Lactostasis in a nursing mother - symptoms and treatment

This kind of complication of the postnatal process, like lactostasis, is a stagnation of breast milk produced inside its ducts. This disease is almost always accompanied by painful sensations directly in the chest and leads to a change in its size. In some cases, even touching the gland gives the woman a great pain. Let's take a closer look at the symptoms of lactostasis in a nursing mother, and tell about the peculiarities of his treatment.

How does lactostasis appear in moms, whose babies are breastfed?

The signs that indicate the development of such a disorder are quite specific, so even a young, inexperienced mother can diagnose a blockage of the milk ducts. Among the symptoms that indicate the development of lactostasis in a nursing mother, almost always noted:

1. Ragging and swelling of the mammary gland tissue. The breasts become quite dense, and her skin acquires a reddish hue. Feel the mammary gland, in which there is obstruction of the ducts, becomes hot. When pressing on the nipple, milk flows with difficulty and a small trickle or is completely absent.
2. The taste of milk can acquire a salty shade.
3. Almost always there is a rise in body temperature, a general malaise. However, these symptoms of lactostasis are general, but for diagnosis they are also necessary.

How is lactostasis treated in nursing?

With this kind of violation, a woman can cope on her own. It should be noted that in most cases, this problem can be solved without the use of drugs. For this it is sufficient to fulfill the following recommendations:

1. Express the chest after each feeding of the baby, completely. In most cases (especially in primiparas) lactostasis is formed due to the fact that the milk ducts have a narrow lumen and can not cope with the transit of milk produced by the gland itself.
2. Use a warm compress, which helps to "unload" the breast. As is known, heat promotes the expansion of blood vessels, which in turn positively affects the increase in the lumen of the ducts in the gland itself. In order to do this, it is enough to apply to the chest for 10 minutes, for example, a towel soaked in hot water.
3. Breast massage also allows you to quickly eliminate blockage of the ducts. In this case, all movements should be smooth, with moderate pressure on the tissue.

How is lactostasis treated in nursing with the help of folk remedies?

This kind of problem worried nursing mothers from a long time ago. In the distant past, medicine, in today's sense of the term, was absent. Therefore, in order to facilitate their own well-being and cope with lactostasis, women used various medicinal plants and improvised drugs.

So, often during the treatment of lactostasis in a nursing mother, a tool such as a cabbage leaf was used. Before use, it was washed clean, slightly beaten, so that it let the juice, and only then applied to the chest. This kind of "medicine" is used to this day.

Also, when milk is stagnant, a product such as honey is often used. It was mixed with flour until a very tight dough was formed, from which a cake was then formed and applied to a sick chest.

Quite often, fresh cottage cheese was used to hold the compresses, which also perfectly helps to cope with the obstruction of the milk ducts.

Thus, I would like to note that despite the rather effective folk remedies for lactostasis, when symptoms of disturbance appear in nursing mothers, they need to see a doctor for treatment.