How to stop lactation naturally

How to properly end lactation and stop the production of breast milk? - at a certain stage this is also an important question. No one needs stress - neither mother nor child in this difficult matter.

A baby clinging to its mother’s breast is difficult to imagine a more natural and at the same time touching sight. The baby is growing, and no matter what a woman’s attitude is regarding the duration of breastfeeding, sooner or later she faces the question of stopping it. This problem should be approached as tactfully and delicately as possible.

When and for what reason does a woman stop breastfeeding?

It often happens that weaning occurs already in the first months of the baby’s life.

The reason may be both medical indications and the inexperience of the young mother. The successful establishment of breastfeeding entirely depends on her attitude and competent actions. “False” breast refusal and inevitable lactation crises can be confusing.

Doctors' opinions regarding the duration of lactation vary greatly. Some believe that it is mandatory to feed a child up to six months, up to a year - at the request of the mother, and after this there is no longer such a need due to the introduction of complete complementary feeding.

Other experts urge adherence to WHO recommendations, according to which breastfeeding is advisable for at least two years. Each woman makes her own decision, focusing on her feelings and the needs of the baby. But, despite the benefits of breast milk, artificial feeding from the heart is much preferable to breastfeeding through teeth. A calm and happy mother is much more important for a child.

Whatever the reason, whether the mother’s desire or the baby himself has lost interest in the breast, the main thing is to stop breast milk lactation correctly, without harm to the mother and baby.

Ways to complete lactation at home

Depending on the tactics, the following weaning methods are distinguished:

• The natural end of breastfeeding.

The most preferable way to gradually stop lactation, according to experts.

The elimination of lactation occurs gradually, without much stress for mother and baby. On average, the process takes several months and consists of gradually reducing the number of daytime feedings, and lastly, eliminating feeding at night. Instead of breast milk, the child should be offered tea and water. It is not necessary to use a bottle; you can and should feed your baby from a cup.

Wearing a pacifier instead of a breast is also not recommended. It is necessary to promote in every possible way the extinction of the sucking reflex.

As for the mother’s feelings, she will also not experience severe discomfort. The process of producing breast milk occurs according to the principle “demand creates supply.” The fewer the number of attachments, the less milk will be produced.

A woman’s readiness to complete breastfeeding can be determined by the absence of a rush of breast milk for twelve hours without breastfeeding; only then is it advisable to cancel the last feeding at night. The logical conclusion of the process should be the involution of breast milk.

• Immediate completion of breastfeeding.

There are situations that force a woman to abruptly stop breastfeeding. A serious illness of the mother, forcing her to take strong medications for a long time, a long separation of mother and baby for family reasons, a new pregnancy - in all these cases it is not possible to continue feeding.

For an unprepared child, these changes will cause enormous stress. Especially if weaning involves the absence of your mother nearby. You should not give your child to your grandmother even for 2-3 days without any special reason. This situation will be perceived as the loss of a mother. It is undesirable to expose your baby to such strong experiences, but often life dictates its own rules.

Mom has a hard time too. In addition to the feeling of guilt towards the child, she experiences a wide range of unpleasant sensations of a physiological nature. The body is not immediately able to readjust itself, and at first milk production occurs as usual. There may be engorgement of the mammary glands, the appearance of painful lumps, which is fraught with the formation of lactostasis.

If you neglect your breasts, you can get mastitis. A woman will be helped to cope with the problem:

• - medications
• - traditional medicine

They will be discussed later.

How to stop lactation?

General advice from consultants (formulated by Dinka saying goodbye to childhood) What to do and what not to do with breasts during weaning?

1. After six months from the birth of a child, there is no point in taking hormones . Milk is produced based on supply and demand rather than for hormonal reasons. If demand falls, the quantity of milk decreases until it disappears altogether. For reference: milk in the breast ceases to form when it is (the milk itself contains the enzyme FIL, which is responsible for reducing lactation). And drugs to suppress lactation have very unpleasant side effects, for example, for bromocriptine, up to myocardial infarction.

2. There is no point in bandaging the chest. For relief, just wear a good bra. Breast ligation does not prevent the flow of milk, and can lead to complications (increases the likelihood of mastitis, and also impairs the blood supply to the mammary glands, which can lead to unpleasant consequences).

3. What to do? first of all, wean gradually , that is, if you had 3 feedings, remove one, after a week or at least 2-3 days the second, and then the third. If this doesn’t work out, you’ll have to pump more often, that’s normal. There is no need to be afraid to express. If there is breast fullness, you can and should express. You will see for yourself that the amount of milk you express is decreasing day by day. Express only until you feel relief.

4. After pumping, apply a cold compress . You can apply cold sheets of regular cabbage . Some people find it better if they mash the cabbage first or roll it with a rolling pin and put it in the freezer for a short time. Keep it on your chest until it becomes limp and boiled. The completion process may take several days, a week... This is normal and least traumatic for the breast. 5. If the chest hurts a little, but is soft , this means that there is no congestion, but everything is a little inflamed. Mild inflammation is relieved by cold, preferably deep cold, like frozen chicken, or just ice in a towel. 6. There are herbs that reduce lactation: peppermint and sage. Boil and drink 5-6 glasses a day. 7. If you know that a certain product or large amount of liquid can trigger your milk supply, of course, refrain from this during weaning. If a hot flash does occur, follow the instructions: express until relief occurs, apply cabbage and a cold compress. 8. If you notice thickening, redness, and a rise in temperature , these are truly alarming factors. treat this like incipient mastitis. in this case, here you go: mastitis, lactostasis A good article on this topic from the website of the International Dairy League Related topics from Motherhood: What to do/not do with breasts? Stopping breastfeeding Medicines to suppress lactation FAQ - POPULAR QUESTIONS ABOUT WEANING

Tablets to stop lactation

Specially developed medications can quickly stop the process of breast milk production and stop lactation at home. These include:

• Bromocriptine;
• Bromocamphor;
• Dostinex;
• Microfollin;
• Parlodel.

The action of drugs that suppress lactation is aimed at dulling the work of the pituitary gland. Many women are in no hurry to take advantage of the advances in pharmacology, rightly fearing the rather strong impact on the body at the hormonal level.

Self-prescription of such serious drugs is not recommended; consultation with a gynecologist is mandatory. The doctor will prescribe the patient a medicine that is right for her, select the optimal dosage and dosage regimen.

Amateur action in this matter can provoke a number of unpleasant side effects, such as convulsions, pressure surges, and blurred vision. An allergic reaction is possible. The specialist’s attention will be directed to the woman’s medical history; a number of diseases (diabetes, varicose veins, kidney pathologies, hypertension) exclude the possibility of taking drugs that suppress lactation.

Folk remedies that stop lactation

Our grandmothers often simply tightly tied their breasts with a cloth, a towel, or bandaged them tightly so that the milk would burn out. But this method is not suitable for every breast. If there is a lot of milk, dragging will lead to a rise in temperature, hardening in the breast, and inflammation in the mammary glands. Therefore, it is better to choose another, less painful path.

Many women who have decided to stop lactation turn to traditional medicine.

• The herbs sage, mint, parsley, and lingonberry leaf, which have a diuretic effect, have proven themselves to be excellent. To suppress milk secretion, it is simply necessary to increase the outflow of fluid from the body.

• Along with taking diuretic herbs, it is advisable to reduce the amount of liquid consumed, especially in warm and hot form. It is better to exclude tea and broths from the diet for a while.

• In addition to herbal remedies, traditional medicine recommends compresses for the chest area:

1. The cooled cabbage leaf is placed in the bra, after crushing it with a fork to allow the juice to appear. Helps reduce swelling and pain.
2. Ice wrapped in a towel is applied to the chest for a short period of time. The main thing is not to overdo it, you can catch a cold in the mammary glands.
3. Wrapping and rubbing the chest with camphor oil. The procedure must be carried out for several days. The downside of this method is the strong medicinal smell. Clothes soaked in it are unlikely to be saved.

The main advantages of folk remedies for stopping lactation are naturalness and safety. Despite this, it is also advisable to coordinate their use with your doctor. As an alternative, he may suggest homeopathic remedies such as Apis 3.

How to use camphor oil to suppress lactation

The use of camphor oil for this purpose began due to the complex effects of the product:

• The specific pungent smell repels the child, therefore, by applying a little camphor oil to the chest, you can expect that the baby will lose interest in it, although he will not stop being capricious.
• The drug has a warming effect, which distracts from the painful sensations associated with fullness of the mammary glands (the “stone” breast effect). Camphor oil does not affect milk production.

As a result, to stop lactation, a compress with camphor oil is used in combination with tight breast tightening. This creates conditions for milk to burn out.

In order not to harm the body when using camphor oil to stop lactation, you should adhere to the following rules:

• the oil must be natural (d-camphor), and not synthetic or semi-synthetic (L-camphor);
• 10% oil is used, not 90% essential oil, which can cause a serious burn;
• Before applying to the chest, the oil is heated slightly (beware of overheating so as not to get burned);
• pieces of cloth or bandage soaked in oil are placed on painful areas of the chest;
• the compress is fixed with a dense, but not too tight, bandage - beware of squeezing the blood vessels, otherwise you will disrupt blood circulation and the outflow of milk, as a result of which infectious mastitis caused by stagnation of milk may develop;
• The compress is worn as long as the feeling of warmth remains - when the skin begins to burn, the bandage and compress are removed, and traces of oil are removed from the skin with a napkin;
• to relieve painful sensations during the period of cessation of lactation, massage the mammary glands using a small amount of camphor oil - you need to carefully knead the hardened areas and express a little milk to relieve tension and get rid of pain;
• during this period, it is important to reduce fluid intake and enhance its removal from the body - instead of tea, it is useful to drink an infusion of lingonberry leaves and other herbal decoctions with a diuretic effect;
• tolerating pain in hardened breasts is not only difficult, but also dangerous; express a certain amount of milk several times a day - after two or three days the number of pumpings will decrease, then the breasts will stop thickening, and on the 5-7th day lactation will stop.

The process of stopping lactation will require less time and effort if at this point the baby is fed only 2 times a day - in the morning and in the evening. In this case, it is easier for the baby to go through the stage of breastfeeding.

In a situation where lactation has to be interrupted close to the peak intensity, you should consult a doctor, otherwise serious consequences may occur due to inflammatory processes in the mammary glands.