Mastitis - Vidor,TX

Warm moist compresses and pumping in between feedings helped me. If it gets really bad, you may need an antibiotic.

Dear Lois:

I am a nurse at a local hospital and a Certified Lactation Counselor. You are correct in nursing more and pumping more on the affected side. However, if it is mastitis, it needs to be treated with antibiotics. It will not go away on its own. Tylenol and warm compresses can alleviate some of the discomfort but you need to call your OBGYN. If you tell them you think you have mastitis they will either want to see you right away or call you in some antibiotics. Good luck. Let me know how it works out and you can always email me if you have any breastfeeding questions.

You will need antibiotics in order to treat the condition completely.

Try a hot compress. Soak a washcloth or hand towel in hot water and apply it to the sore area. It also helps to massage the area if you are having problems with clogged ducts, which might cause hard lumps in your breasts. If this doesn't help after a couple of days you should definitely call your doctor. It might take some atibiotics if you have an infection, which can be really painful!

Oh, I hope you are feeling better now. Mastitis is horrible. I got it after my having my youngest son. I felt horrible. So, hope that your antibiotics worked and you are feeling much better now.

If it is mastitis, you will get a very high fever (around 103) and feel like you are dying. Your breast will also get very red in one spot and be extremely tender. You need to call your doctor because you need antibiotics. Once you get those, you will feel better quickly. I got mastitis twice, and it is no fun!!

You may need a round of antibiotics. There are several that are safe for you to take while nursing. You also need to make sure YOU are adequately hydrated. Sipping a cup of tea while nursing isn't going to do it. You need to consume adequate fluids because you are hydrating two people now. The cabbage thing might help also but you might consider talking to a lactation specialist over the weekend. Many of them are willing to talk to you at least once over the phone to get you through a painful issue. I didn't look to see where you live but there is a wonderful lactation specialist at Woodlands Memorial Hospital. Also, if you are on WIC you can check with them as well when they open. In the meantime, hit the local phonebook and see what you can find or call the LaLeche League ( I think they have an 800 number).
Good luck,
C.

Hi Lois,

I delivered twins and was breast feeding then had a medical complication so I couldn't allow breastfeeding due to the medications I had to take. I developed severe Mastitis. It was horrible - I feel for you. My OB/GYN said the only thing that would relieve the pain was green cabbage leaves. I would use the largest cabbage leaves to cup my breast then placed a bag of frozen peas (instead of ice) on top of that then wrapped it tightly with an ace bandage - every 4 hours - 24/7 until the pain subsided - about a week. As weird as it sounds...the nurses at the hospital also said this was the only known treatment. My breast were so engorged and hard as a rock and terribly painful. I then got horrible flu-like symptoms for a couple of days and my breast began reducing in size and feeling better thereafter.

Best of luck to you.

I also used the hot, hot water in the shower, plus massage. It helps to loosen the clog. It might be painful, but it's better than waiting for a real infection to set in. And I also encourage you to continue nursing through it. (And try to nurse exclusively, as opposed to pumping - babies seem to do a much more thorough job than a pump.) I know it can be extremely painful, but just know that it won't last. It will heal, and you and your baby will be happier that you made it through the pain & trial. God bless!

Sincerely,
M. B

Call your local La Leche League (LLL) Leader. You can find a group near you online. They are the ones who know the most about breastfeeding. Get in a warm shower and massage the breast. Then keep nursing on it. If you are running fever, you probably need to call your doctor to get an antibiotic. Try the LLL leader first though because they may know something to do to keep you from having to take an antibiotic. Antibiotics can give the baby thrush, diarrhea, or other kinds of issues, and can give you yeast infections. Take yogurt and/or a probiotic with the antibiotic to help if you have to take one.

Hang in there - you are doing such a great thing by breastfeeding your baby!

WarmLLLy,
K.

I recommend contacting the Lactation Consultant at your nearest hospital for assistance. You may get some relief by alternately applying warm and cold compresses. If it is a clogged duct this may allow for the blockage to be released. Mastitis is also accompanied by fever and flu-like symptoms that get progressively worse. Rest, frequent breastfeeding (non-affected breast first), drinking fluids, and gentle massage of the breast will all help.

Lois,

If you suspect you may be getting or have mastitis, you really should get an appointment with your careprovider to get a prescription for antibiotics. Mastitis is usually accompanied by pain, tenderness, redness, fever, and a general "flu-like" sensation in the body. It is caused by the Staphlococcus aureus bacteria, so a good, broad-spectrum antibiotic will help. Doctors usually prescribe amoxicillin or ampicillin, or erythromycin for those who are allergic to the penicillin drugs.

By all means, however, you should NOT stop nursing on the infected side! This will make the infection worse and seriously affect your milk supply. At least keep pumping! Also, please do not let anyone tell you to stop nursing while you have this infection or are taking the antibiotics. This has been proven multiple times to be much more harmful to the baby than the very minimal exposure your baby will be getting by continuing to nurse. The medications prescribed for mastitis are completely safe while breastfeeding.

If you continue to have problems, please also contact a lactation consultant. If you are in the San Antonio area. I can highly recommend Kathy Parkes, IBCLC. I send many of my clients to her and have known and trusted her for many years. She will make house visits. Her phone number is: ###-###-####.

Blessings,

R.

R. Rabenschlag, LM, CPM, CD(DONA), CLD, ICCE-CD
Midwife, Doula, Childbirth and Lactation Educator
Multiple Blessings Childbirth Services
San Antonio, Texas
###-###-####

let hot water run over it in the shower. i use to have the same problem...don't worry, it doesn't last.

get an antibiotic. you have an infection that can get worse over time if not treated properly. call your ob/gyn and he/she can prescribe something. encourage your child to nurse from the infected breast as much as possible. nursing helps the healing process. the milk tastes salty from an infected breast, so the child may not want to nurse from that breast, but coax as much as possible.

once you start the medication, you'll start feeling much better!

good luck!!

This tried and tested women's folk wisdom remedy often works, and certainly brought me relief: run to the store and buy a whole green cabbage. Red cabbage will probably work if you can't find green. (note: half a cabbage won't work -- you need the whole leaf.) Refrigerate. Tuck one whole leaf into your bra, and swap for a new one as it gets warm. The coolness will help and bring relief. Also, the cabbage has the properties of reducing heat, and reducing swelling. It may also have the property of drawing out impurities caused by infection, or similar, but I can't quite remember the details of that part, so don't quote me on that part! Anyway, many women find this soothing and relieving. But hurry, don't let it get any worse! You are doing well - don't give up the breastfeeding! -- Good luck!

Hi Lois- I know how painful that can be... you might want to try putting cabbage leaves on your breast. I know it sounds weird, but just refrigerate it and then put the leaves all around your breast. Try to leave them on, if you can just sit still and rest. If that doesn't work, you might have to get an antibiotic. I have mastitis with my first baby, when I was weaning him and it is really painful. Good luck!
--S.

Try putting warm compresses on the tender area, maybe sit in the bath and let warm water run on it for about 10 minutes and then try pumping while massaging the tender spot at the same time (if you can). If you can't get it worked out on your own by tomorrow then you should call your doctor. If it develops into mastitis then you could have an infection - it can become very serious if not treated properly. I would get those tender spots (sometimes lumps and very painful) while I was nursing and I was able to work it out by doing what I mentioned above. Good luck!

Lois,
I think you need to get in touch with your ob dr asap or go to the er. you need to get on some antibiotics asap. good luck and hope you feel better.
jenh

Dear L M, A similar thing happened to me when I was nursing my second daughter. She did not seem to want to nurse on that particular side and that side got a lot more full. It was like she favored one side over another. (I know it sounds wierd)Once it got to a certain point it only got more painful for her to nurse. For me I was just really producing a lot of milk and she was not needing all that I was making. The pain that I was having was like needles were poking at me. Very painful. I pumped and pumped and got her to nurse has much as I could. Just keep at it and remember there is a lot of milk in there!! Call your doctor if you think it is truly mastitis. Good luck. LR

First try putting a warm cloth on your breast and massaging it while the baby feeds. Or while you are in a steamy shower, massage and express milk. Most of the time, doing these things a few times will get rid of the mastitis. If not, call your doctor. It might have gotten bad enough that home remedies will not work. You may need antibiotics.

http://health.yahoo.com/topic/pregnancy/afterdelivery/art...

I found this site this morning. It has some really good information about mastitis. I also suggest hot compresses. That is what helped me most when I was breastfeeding. If it doesn't get better soon, however, I suggest you see your doctor. You may need antibiotics. I hope this helps you.

A.

I have 2 little children & have had mastitis many times. The best thing to do is nurse, nurse, nurse on that side even though it hurts terribly. You can also stand in a warm/hot shower and try to massage the area that hurts and is red. It may go away on it's own, but if you start running any fever you're going to need an antibiotic. Those infections tend to give you high fever fast, so just be careful. I hope you get to feeling better! Those things are terrible.

B.

I have nursed three kids for long periods of time. I think if you start nursing her on the side she prefers and then switch her to the other one soon after she starts nursing this will help. It won't hurt as badly since she won't be starving and the suction won't be as painful and then nurse on the sore side to relieve the fullness. I can so relate to the pain and discomfort but the rewards of nursing are so great it is worth it. If it continues you should probably see the doc again.