Q: Hi,
I read the Wise Woman Herbal some time ago but I don't have it with me at this time and have a lactation question. I remember the book gave information about galactagogues but I don't remember if it gave information also about plants that discourage milk production. I'd appreciate it if you could help me with this. I know sage, parsley and peppermint are known to decrease milk supply but I'd like to make sure that whatever method or amount I use is safe for me and my child. My child is 3-years old. I've been trying to wean her for a year, gradually, but she resists the weaning and keeps nursing numerous times, day and night, every time she needs comfort or is tired or bored or wakes up. The weaning experiences a regression every time she's sick with a cold. It's hard to deny comfort to a sick child. I don't have huge amounts of milk, but since she breastfeeds so often, it seems that I always have milk. I think that given her age and stage of development it would help if milk was less available. I think she would understand that there is no milk more than other explanations that might make her feel rejected. Please let me know if Susun Weed has written anything on weaning and what would be the proper technique/herb dosage to use.
Thank you very much for your help.
d.
A: Hello D., yes Susun has written a bit about herbs to help decrease milk production in her Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year. I too am away from my library until after the new year, and at that point I am happy to look at more details. I know Juliette de Bairacli Levy goes even into more depth on this. Not only the herbs to decrease production, but the foods to introduce while weaning your child, and even a suggested routine to follow.
I am a mom too and have talked with many as I struggled over the weaning. Many of us do. I know it seems easier to just get rid of the milk so they are forced off, since it hurts us to say no and watch our dear little one cry. Even if we can say "sorry, not my responsibility, the milk is gone" I believe they will know our resistance and desire to stop. It seems to that as we near our desire to wean our child they cling tighter. This then happens in later years as we near to enforcing a boundary of any sort as they test to be sure the boundary is there. As much as possible it is great if we can be firm in our boundary and let go of our guilt enough to stay present and loving with our child.
Sage is a great tried and true way to decrease milk. Used often enough, I do not believe it is harmful to the child in the amount she or he would receive. I have heard some use the tincture, and more often and what I favor is drinking the infusions of the dried leaves. Sip it through the day until you find an amount that has effect.
At three you can still talk with your child and be true and direct about what you want.
lots of love,
please do let me know if you would like me to type from the
above mentioned books for further support,
Karen Joy
wisewoman@herbshealing.com
www.wisewomanweb.com
Q: Hello Joy -- Thank you very much for all your kind advice and sharing. You're very right about all those emotions both for mother and child during weaning. It seems particularly hard when the child already communicates and can clearly articulate what she wants and has the physical and cognitive development to ask for it and even go and get it. I have not wanted to wean her cold turkey and have waited to see if she weans herself, but she doesn't. I just want to be prepared and use herbal or other gentle aid when the moment comes that she seems more ready -- and I feel more ready -- to end breastfeeding.
Of course, I'd very much appreciate the additional herbal advice that you kindly offer. Thank you!
Blessings,
d.
A: D., I do understand, I too had an image of my son weaning slowly on his own. And this happens for many so I do hope it is a wonderful gentle transition for you :)
I see mention of the sage tea or infusion in Susun's Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year, with no warning about consuming it while nursing.
Here are some excerpts from Juliette de Bairacli Levy's Nature's Children. She has a unique writing style. I love what she writes though do not personally agree with every choice. I love her passion. I trust you to find in there what feel appropriate for you and what not....
"Breast-feeding, when the mother is normally healthy and strong, is the easiest stage of child-rearing. But weaning can be difficult for mother and babe... With every new child the mother has to choose the time for beginning the weaning from her breast milk. There can be no fixed rule for this. The time factor differs with every individual child, and with the mother herself...."
"Weaning is a time of delicate mental adjustment for the child who could easily feel rebuffed and deprived. The new foods should be offered with enthusiasm and love, with care taken to ensure that the child enjoys them...."
"When true weaning begins, in order to slow the production of milk, the mother will cut down her consumption of liquids. She should take several charcoal tablets before meals and eat plenty of garden mint, also sorrel if it can be obtained. There are several kinds of sorrel and any will serve. The great reed (Arundo donax) is also credited with possessing powers which inhibit secretion of milk. The white inner pith is chewed, about a teaspoon, several times daily. Drinks of comon salt in water are also taken by the mother. Vinegar in which caraway seeds have been soaked for approximately ten days is applied to the chest and breast, using a flannel soaked in the lotion, and binding into place at night for seven nights in succession.... Next, begin to omit one breast-feed every seven days; give the infant cow's or goat's milk, warmed to moderate heat (but never boiled), and fed by the cup and teaspoon. If the milk has been pasteurized, then it should be fortified by adding some "strong water" made from soaking rolled oats overnight in tepid water to cover, then pressing out the liquid the following morning and adding a table spoon of honey [not if under a year old].... After three weeks of this slow weaning treatment, it is time for complete weaning. Fix some food such as "Slippery Elm Gruel" [recipe in book] twice daily, at midday and in the evening. Follow it with some mashed raw fruit... or offer finely grated vegetables such as carrots....Frequent drinks of water (or herbal teas), as advised for the breast-fed infant, are especially important for the weaning infant. On waking, let the child have a drink of lemon water...or add the lemon juice to barley water...."
It appears to me this is designed for the younger child weaning as she goes on to say by 18 months the child should be completely weaned. She lived with gypsies, so her ideas are tailored to this lifestyle. She favors vegetarianism, raw fresh milk, and raw foods. Perhaps something of what she writes will be a support :)
lots of love, write any time, for more ideas, discuss options, or just caring from anther mother, Karen Joy
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