A study in Britain showed that engorgement and painful breasts are one of the most common reasons for women to give up breastfeeding in the first weeks after birth. But what exactly is engorgement and how can we help you manage it?
In the first week or so after your baby arrives, there is a huge increase of blood supply to your breasts to feed the breast tissue which now has a huge job. Along with the blood flow there is the influx of milk, and also lymph (normal clear fluid) is produced from all the activity going on in the area! Basically, there is heaps of fluid in a small space. In some women, the pressure in and around the milk ducts can build up and push fluid into spaces where it doesn’t belong.
This means you can end up with sore, lumpy breasts that feel red hot!
In short, no! There is no infection present when your breasts are engorged, so there’s nothing for the antibiotics to fight! (read more about mastitis here)
To treat breast engorgement, we need to reduce the amount of fluid in your breasts. Our approach combines ultrasound therapy with skilled massage so that the body can drain out this extra fluid and allow you to get on with feeding your baby in comfort.
We’ve got plenty of strategies to share with you so you can get some relief at home as well.
For over 6 years, we have been teaching women with the symptoms of engorgement, how to help their body move fluid more easily so that the breasts do not stay like blow-up balloons. Our goal is to relieve the pain and give you a solid plan for recovery. Breast-feeding challenges create stress, so providing you with genuine support and CLEAR answers to your questions is our highest priority.
Our clinic is in Melbourne Australia where we treat women experiencing engorged breasts. You can book in via the button below or call 9859 5059.
However, if you are elsewhere in the world we have our online strategies in video Masterclasses on the website of our sister company Your Two Jugs. Click the logo to go straight to the Your Two Jugs website to check it out.
