It is a painful and an unfortunate experience for a woman to deal with an abortion and its aftermaths. The hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy can lead to a lot of complications and one of the worst thing is lactation after an abortion.
You go through hell wondering how to stop this apart from the immense grief that you have been experiencing post abortion. This is definitely one of the cruelest deceptions of nature that seems to magnify your loss. It is perfectly normal for this to occur and you need to come to terms with the fact that this milk was for your unborn baby who was not lucky enough to reach your arms.
Read ahead to find out all you want to know about lactating after an abortion and how to deal with it? Most of the times the doctors skip to speak to you about this issue and you become totally unprepared to face this when it occurs.
Is It Normal To Express Milk After An Abortion?
It is very normal for you to experience milk production and supply even after pregnancy has ended abruptly. This can turn out to be emotionally and physically painful as production of milk as this time leaves your breasts swollen and engorged making them feel heavier and tender.
It normally starts around a couple of days post abortion. You have two alternatives to deal with this issue. Either you just don’t do anything about this and put up with the discomfort for a couple of weeks. The next alternative is taking steps to dry the milk and get back to normalcy as soon as possible.
How To Stop Lactation After Abortion?
Lactation after an abortion is quite common. You can take these steps in order to control the milk supply post abortion. It your breast feel full then it is very essential for you to express breastmilk either by hand or with a help of breast pump.
This will relieve you of any discomfort and pain you are facing. If you do not pump out the excess milk from your breast, then the chances of developing mastitis increases. This can lead to hardening of breast tissues and other infections. Your doctor can recommend some medicines that will help to put an end to lactation.
- You can try various home remedies to stop the milk supply.
- Just let the body take its natural course and wait till it gets set right by itself.
- You can express the milk to get rid of any discomfort. You can donate your breast milk to the milk bank that stores breast milk.
Tips For Stopping Lactation Post Abortion And Ease Discomfort
Given below are some of the most common tips that can be taken for stopping lactation that occurs after an abortion. How long you will lactate mostly depends on how far your pregnancy had progressed. Trying out these simple home remedies can provide you with some relief and help you deal with the issue of lactation post abortion.
- Placing cleaned and washed cabbage leaves that have been refrigerated is known to lower milk production considerably. Placing these leaves is found to offer tremendous relief from tender and swollen breasts and engorgement too.
- It is found that having sage tea is another alternative to reduce milk flow that occurs after an abortion.
- Having hot showers that ensure that hot water runs over your breasts also provide immense relief from the discomfort triggered by lactation. Sitting in a really warm bath and leaning into the water will help the milk to flow out more easily.
- Placing ice packs help to relieve severe pain or swelling of your breasts due to lactation. Make sure you don’t place these ice packs for more than 10 to 15 minutes at a stretch.
- Avoid wearing bra that is too tight and steering clear of wired bras are advised during this period as extremely tight ones or sagging ones can trigger mastitis. Also it is advisable to avoid wearing bra for couple of hours everyday.
- Avoid stimulating or touching the nipples as this can trigger your breasts to produce more milk.
- You can also resort to pain relief medications like ibuprofen or acetaminophen if you find the swelling and pain in your breasts severe. Do consult your doctor before popping in any kind of medication.
- Taking vitamin B6 is found to naturally lower the supply of milk.
- Taking rest and relaxing will help you and your body to recover and heal naturally.
- Talk to your doctor or lactation consultant who help you deal with this problem.
These above mentioned tips normally work wonders and will help you cope with the issue of lactating after an abortion in most cases. However if you find that the situation becomes severe, the best course would be to approach your doctor who can advise you about what is best for the same.
So relax and let nature take its course and you will find yourself returning to normalcy within couple of weeks. Abortion is both mentally and physically draining for a woman. We hope this article will help you understand ways to deal with lactation after you’ve had an abortion.
