lactating with no baby to hold. help please..

where to begin??  o.k. here's some history m/c and d/c two months ago started ttc this past month.  i had some lactation after the m/c just a few drops if i squeezed (i know tmi to continue) about a month ago i read online that if i left "the girls" alone it would dry up so that's what i've been doing.  well today i was getting in the shower and decided to see if the lactation had stopped and gently squeezed to my shock a whole stream or milk came out not a few drops or drizzles but stream i stopped and thought well maybe that was all so i did it again and again a whole arching stream.  here's my question my af was supposed to start yesterday all i got was light spotting and today would usually be when i start to flow heavily but it's only been enough for maybe one pad.  so i poas and bfn.  what gives?  how do i get this milk to dry up?  why is it getting worse? anyone else have this?  what do i do i don't want to sound silly but it hurts because i'm lactating with no baby to hold in my arms.  please help.  any suggestions?

[Angel Always06]

Im sorry to hear of your loss. I had a still born at 34 weeks gestation, and my milk continued thru to my second pregnancy which was straight away. From what Ive read about milk drying up, it will hurt. Maybe you could be pregnant again (Im not trying to gt your hopes up) and maybe the increase in hormones is increasing the 'milk' that was there. Either way you have to leave well alone. I done what u have been while I was pregnant after the still birth and sometimes I would get a stream of it but if you really are not pregnant this time just dont touch them at all, if they hurt let them. Otherwise it just keeps them stimulated. I had my last child 2 years ago and I still have a drop here and there. I hope you get pregnant again very soon. All the best

[mrsjmb]

Wow u must hve been pretty far along to get milk flowing like that.  I can just imagine what u are going thru. I had 2 m/c in the first trimester, so just getting to that point, I know can be unbearable.  But the best part about it, u get to try again.  U may need to talk to ur doctor about the milk coming out of your breasts, u don't know if it's actually milk?  What if it's discharge?  

Just focus on the future, do you know y u lost the last pregnancy?   Knowing what caused it can help u in the future by trying to prevent it.  I have high hopes that I will pregnant soon, honey u should too, focus on the positive, that's all u can do.  Pray for strength, especially when u have lost something so precious.  May God bless u and keep u and know that u are going to be the BEST mother ever.

[anxiousmomtobe?]

If you want the lactation to dry up, stop expressing.  Everytime you stimulate your nipples you are telling your breasts to continue to produce.  Your body is designed this way, think of in ancient times how they had wet nurses.  These were women who produced milk as a living.  Also, ice packs will help dry you up.

[peekawho]

You need to see a doctor.  There are other reasons for galactorrhea.  I'm sure your doc would want to know about this.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galactorrhea

Good luck!

[julietredefined]

thanx everyone for responding.  
rockrose - after going to that site i called my ob/gyn she said it doesn't sound normal and would pass on the info i gave her to their lactation specialist and would get back with me either today after lunch or monday.

if it is a prolactin problem does anyone know how long it would take for something like that to be corrected?  dh and i am very eager to ttc.

i'll write again when the nurse calls back.  *fingers crossed*

[julietredefined]

and another thing is i was around 3 mths when m/c and i read online that there shouldn't be milk til 4 mths.

[RockRose]

Julie,  were you very far along when you miscarried?  If you were early in the pregnancy,  it sounds possible you have prolactin production problems that may be  unrelated to the pregnancy.

Here's a link about prolactin.  You may want to get it checked out,  because while you're producing that much breast milk your chances of getting pregnant are very much reduced.

Best wishes.  


http://www.sharedjourney.com/define/prolactin.html

[boosty]

wow, i never knew of anyone who had milk at 4 months. first of all, i am sorry about your mc. i have a little 2 year old girl and when i gave birth to her , thats when i started having milk and even that had to be squeezed out of me to get it to be regular and easy to feed. i heard that you have to tie your breast tight with a big cloth like wrap yourself . kind of like you dont want your breasts to show over your shirt. so tight. i dont know if thats true, but thats how my best friend did. i have a two year old and i only breast fed her for two months and it just kind of stopped at two months cause i didnt have anymore to give her. but until today, if i squeeze my nipples, a drop will come out. my doctor said its okay. thats all she said.