A comment on breastfeeding with axillary breast tissue

About axillary breast tissue NOT being a problem post-partum / breast feeding; I discovered I had such tissue while pregnant (excessive swelling, pain). When breast feeding, it only got worse. After my daughter was born, we tried in vain to get her to "latch on". Most of the time, she would not, so formula supplemented her. In the meatime, the extra milk I carried (not going to my daughter) gathered up in my axilla - all the way down to my elbow! (very tough tissue where once was soft); the axilla was swollen so much, it was like a golfball, and I could not lower my arm without tears in my eyes. I expressed what I could for relief (painful to do), but after several weeks, I had to dry up naturally (oh - MORE pain) to stop the process altogether. Talk about post-partum depression! We both survived, but now years later, I still have pain and swelling - not as bad of course, but the tissue is the reason. I am definitely going to look up lipo or resect surgery. It is time! I would love to go sleeveless like I did in my 20's. All the exercise and weight lifting can't alone help this problem...


This discussion is related to Axillary Breast.

[scottiedog909]

One thing I want to - NEED TO - add to my comments... My daughter would not "latch on" to my breast consistently during breastfeeding. This is not very common - most babies DO latch on when given the breast post-partum. It was depressing for me that I could not "provide for my daughter" adequately. This thinking created a whole new psyche in me - I cried and cried for weeks, but got over it eventually. Anyway, the reason, no doubt, why Dr Rosenberg says that axillary breast tissue should not produce a problem for breastfeeding is based on the rational assumption that the baby WILL latch on. If you decide to breastfeed, and if your child was not like mine, please be religious with the breastfeeding for as long as feasible. Keep the milk cycling through its production process as mother nature intended, expressing when necessary and feeding the rest of the time. Allowing milk to "pile up" (or "back up" as it did with me) will cause armpit swelling and pain in that axillary breast tissue. Your baby will help YOU "keep yourself regular" until it is time to stop (which either one of you can decide). By the way, my daughter ended up a very loving, healthy, well-adjusted teenager, involved in marching band with her flute. I once worried that denying her my breast milk and its bonding would lead to some type of deprivation related to that chapter in her (my) life. Now, I just don't see where she missed out, thank God. I wish you all the best.