Weaning and Worrying

As a Christmas present to myself, I decided to wean my youngest son. My first three boys weaned almost without incident. The only real trouble I had was a blocked milk duct in my right breast very shortly after weaning my second oldest. I went to my ob/gyn and he literally milked me until the duct was unblocked. Suffice it to say this was not a pleasant experience (and anyone who has experienced a blocked milk duct or mastitis just cringed).

This time around everything seemed to be rolling along as planned. And then I found a lump in my left breast. I was only ten days out from weaning, so logic told me that it was just a blocked milk duct — especially since my son and I had gone cold turkey (he was totally fine with this, so don’t worry about his future stability). However, my emotional mind wasn’t so sure. Doesn’t breast cancer usually start in a milk duct? Maybe lactating had masked the symptoms. And why now, after ten days of no nursing?

Concerned, I called the lactation consultant at our local hospital. She told me to use a heating pad on my breast, and to self express a little milk to determine if it was a blockage. If the lump persisted for a week, I was supposed to call my doctor immediately. Amazingly, the minute I hung up the phone, my breast started leaking on its own, and the lump gradually shrank until it totally disappeared a couple of days later. It was a blocked milk duct, and the mere power of suggestion got the juices flowing (literally). I dissolved in tears of relief.

This wasn’t a near death experience per se, but I definitely saw my life flash before my eyes. Especially the future experiences yet to share with my husband and boys. So now I’ve resolved to start breast self-examinations and to get my mammograms on schedule. All in all, this turned out to be an even better Christmas present to myself than the weaning of my precious son.