What causes breast pain during lactation? What causes breast pain during lactation?

Female friends sometimes experience bouts of breast pain when they have given birth and are breastfeeding, which is very uncomfortable. Breast pain is a common symptom and there are many reasons for it.

1. Improper sucking

The most common cause of breast pain after feeding during lactation is improper sucking by the baby. When the baby sucks the nipple, he does not put enough of the areola into his mouth, but only holds the top of the nipple. Repeated sucking will cause nipple pain.

2. Nipple cracks

After breastfeeding, the mother feels a pricking pain in the nipple. This may be because the skin of the new mother's nipple is relatively delicate and cannot withstand the stimulation of the baby's sucking, especially when the milk is insufficient or the nipple is too small or inverted. Because the baby sucks and bites the nipple hard, the nipple epidermis is soaked in saliva and becomes soft, peeled, and eroded, forming cracks of varying sizes.

3. Lactation pain

If you feel breast pain after feeding, it may be lactation pain. After feeding your baby, your breasts are empty and the mammary glands will produce milk vigorously, especially at night when prolactin is high and milk secretion is large, the pain will be more obvious.

Many breastfeeding mothers will have a needle-like pain in their breasts. Some mothers only experience this feeling occasionally, while others often experience it. They can also feel a lump in their breasts, and some mothers feel pain when their breasts are touched. The following editor will discuss these three situations in detail:

If a breastfeeding mother occasionally feels a pricking pain in her breasts and it lasts for a short time, it is probably because the milk secretion is stimulated. If a breastfeeding mother does not control milk discharge well, it is easy to cause milk stasis, which can also cause a pricking pain in the breasts. Therefore, you should pay attention to emptying the milk during breastfeeding.

Solution: When milk secretion is stimulated or milk stasis occurs, the mother can relieve it through hot compresses and breast massage, and acupuncture treatment can be used if necessary.

Two hot compress massage techniques are recommended:

1. Circular massage: Place your hands on the upper and lower parts of the breast and massage the entire breast in a circular direction.

2. Spiral massage: Hold the breast with one hand, and use the index and middle fingers of the other hand to massage in a spiral shape towards the nipple.

If breastfeeding mothers feel that the needle-like pain in their breasts is becoming more and more frequent, and the pain is getting more and more painful, and each pain lasts for a long time, and they can even feel a lump, then mothers are very likely to suffer from mastitis. During breastfeeding, if mothers have severe milk stasis, it is easy to cause mastitis. However, mastitis can be completely cured, so mothers should not panic too much.

Solution: Go to the hospital for treatment, take medicine for a period of time under the guidance of the doctor, and pay attention to emptying the milk and massage and apply hot compresses. It should be noted that if the mother takes western medicine, she must stop breastfeeding and can only breastfeed again three days after stopping the medicine.

If a breastfeeding mother feels pain when the breast is touched, such as a needle-like pain, when the breast or the surrounding area is touched gently or moderately, it is likely to be a proliferative lesion. When tissues have proliferative conditions but cannot be clearly diagnosed as tumors, they can be collectively referred to as proliferative lesions. Proliferative lesions are generally caused by chronic irritants or chronic inflammation, and can also cause hyperplasia due to the cells themselves. Therefore, proliferative lesions in the breasts of lactating mothers are usually caused by severe inflammation caused by milk stasis or endocrine hormone imbalance.

Solution: Go to the hospital, take medicine under the doctor's guidance, and do regular breast ultrasound examinations. If the condition is serious, surgery is required.

1. Correct breastfeeding posture

If the breasts are sore after feeding, the mother should adopt the correct breastfeeding posture, feed with the less painful breast first, and take care to put the nipple and most of the areola into the baby's mouth, and change the baby's feeding position regularly to reduce the stimulation of sucking on the mother's nipple. Do not pull out the nipple forcibly, as this will damage the nipple.

2. Apply milk

If a breastfeeding mother experiences breast pain after feeding or if her nipples are chapped, she can squeeze out some milk and apply it to the nipples and areola after breastfeeding and wait for it to dry naturally. Never wash the nipples with soapy water, because there is a gland in the nipple or areola that secretes oil to protect the nipple and prevent cracking. Washing the nipples with soap will remove this natural protective film.

3. Wear a cotton bra

If the mother's breasts are sore after breastfeeding, she should wear loose underwear and cotton bras, and put on nipple shields when necessary to facilitate air circulation and promote the healing of nipple cracks. If the nipple pain is severe and unbearable, breastfeeding can be suspended for 24 hours. During the time when feeding is not possible, the milk should be expressed and the baby can be fed with a bottle.

Feeding a baby should be the most wonderful thing. The close contact between the baby and the mother establishes his earliest sense of security. Although the feeding process may be painful, it is worth it for every mother. I believe that new mothers can quickly adapt to the role of mother and help the baby grow healthily with the best feeding method.

The reasons for breast pain are: First, when the mammary glands continue to secrete milk, the excess milk accumulates in the breasts because the child sucks less milk. Second, if the mammary ducts are not smooth enough, the milk cannot be discharged in time and accumulates in the breasts, which can cause breast fullness, hardness, and pain. Sometimes lumps of varying sizes can be felt in the breasts.

The following methods can play a preventive role:

1. Excessive milk secretion often leads to breast pain. If the child really cannot eat on an empty stomach, the excess milk must be sucked out with a breast pump.

2. Encourage feeding on demand. Breastfeed when the child is hungry and the mother feels the breast is full, without stipulating the number and time of feeding. Blindly feeding on time will cause the breast to store too much milk.

3. Failure to breastfeed in time after delivery can easily cause breast pain. Therefore, the mother should breastfeed within 30 minutes after delivery.

4. The correct feeding posture should be maintained to ensure that the child has a good latch. This will not only allow the child to get more milk, but also solve the problem of breast pain. Incorrect feeding posture will cause the nipples to wrinkle and crack. The mother will not dare to let the child breastfeed because of the pain. The milk will accumulate in the breasts, making the breasts more swollen and the child will not be full. Therefore, it is important to maintain the correct feeding posture.

5. Control the amount of milk-producing foods that mothers eat, such as chicken soup, fish soup and other nutritious soups, starting from a small amount and gradually increasing.

6. Apply warm compress to the breasts before breastfeeding. Gently massage and squeeze from all sides towards the nipples to release the milk.