Breastfeeding After Surgery
Breast Reduction Surgery Does Not Preclude Nursing
Women who have had breast reduction surgery can still breastfeed their babies. Galactagogues and supplementation devices may be needed, but it is worth the extra effort.
For most women undergoing breast reduction surgery, breastfeeding is the furthest thing from their minds. They are simply tired of the back pain, lifestyle limitations, unwanted attention, and ill-fitting clothing. Many of them are in their teens and early twenties. Breast reduction surgery has an extremely high satisfaction rate among patients, but that satisfaction often disappears once a woman realizes she is pregnant and is suddenly faced with a stark reality: a decision she made in her youth might now affect her ability to feed and nurture her baby at the breast.
You CAN Breastfeed After Reduction Surgery
While breast reduction surgery almost always compromises lactation potential to some extent, the good news is a woman can still breastfeed her baby. The question becomes not whether she can or can't breastfeed, but rather how much milk she will make.
Almost all post-breast reduction moms will produce some amount of milk, though some types of surgeries are less damaging to the mammary system than others. Some mothers will still have a full supply of milk after surgery, especially if their surgeon took care to preserve their mammary tissue, vital nerves, and ducts. Other mothers find that, with the help of herbal or prescription galactagogues, they are able to meet all or most of their baby's needs. A large percentage of mothers, however, will find that while they do indeed make milk, they aren't able to supply 100% of their baby's needs at the breast and will need to supplement.
Supplementation Devices Can Help
There are a variety of methods that can be used to supplement a baby who needs more milk than his or her mom can supply at the breast alone. A popular choice for women who are breastfeeding after reduction surgery is an at-breast supplementer such as the Medela SNS or the Lact-aid Nursing Trainer. These apparatus are basically a pouch or container filled with supplement that hangs around the mother's neck with a thin tube that is positioned alongside the nipple. When the baby takes the nipple and areola into his mouth, the tube goes in too, and the supplement flows along with any mother's milk that is being extracted from the breast at the same time.
The benefit to using an at-breast supplementer is that it avoids nipple or flow preference which can result from the use of bottles. It also stimulates the breast to produce as much milk as possible while still providing the baby with the extra nutrients she needs.
Breastfeeding After Reduction Surgery Support
The challenges of breastfeeding after reduction surgery can be great, especially when you realize that these are on top of all of the typical and potential problems any breastfeeding mom might encounter. However, further information is available at a site established by Diana West, certified lactation consultant. Diana West is the author of Defining Your Own Success, Breastfeeding After Breast Reduction Surgery (2001), and mother of three boys, all of whom she breastfed after her own reduction surgery. Information and support from other women facing these challenges can be found on her BFAR (Breast Feeding After Reduction) site in the form of forums dedicated to the joys and disappointments of this journey.
Despite whatever difficulties a breastfeeding mom may face, she can still enjoy the fact that she is feeding her baby in the most healthy, natural way possible. As midwife Becca Raper pointed out to me in 2006 during a prenatal visit, "It's not about how much milk you make. It's about putting your baby to your breast."
