Breast Pain - Minneapolis,MN

...maybe thrush? It can manifest as sharp "shooting" pains in the breast, especially if it gets into the ducts as mine did.

It sounds like a milk duct spasm. I got them a lot until a few weeks ago. Especially if my baby didn't empty the breast completely.

I assume you are breastfeeding, it isn't clearly stated. Sometimes sharp breast pain that is deep is related to a yeast infection. Does your baby appear to have thrush or a diaper rash? Is it worse with nursing?

Use cold cabbage leaves in your bra- it will sharply reduce breast pain and is safe and cheep. It worked wonders with my second kid when I had the same issue.

I would schedule an appointment with your regular physican immediately. You could still have plugged ducts that have caused a major infection in your breasts. Like some people I do not have fevers or any symptoms when I get a major infection until it is almost too late. Pain is a symptom that something is not right. Seek immediate help from your physican, he or she, is more qualified than your midwife in diagnosising your problem.

If the pain is worst after feeding you could have a yeast infection. I had very sharp pains after feeding and my doctor could not figure out what was causing it. I finally consulted a lactation specialist and she immediately diagnosed it at a yeast infection. I had to take a perscription medication for it to finally go away.

I agree with consulting your doctor. Most likely your midwife is right but it never hurts to get a second opinion. I think changes or pain in the breast should always be investigated (unless the pain is associated with your cycle). Hope you feel better soon.

The combination of hot pads, massaging, and then nursing until EMPTY usually worked for me. One thing I did the entire year I nursed was to have my daughter only nurse on one side druing each feeding. This way she was sure to empty that breast all the way.

Be on the watch for the fever/chills, and seek care immediately if you experience them.

I agree, go see your doctor. When I nursed my youngest (now 14), I had the same pains but mine ended up being cysts in the breast tissue. Thankfully mine aren't big enough to need surgery, but now that I'm over 40 they keep a close eye on me because of it (my mother has them too and she has needed to have hers surgically removed on several occasions). Now it only hurts when I pms and the pain is much milder since I stopped drinking caffeine (which promotes their growth). It would be a good idea to get it checked out just so you know what is going on with you...better to be informed than to wonder and worry...

I am actually wonderiing if what you are feeling is the let down. When I let down (the milk flows) I feel like I have a thousand pins sticking me all over my breast. Some women have a more painful let down then others. Is it a constant pain or does it come and go?
~M.

I had a similar sounding pain that ended up being a milk blister. The pain was intense shooting pain, and as worse after I was finished nursing. The pain was also only on one side. I thought that I possibly had thrush, though antibiotics would have not have helped. I know that there are 2 types of milk blisters, and was able to find information online. I know my pediatricians office also recommended lecithin, which you can find at an organic grocery store. Good luck!

I had thrush with my last three kids. You may not see much on the surface (as in white flaky stuff) but it is internal. I am not sure how it happens but I do know it is extremely painful. My doctor gave me Diflucan to get rid of it. The surface cream didn't really help. You take the medicine by mouth. It seems that not all doctors know about internal thrush but medicine cured the pain like nothing else.

Good luck. I feel your pain. M.

If you have an electric pump, work your way up to the strongest setting you can handle and massage your breasts, feeling for any full pockets. That always worked for me.

Doesn't sound like plugged ducts/mastitis at all, sounds like a yeast infection/thrush. Sharp shooting pains that start at the nipple and shoot through the breast, usually thrush. If thats the case, you will need to treat both yourself and your baby so you don't pass it back and forth.

Get some Acidophilus tablets, the kind yhou can break open. Start yourself on two at a time twice a day, and break one open and give 1/2 the powder to your baby once a day. Get some Gentian Violet at the pharmacy, paint your baby's mouth with it ,and both your nipples. Its bright purple so it will stain, but it works really fast.

Acidophilus is a probiotic, so it works to fight the bad yeast and replace it with good bacteria.

I agree with consulting your doctor. You may need a round of antibiotics. The longer something like that goes on the more likely it is an infection.

When you nurse your little one, try nursing in different positions. That way, if the mouth is positioned differently during latch-on, it may drain different ducts than are usually drained. Try the football hold, the cradle hold, nursing while laying down, etc. The best cure for mastitis is to nurse like crazy!

According to Susun Weed, author of Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year, frequent hot water treatments ( 4-5 times a day for 3-5 minutes) with consistent applications work better than sporadic, lengthy treatments. You may want to run a sink full of warm water, bend over it with breasts in the sink and allow milk to flow out, massaging down from the back of the breast.

You can use a hot compress of fresh or dried Parsley. Put a handful of the herb in a clean cotton diaper, tie w/ rubber band, and steep in simmering water for 10-15 min. Compress the breast with the hot, wet bundle. You can do the same with Comfrey.

A cold poultice of grated raw potato applied directly to the breast and covered with a clean cloth will help draw out heat of inflammation, localize infection and unblock clogged tubes. Remove or replace when dry.

You can do any of the warm compresses right before nursing. You can also pump every hour, but don't forget to keep nursing.

For actual mastitis, there are even more remedies including getting plenty of rest, hot applications at least 4x daily, and nursing as long and often as possible on the infected breast. Other herbs such as poke root, propolis (not really an herb) elder root, and echinacea angustifiola are also used.

I agree; try pumping some milk. That always worked for me, too.

I was never able to feel any swelling or bumps, but I did have tenderness and that sharp pain you describe. I massaged my breasts in a hot shower with the water spraying directly on them, then tried pumping after that, also while massaging. It took a while and a lot of persistance.

You will only have a fever or flu-like symptoms if you end up with an infection, not just a plugged duct. You can also try having the baby latch on in a different position so that other ducts get more of a "work-out".

Good luck!
-T.

I also have a six week old babe. I have had sharp pains as well, but my pain started with my nipples. I went to see the lactation consultant and she told me that my son had given me nerve damage. She said that not only can the nipples be painful, but I could get shooting pains elsewhere. I get those sometimes under my armpits and sometimes even through to my back. It doesn't happen all the time and not always in the same place.

The lactation consultant told me to also use warm pads, but to also take 200mg of vitamin B6 for four days and then 25mg for every day after that. She also told me to take ibuprofen if it was really painful. The vitamins sounded funny to me, but it really did help.