Engorged breasts how long do they last

Engorged breasts are painful. They feel heavy, hard, warm and sensitive —as if they are ready to burst! As well as being painful, engorgement can lead to other breastfeeding problems if not treated.

Being able to recognise engorgement will help you to treat it promptly, avoiding complications. Most mothers experience some engorgement in the first weeks after birth. With changing hormone levels, your breasts swell and enlarge as milk production increases. It may seem as though they are filling up with milk, but engorgement is more than milk storage.

Your body directs extra blood and fluids to your breasts to boost milk production. This causes congestion and swelling which will decrease as your body adjusts. Minimizing early engorgement Treat engorgement to… When to treat engorgement After the first few weeks Causes of engorgement Treating engorgment Be sure your baby is sucking effectively Reverse pressure softening Keep comfortable Watch out for signs of mastitis.

New mothers vary in how engorged their breasts become in the weeks after birth; some experience little engorgement, others describe their breasts as feeling like watermelons! Make breastfeeding easier Even if you feel as though you have lots of milk, engorgement can make it harder for your baby to latch on to your breast and feed well. A poor latch-on can give you sore nipples.

Your baby may also have trouble coping with the flow of milk from engorged breasts. Treating engorgement gives your baby more milk now and helps protect milk production for when your baby is older.

Avoid blocked ducts or mastitis Engorgement can result in blocked ducts leading to mastitis. Take action to relieve engorgement if your breasts feel firm, hard, shiny or lumpy.

When milk is removed, blood circulation improves and swelling reduces. Use the suggestions below to reduce swelling and keep your milk flowing. Many mothers have a slight temperature when their breasts are engorged. Temperatures under Keep your baby close and continue breastfeeding. Position your baby with his chest and tummy in full contact with your body. With his cheek in close contact with your breast, your baby can easily tip back his head to latch on.

Listen for swallowing as he feeds. If your baby is finding it hard to latch on — when your baby bobs his head and licks the nipple, he naturally makes it easier to latch on.

Try Reverse Pressure Softening First. Leaven, April-May ;39 2 Breast engorgement: patterns and selected outcomes. J Hum Lact. Lawrence R and Lawrence R. Breastfeeding: A Guide for the Medical Profession, 6th ed. Louis: Mosby, , p. Breast engorgement: contributing variables and variables amenable to nursing intervention. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. Mohrbacher N. Breastfeeding Answers Made Simple.

Amarillo, Texas: Hale Publishing, , p. Riordan J and Auerbach K. Breastfeeding and Human Lactation, 3rd ed. Boston and London: Jones and Bartlett, , p. A comparison of chilled and room temperature cabbage leaves in treating breast engorgement. Roberts KL. A comparison of chilled cabbage leaves and chilled gelpaks in reducing breast engorgement. Smith A, Heads J. Breast Pathology. In: Walker M, ed. Breast pain and breastfeeding.

Breast engorgement Breast engorgement is when, for whatever reason, your breasts become overly full. The nipple can become a little overstretched and flattened, and possibly painful. Find out more about positioning and attachment Engorgement can still happen once you have learnt the skill of positioning and attachment, usually when your baby hasn't fed for a while.

Your baby usually knows when they need a feed, for how long and from which breast. Early signs cues that your baby is ready to feed can include: moving their eyes rapidly putting their fingers into their mouth rooting turning to 1 side with their mouth open as if seeking the breast becoming restless Crying is the very last sign that your baby needs feeding. Keeping your baby close so you can watch and learn their early feeding cues will help.

How to ease breast engorgement To ease the discomfort of engorgement, apart from your baby feeding, you could try expressing a little breast milk by hand. Find out more about expressing breast milk You may also find it helps to: wear a well-fitting breastfeeding bra that doesn't restrict your breasts put warm flannels on your breasts just before hand expressing if they're leaking apply chilled cabbage leaves to your breasts after feeding or expressing to reduce the pain and swelling the evidence on the benefits of this method is weak, but it may work for some women take some paracetamol or ibuprofen at the recommended dose to ease the pain these are safe to take while you're breastfeeding Too much breast milk Occasionally women make too much breast milk and their babies struggle to cope.

They can also suggest ways to decrease your supply. Narrow tubes called ducts carry the milk from each segment to your nipple. You may feel a small, tender lump in your breast. Other things that may help include: frequent feeding from the affected breast warm flannels or a warm shower to encourage the flow gently massaging the lump towards your nipple while your baby feeds It's important to deal with a blocked duct quickly as, if left, it could lead to mastitis.

Mastitis Mastitis inflammation in the breast happens when a blocked duct isn't relieved. If you have mastitis, you'll probably have at least 2 of these symptoms: a breast that feels hot and tender a red patch of skin that's painful to touch a general feeling of illness, as if you have flu feeling achy, tired and tearful a high temperature fever "This can happen suddenly, and can get worse quickly," says Bridget Halnan. Ask your midwife, health visitor or a breastfeeding specialist to watch a feed.

Carry on breastfeeding. Let your baby feed on the tender breast first. If the affected breast still feels full after a feed, or your baby can't feed for some reason, express your milk by hand.