How To Stop Producing Breast Milk

Last medically reviewed on September 9, 2019

How to Stop Breastfeeding

You’ve decided the time has come to stop breastfeeding or chestfeeding. There isn’t an exact way to know how long it will take for your milk supply to dry up. You can start by slowly decreasing the number of times you nurse your baby.

The time has come. You’ve made the decision to stop breastfeeding, and now you’re experiencing all the feels.

Maybe you’re beyond ready to get rid of your nipple shields, breast pump, and breast pads. Perhaps you’re not personally ready to stop breastfeeding, but it’s become evident that you shouldn’t continue. Maybe you never breastfed, but need to dry up your milk supply after being pregnant.

Whatever your reason and however you’re feeling about this decision, know that it’s OK.

Whether your baby is 3 days old or 3 years old, we know that you’ve probably put a lot of thought into this decision — and we’ve got your back. (Or should we say front?) We’ve got the information you need to efficiently stop breastfeeding as comfortably as possible.

Although there isn’t a precise formula for determining how long it will take to dry up your milk supply, we hope following some of the suggestions below can make it an easier process.

Ideally, you stop breastfeeding over a period of weeks or even months. This allows your milk supply to gradually decrease as milk is removed less often.

Depending on the age of your child, this extra time also gives you the opportunity to introduce other solids and liquids besides breastmilk. Giving yourself time to slowly wean off breastfeeding will be more comfortable and less stressful. (Slow and steady wins the race!)

But sometimes it may not be possible to stretch out the weaning process. If you need to stop breastfeeding quickly (or even cold turkey), here are some suggestions to help the process:

Begin by dropping the breastfeeding session that your child seems least interested in. Many people maintain the early morning or bedtime breastfeeding sessions for last. Unless you’re going cold turkey there’s no need to give up those sleepy snuggles right away!
Wear a supportive bra that doesn’t put pressure on your breasts or cut into them. (Yes, we just offered you an excuse to go shopping!)
If you really need to dry up your milk supply quickly, talk to your doctor about the possibility of usingSudafed, birth control, or herbs to try to reduce milk production.
Consider also talking to your doctor about offering your child formula or another age-appropriate food itembeforeoffering the breast at feeding session times to decrease interest in breastfeeding.
Offer your child only one breast per feed and try to stick to a fixed feeding routine to minimize breastfeeding “snacking.”
If your breasts become engorged and painful, try to hand express or use a hand pump just until you feel more comfortable. Try not to empty your breasts. You don’t want to trigger an increase in the supply!

You may have experienced physical changes — and emotional ups and downs — as your milk supply increased. Now, as your body stops producing milk, many of those same side effects may appear again (or for the first time if you didn’t experience them when your milk came in.)

For example, you may find yourself with engorged breasts from milk not being drained out regularly. Clogged ducts or mastitis may come along with this. You may also find that your breasts leak some of the excess milk and that you feel a great amount of sadness, anxiety, anger — or even happiness.

Wondering how you can minimize some of the unpleasantness or deep emotions? The answer, though perhaps not what you want to hear, probably comes as no surprise: You may have fewer (or less severe) side effects to deal with if you prolong the weaning process.

By giving your body more time to adjust and decrease milk production, engorgement may be less — which generally means less breast swelling and less boob pain.

If you do experience side effects, consider treating your symptoms with some of our tips below sooner rather than later.

If you’re ready to stop breastfeeding and dry up your milk supply, a good rule of thumb is to plan to drop one feeding session every 3 to 5 days. This sounds simple and straightforward enough, but let’s talk about minimizing some of the common issues that come with this tried-and-true method.

Preventing mastitis

No matter how long your milk supply is lasting, one method not to use to reduce milk production is breast binding. This may cause clogged ducts and mastitis.

Mastitis — basically, inflammation usually caused by infection — can come with a great deal of pain. In addition to not binding your breasts, consider the following tips to help avoid mastitis as you stop breastfeeding.

We can’t say this enough: Give yourself time to slowly discontinue your feeding and pumping sessions. One of the major causes of mastitis is milk buildup in the breast tissue. Slowly tapering off feeding sessions gives the body more time to gradually decrease the milk supply so the milk buildup won’t be as great.
Make sure to continue taking good care of your breast tissue. Bacteria can enter through any sores or cuts leading to an infection and mastitis.
Only use pumps that fit properly!

Should any signs of mastitis — such as fever and hard red bumps — develop during weaning, immediately notify your doctor as you may need antibiotics or other medical treatment.

Dealing with the emotional ups and downs

Even with slow and steady weaning, your hormones are changing. And we’re not going to sugarcoat it — even if you haven’t been a fan of breastfeeding (which is totally OK, by the way), it can be emotionally tough to stop and may even feel like you’re losing some closeness with your sweet baby. (Don’t worry, though — the bond you have with your child will only deepen as the years go by.)

Some tips for dealing with this roller coaster if it happens:

Make sure that you’re getting sufficient rest and nutrition. This will help regulate your hormones and make you feel your best!
Find a support group or friend who understands what you’re going through.
Spend time doing your favorite activities and hobbies.
Get those endorphins flowing with some exercise!

Using home remedies for painful boobs

Here are some effective ways of treating sore breasts and engorgement at home:

Use cold packs and over-the-counter pain medications to help with pain and inflammation.
Hand express as needed to take a little breast milk out of the breasts tissue and relieve that pressure. (But be careful not to empty the breast completely and trigger more milk production!)
Some women report that using some cold cabbage leaves inside a well supporting, but not tight, bra helps with engorgement.

Helping your baby through the process

Let’s be honest: Weaning can be hard on both mom and baby. If you find yourself with an enraged child, take a deep breath and try the following:

Offer a pacifier for your child to suck on in place of your breast.
Offer your child plenty of liquids and solid foods if age appropriate. Make sure to check with your child’s doctor to ensure that all of their nutritional needs are being met.
Continue to spend plenty of time cuddling with your child and bonding!
If your baby associates bedtime (or other activities) with breastfeeding, consider having your partner take over these duties during weaning.

Whatever your reasons for moving on from breastfeeding, you deserve to be as pain-free as possible — physically and emotionally. It’s important to be kind to yourself and your body. Remember this is not the end, but rather the beginning of a new stage with your child.

If you have to stop breastfeeding quickly, talk to your doctor about methods that can help — and keep a watchful eye on your symptoms. Otherwise, try dropping a feeding every 3 to 5 days and remember that no matter the emotional ups and downs of the process, you’re doing a wonderful job.

How to Dry Up Breast Milk

Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH is a professor, author, childbirth and postpartum educator, certified doula, and lactation counselor.

Updated on September 26, 2022

Brian Levine, MD, MS, FACOG, is board-certified in obstetrics-gynecology, as well as reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI). He is the director and founding partner of CCRM New York and was named a rising star by Super Doctors from 2017 to 2019.

Ariel Skelley / Getty Images

Table of Contents
Table of Contents

Whether you have been breastfeeding for months (or years) and are ready to wean or you plan to feed your baby formula from the start, it’s important to know how to dry up breast milk. Suppressing lactation can be a gradual process done over many weeks or you may seek to move the process along more quickly, particularly if you don’t intend to breastfeed or are experiencing engorgement.

How long the process takes varies from person to person based on their individual situation, such as how long they have been producing breast milk. Generally, the longer you have been nursing, the longer it will take to dry up your milk. In fact, some breastfeeding parents report being able to express small amounts of breast milk long after their child has stopped nursing. Methods for ceasing breast milk production include decreasing or avoiding nursing or taking certain medications.

Whatever your reasons for suppressing lactation, there are a variety of ways to effectively and safely dry up your breast milk while minimizing the risk of infection or engorgement. Here’s what you need to know about drying up your breast milk.

Verywell / Brianna Gilmartin

How to Dry Up Breast Milk

Avoid nipple or breast stimulation
Stop or gradually reduce breastfeeding, pumping, or hand expression
Take medications (under your doctor’s supervision) that may curtail breast milk production, such as birth control pills containing estrogen or some cold medications
Try herbal remedies, such as sage or peppermint teas

How Milk Production Works

You’ll begin to make a small amount of breast milk while you’re pregnant. After your baby is born, breast milk production increases. By the third or fourth day after delivery, your milk will “come in.” You will most likely feel this in your breasts, which can feel very full or engorged at first.

Breast milk production works on a supply and demand system. So, the more you breastfeed, pump, or hand express breast milk, the more will be produced. The process works the same in reverse. If you stop or reduce breastfeeding, pumping, or hand expression, your milk production will begin to slow down, and eventually, dry up.

However, even if you don’t breastfeed at all, you make breast milk for at least a few weeks after your baby is born. If you don’t pump or breastfeed, your body will eventually stop producing milk, but it won’t happen right away.

If you have chosen not to breastfeed, you might wonder if there is anything that you can do to prevent lactation. When you are pregnant, you will experience the same hormonal changes (including those that stimulate milk production) whether you decide to breastfeed or not. There is no way to stop this process.

That said, after giving birth your breast milk will dry up if it is not used. This means that the less you stimulate your nipples or breasts after giving birth, the faster your milk supply will dry up. However, how long this takes is different for each person.

When and Why to Start Drying Up Breastmilk

There are many different reasons for wanting to dry up your breast milk—and just as many “right” times to do it. New parents who choose not to breastfeed will dry up their breast milk in the early days after giving birth. Some people choose to pump and donate the breastmilk they make but are not planning to use. Other parents are ready to wean.

Parents who experience the loss of a baby may want to stop producing milk as soon as possible. Other parents may need to stop making milk due to going back to work, needing to travel away from their baby, or for a medical reason, though the weaning might only be temporary.

Be sure to consult with an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) if you are told you need to wean for a medical reason, as there are typically options that will allow you to maintain your breast milk supply and continue breastfeeding afterward.

Additionally, parents of babies who are transitioning to formula, cow’s milk (recommended after age 1), and/or solid foods (recommended at 6 months old) may want to start drying up their milk at various points in their baby’s development. For example, some parents choose to stop breastfeeding at 3 months old, 6 months old, 1 year old, or at any time before or after. Ultimately, there is no one right time, just what works for you and your family.

How to Dry Up Breastmilk

Making a decision about weaning is up to you and your specific situation. It can help to discuss strategy and timing with a lactation counselor or your health care provider. After you have made the decision to dry up your breast milk, you’ll make a plan for which approach you will take. There are multiple options, but generally, you can choose between faster or more gradual methods.

Some people decide to take a more natural approach and let their milk dry up on its own. Others use medications as well to help dry up their milk faster. Choose the method that works best for you, but be sure to ask your medical practitioner before taking any medications or herbs to help dry up your milk supply.

Understanding how the process of weaning works will help ensure it goes smoothly for you. Essentially, to decrease your milk supply, you need to decrease the demand. This means that you will want to express your breast milk as little as possible. Follow the below steps.

Decrease or Stop Feedings and Pumping

Reduce the amount of time you spend breastfeeding or don’t do it at all. If you were previously feeding your baby or pumping, decreasing feedings or pumping sessions slowly will cause you the least discomfort. Avoid pumping for comfort and any nipple stimulation (which includes sexual stimulation). However, if you are experiencing engorgement, brief periods of hand expression or pumping can help to relieve pain without overstimulating breast milk production.

Don’t Squeeze

Resist the temptation to squeeze your breasts or nipples to see if you’re still making breast milk. Stimulating your breasts or nipples while they’re drying up could lead to the continued production of a small amount of breast milk, which prolongs the process.

Avoid Hot Showers

Some people find that a hot shower can elicit the milk ejection reflex (sometimes called a “let down”). Standing with your back to the water can keep this from happening. If you must face the showerhead, try using a towel draped over your breasts. However, a warm bath can help relieve discomfort while also not overstimulating breast milk production.

Pay Attention to Diet

Some foods (known as lactogenic foods) can make your body produce more breast milk. If you’re trying to dry up your breast milk supply, avoid eating lactogenic foods such as oats, flax, and brewers yeast.

Medication Options

While not necessary, in addition to cutting back or not breastfeeding, there are medications that may help curtail your supply. These are medications that need to be avoided while you are breastfeeding because they are known to decrease breast milk supply. So, if you’re trying to dry up your milk supply, your doctor might suggest taking these medications to help the process along.

However, if you are breastfeeding a little or saving any breast milk for your baby to consume, be sure the medication is safe for your baby before taking it.

Birth Control Pill

The first medication parents can try to help dry up their milk supply is a combination birth control pill. This option requires a prescription, so consult with your OB/GYN on if this is a good option for you.

Unlike the mini-pill—which is approved for breastfeeding parents and only contains progestin—combination pills contain estrogen and progestin. It’s the estrogen in the pill that may prevent or reduce the production of breast milk supply.

Keep in mind that this medication is a contraceptive. If you have plans to become pregnant again soon, it might not be the best method for you.

Decongestants

Another category of medication that is sometimes recommended to help decrease breast milk supply is decongestants. These drugs are typically used when someone has a cold, but a possible side effect is decreased breast milk production.

Pseudoephedrine, commonly sold under the brand name Sudafed, treats cold symptoms because it decreases secretions—including breast milk. In one study, a 60-milligram dose of pseudoephedrine decreased milk supply by 24%.

The medication is usually available over-the-counter (OTC). However, pseudoephedrine is sometimes used off-label and even illegally, so the ability to purchase it is limited in some states. Even when used correctly, pseudoephedrine can have serious side effects. Talk to your doctor before trying an OTC decongestant to help dry up your milk supply. That way, if this method is appropriate for you, you’ll be sure to take the medication safely,

Medications No Longer Used

In the past, certain medications were sometimes given to new parents in the hospital to dry up their breast milk supply—especially if they chose not to breastfeed.

Your parent or grandparent might have mentioned that they received a shot in the hospital to stop their milk supply, but this practice is no longer used in the United States. The drugs are no longer given because many were found to not only be ineffective but also have adverse side effects.

Pyridoxine, Parlodel (bromocriptine), and high doses of estrogen were once used to help dry up a new parent’s breast milk supply, but these drugs are no longer given.

Many of these medications were found to not only be ineffective at drying up breast milk, but potentially dangerous .

Herbal Options

If you are looking for a more natural approach to drying up your milk, there are various herbs that have been used by different cultures for centuries. Remember, though, that herbs can act like medications, meaning they have risks and side effects. It’s important to talk to your health care provider before trying any herbal supplement or remedy.

Sage and peppermint are often recommended to help decrease breast milk production. Sage can be found at health food stores in tincture, pill, or tea form, Peppermint is often consumed as a tea. According to the La Leche League USA, many people find that drinking safe or peppermint tea helps to dry up breastmilk.

Herbalists often recommend drinking several cups of herbal teas throughout the day to help dry up breast milk. Companies have even created tea blends specifically for this purpose, such as the No More Milk Tea by Earth Mama Angel Baby. However, note that herbal and dietary supplements are not as rigorously tested as medications are for safety or efficacy. So, the promises on the labels may not be accurate.

Temporary Weaning

If you have been advised to temporarily wean your baby from breast milk, you’ll need to understand why weaning is necessary before you pick a method of drying up your milk (even temporarily).

For example, if you are having a medical procedure that requires you to take a medication, it might need to clear from your breast milk before you’ll be able to feed your baby. In this situation, you would need to follow different procedures than if your baby simply needed to go without breast milk for a short time to have a medical test.

The key to temporary weaning is maintaining your breast milk supply. Talk to a lactation consultant about supply maintenance, as there are different strategies you can use. You’ll likely need to use a breast pump or hand expression to mimic your baby’s natural feeding schedule as closely as possible. This will help you be prepared to quickly go back to feeding your baby at the breast with the least disruption.

If the reason for temporary weaning does not involve any medications passing into your breast milk, you may be able to simply pump or manually express milk until you can breastfeed again. If desired, you can store the breast milk to use at a later time.

Minimizing Discomfort

You may experience some discomfort during the weaning process. It’s common to experience some engorgement. Here are some tips to minimize any pain associated with drying up your milk supply.

Support Your Breasts

Make sure your bra fits properly. A bra that is slightly too tight can cause pain and may increase the risk of plugged milk ducts or mastitis.

Cold compresses can ease pain and also reduce swelling. While it was once recommended to put cabbage leaves in your bra to provide relief, some research has found no difference in comfort between those who used cabbage leaves compared to other cold compresses. However, many people find cabbage leaves to be a helpful and convenient option.

Take Pain Medication

Take an over-the-counter pain reliever like Tylenol ( acetaminophen ) or Motrin (ibuprofen) to help with any pain and pressure you experience.

Avoid Heat

Limit hot showers and don’t use warm compresses on your breasts. Very warm or hot water can stimulate breast milk production.

Use Breast Pads

Your breasts might leak breast milk when they become full or when you think about your baby or hear them cry. Wearing breast pads inside your bra can soak up unexpected leaks.

Minimize Breast Stimulation

If you are in extreme discomfort, you might need to remove a little bit of milk from your breasts for comfort. Do not empty the entire breast—only express enough milk to relieve pain and pressure. Pumping and hand expressing, or emptying the breast completely, signals your body to keep making breastmilk.

Weaning and Mastitis Risk

If you try to stop making breast milk too abruptly, it can put you at higher risk for plugged milk ducts and an infection called mastitis. Symptoms of a breast infection include the following:

Breast pain
Breasts that feel warm to the touch
Chills
Fever
“Flu-like” symptoms
Hard lumps in your breast (along with other symptoms)
Red streaks on your breast
Sweating

Slow weaning will help prevent engorgement and plugged milk ducts, which can lead to infection. If signs of infection develop, contact your doctor right away, as you’ll treatment to clear the infection.

A Word From Verywell

Drying up your breast milk is a process that can take time. Whether you have breastfed before or not, patience, medication, and a few tricks can help you reduce your milk supply with less discomfort. Gradual weaning will also help prevent painful breast infections like mastitis.

Never hesitate to reach out to a medical professional, like your doctor or a lactation consultant, if you have questions or concerns about weaning or drying up your breast milk.

Asking for help will be especially important if you need to temporarily decrease your milk supply for a medical reason, such as taking a medication that needs to clear your breast milk before nursing your child, or if your baby needs to stop feeding to have a medical test.

18 Sources

Verywell Family uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

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Additional Reading

AlSaad D, Awaisu A, Elsalem S, Abdulrouf PV, Thomas B, AlHail M. Is Pyridoxine effective and safe for post-partum lactation inhibition? A systematic review. J Clin Pharm Ther. 2017;42(4):373-382. doi:10.1111/jcpt.12526 [Epub ahead of print]
American Academy of Pediatrics. New Mother’s Guide to Breastfeeding. Bantam Books. New York. 2011.
Cole, M. Lactation after perinatal, neonatal, or infant loss. Clinical Lactation. 2012;3(3):94-100. doi:10.1891/215805312807022897
Hernandez P, Kisamore AN. Gradual weaning and oral care management of prolonged breastfeeding based on family preferences. J Am Dent Assoc. 2017;148(6):392-398. doi:10.1016/j.adaj.2017.01.025 Epub 2017 Mar 11.
Lawrence, Ruth A., MD, Lawrence, Robert M., MD. Breastfeeding A Guide For The Medical Profession Eighth Edition. Elsevier Health Sciences. 2015.

By Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH
Robin Elise Weiss, PhD, MPH is a professor, author, childbirth and postpartum educator, certified doula, and lactation counselor.

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How To Stop Producing Breast Milk