Can I use a hot towel to apply heat to stop breastfeeding?

Weaning is a process that must be experienced during the lactation stage. At this time, the mother's breasts will have lumps and swelling and pain, which require us to massage the breasts properly. We can also use hot towels to compress the breasts to promote circulation, help promote the absorption of milk, and relieve swelling and pain. However, the process of weaning requires perseverance. You cannot breastfeed your baby and you cannot breastfeed your baby just because the baby is crying.

Can I use hot water to apply to the hard lumps caused by milk withdrawal?

The reason why lumps appear after weaning is because of milk stasis, and hot compress can promote circulation, thereby promoting the absorption of milk. You can use warm water to clean your breasts, apply a hot towel or hot water bottle to your breasts (be careful not to apply to the areola and nipple areas, because the skin in these two areas is more tender. The temperature of the hot compress should not be too high to avoid scalding the skin), especially to the lumps, to promote the unblocking of blocked mammary ducts and thus eliminate the lumps. The following methods are also available:

1. Massage to eliminate lumps. Take 3 o'clock, 6 o'clock, 9 o'clock and 12 o'clock at the base of the breast with the nipple as the center, and gently massage with your fingers until you feel a sore and swollen feeling, for 3-5 minutes each. Then massage the hard lumps for 5 minutes. Then use your hands to comb from the base of the breast towards the nipple about 15 times. Helps to unclog the milk ducts.

2. Scraping can eliminate lumps. Scraping is also a very effective method. The location and direction of scraping are basically the same as those of massage. It should be noted that lubricant should be applied to the breasts before scraping to avoid damaging the skin. Water, sesame oil or scraping oil can all be used.

3. Acupuncture eliminates lumps. If the above methods have no obvious effects, mothers can go to the acupuncture department of a regular hospital or clinic to seek help from a professional acupuncturist. The acupuncturist will make a dialectical analysis based on the mother's various conditions, select acupoints and perform acupuncture. Acupuncture has a good therapeutic effect on various breast lumps and has no side effects.

Traditional Chinese medicine remedies for weaning

1. Decoction in water. Malt has the effects of promoting qi and digestion, strengthening the spleen and appetite, and relieving milk and bloating. In clinical practice of traditional Chinese medicine, malt is often used to treat food indigestion, abdominal distension and pain, spleen deficiency and poor appetite, milk stagnation, breast pain, and weaning in women.

2. Avoid Huaisan. Bian Huai San can stop lactation. The ingredients of Mianhuai Powder include: safflower, red peony root, angelica root, and Rhizoma Cyathulae. In addition, malt, green peel, polygala, dandelion, etc. can be added according to individual differences.

In clinical work, I often use Mianhuai San with added flavor to stop milk production, but the effect is not good. The medicine composition is: 15 grams of angelica root, 6 grams of safflower, 15 grams of red peony root, 20 grams of Achyranthes bidentata, 60 grams of roasted malt, and different medicines are added according to the breastfeeding mother's own situation. Generally, 3 doses can stop milk production. For those who do not produce much milk, 1-2 doses will do the job, and for those who have a lot of milk, no more than 5 doses will be required. This prescription has no side effects in clinical use and has definite efficacy, making it a prescription worthy of recommendation for weaning.

3. Apply Glauber's salt externally. Put 120g of Glauber's salt in a cloth bag. After the mother has emptied her milk, apply the cloth bag around the breasts, making sure to expose the nipples. Tie the cloth bag tightly and replace it when it becomes damp. Glauber's salt has the effects of clearing heat and promoting bowel movements, moistening dryness and softening hard masses, clearing away fire and reducing swelling. It is mainly used to relieve constipation due to excess heat, dry stool, abdominal pain due to accumulation of fat, and swelling and pain due to intestinal carbuncle. External treatment for mastitis, swollen and painful hemorrhoids. When weaning, apply Glauber's salt on both breasts to help reduce swelling.