I have had some good luck with rock hard breasts getting softened by
using  lymphatic drainage ideas.  We keep trying to get milk down and
out of nipple with the massaging and pushing *down*, but the pathways
for lymph drainage that need to go *up* to armpits or upper chest are
blocked by the skin tissue swelling- and the congestion can't get out,
especially because we keep massaging *down*.

Have mom lie down on her back on the bed with her head and a bit of
shoulders hanging over the edge. As I understand it, the head back
position opens up the lymph drainage area at base of  neck below the
Adams' apple area, if women had Adams' apples!  Starting from the top of
the breasts do a gentle light skimming motion (not deep massage) towards
the neck area, starting on the chest, and then gradually moving out on
the breast area, working from the breast  area then skim to neck, go out
a little farther on breast, then inch by inch skim towards neck. The arm
pit area is another drainage area, so using the same skimming motion on
the outer edges of breast up and out towards armpits can help take care
of the outside edges of breast- stretch arms out to open up arm pit
area.

Couple this with the ice and cabbage and ibuprofen already mentioned.

We had a speaker come to talk with our local coalition who is a
certified lymphatic drainage specialist as well as having cranial sacral
training.  This woman's techniques have helped countless of my babies
and moms- it is amazing to watch the swelling go down.

Karen Foard, IBCLC

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