What should I do if I have milk knot pain during lactation?

Women who are breastfeeding are very prone to milk knots. Milk knots are actually caused by blocked mammary ducts. Simply put, milk is trapped in the breasts and cannot come out. Over time, it is easy for lumps to form, which will gradually lead to a decrease in milk supply. Milk knots during breastfeeding need to be cleared in time. When the milk is swollen, use a breast pump or let the baby suck it out.

What to do if you have milk knot pain during breastfeeding

1. Apply. Heat will increase blood circulation to the painful area, which will speed up healing. Wring out the hot towel and apply it on the RF, making sure it forms a circle with the RT exposed in the middle. Apply it for a few minutes. When the temperature of the towel drops, soak it in hot water again and wring it out. Repeat this process for about 5 minutes.

2. Knead. Gentle massage can also help. The method is as follows: start from the back of the painful point, support the affected breast with the left hand, and then use the four fingers of the right hand (from the index finger to the little finger) to push, knead and press to clear the lumps and lumps in the affected breast. Then use the five fingertips of your right hand to gently rub and grab along the radial direction of the milk ducts from the base of the nipple to the areola to clear the milk stasis. Finally, pinch the areola and nipple of the affected side with the index finger and middle finger of your right hand, and gently lift them outwards continuously, and the congested milk will spray out.

3. Comb. While massaging and sucking milk, you can also use a wooden comb. A heated wooden comb is best. Comb from the armpits towards the nipples to unblock the tangled blood vessels.

4. Inhale. Feeding your baby immediately after heat treatment and massage (it is best to let your baby suck more, the baby is the best breast pump) or expressing milk with a breast pump will help relieve blockage.

Will milk knots affect the baby's health?

The appearance of milk knots proves that milk is trapped in the milk ducts, which affects the stimulation of the pituitary gland and causes milk secretion to decrease. Therefore, the amount of milk secretion of the breastfeeding mother will decrease at this time. The baby is very smart. He knows how to tell which breast has more milk. So when he sucks on the breast with less milk, he will feel irritated and cry because he is not getting enough. Apart from this, milk knots will not have any impact on the baby's health. But it is worth noting that at this time the breastfeeding mother should continue to let the baby suck the nipple so that the breasts can be emptied, which is very beneficial for preventing the breastfeeding mother from developing mastitis and breast cancer.