be a little painful". The truth: Your boobs can turn into excruciatingly painful rocks. Like, lumpy boulders full of swollen, burning pain, sitting right there on your chest. This is called engorgement and let me tell you, it is NOT fun. It typically happens about 4 days after birth, but everyone is different, and the milk comes in sooner the more babies you have (with my third, it only took two days). 

We obviously saw lots of family in the first weeks after each child was born and of course everyone wants to hug the new mom. And, the last thing I wanted was a hug, because the slightest whisper of a touch created ungodly amounts of pain and sometimes even triggered a painful, stinging, gushing let-down of milk. (A let-down is when your milk begins to rush out of your nipples to drown the baby for baby to more easily eat.) And the pain from the hugs made me want to first scream out OH GOD THE PAIN and then karate-chop the person in the face, so they were lucky I was incapacitated by pain from their touch and the c-section recovery. It's best to just politely beg off the hugs during engorgement.

Another under-exaggeration in all the baby books is that engorgement only lasts for 24-48 hours.

FUCK THAT LIE.

Mine lasted for THREE WEEKS. Yes, THREE WEEKS. Now, I'm not saying that you're going to have the same problem and I hope to God, you do not, but you should just know that it can and does last longer for some people. And no, I was not perpetuating the engorgement by pumping all the time and therefore telling my breasts to make more milk. I was just a super-prolific milk-maker and apparently, my body thought I had birthed 10-month-old triplets and needed that much milk. Apparently, my boobs are slow learners. 

I did, however occasionally pump for just a minute or two because after a while, the pain from 8-10 ounces of milk hanging out in just one breast (not an exaggeration) for hours and hours would become too much (baby can only eat so much and only so often). I would actually start to feel nauseous, nearly in tears, and literally incapable of movement, the pain was so bad, so I finally had to hook up to the milk machine just to get some relief before I cut my tits off with a chainsaw. Or started offering to nurse random babies in the neighborhood like a creep. The trick is to only pump in extreme circumstances (which hit about once or twice a day) and for only a minute or two, just to ease off some of the pressure. Because breast milk works on a supply and demand cycle, so the more you tell your boobs to make, the more they will make. So be careful with the pumping during the engorgement period. 

To ease the pain, I've heard that ice packs do wonders, but I was more a fan of the warm compresses and showers. But really, for me, nothing worked. I had had c-sections, so I was already on some pretty serious pain meds, and they didn't even help. So I was up shit creek without a paddle and just had to power through. If you feel comfortable taking it, ibuprofen helps reduce swelling and may work for the less severe cases. After the hard-core pain wore off from the c-section and I didn't need to take the serious drugs for pain anymore, I switched to ibuprofen, which was recommended by my doctor, and it didn't really help out my boob situation; just the incision pain.

I asked for tips for easing the engorgement period from other moms, and this is what they provided (some are what I've talked about but I'll list them anyway just to have a comprehensive list):


1. This one was mentioned several times - Cold cabbage leaves in your bra; change when they start to wilt. But one person provided this additional info: Don't do this too many times a day or you will dry up too much. Do it maybe 3 times a day, 30 minutes at a time. *UPDATE* AND, be sure to wash the cabbage leaves and/or your breasts after using them; an awesome reader (thank you, Lindsay) commented that her friend's baby got an infection and had to be hospitalized, and the doctor said it was from bacteria from the cabbage leaves.
2. Bags of frozen peas on your boobs.
3. Hot showers (the warmth stimulates the let-down reflex, easing some of the pressure).
4. Warm compresses.
5. Pump only for relief.
6. Tight sports bras

Cabbage leaves: not just for your mouth!
photo credit: stockphoto.com

Also, during the engorgement period, when I would be nursing baby on one side and get the let-down, the other side would turn into a faucet, leaking and straight-up spraying breast milk everywhere (I'm sorry for that visual). And NO nursing pad could hold all that gushing milk, so I had to stuff a cloth diaper/burp rag into my bra, and it would get absolutely soaked. The entire thing. So keep some of those handy.


My boobs hurt from writing this. 

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