save me from giving up please

[the3ks]

just got back from docs where i was in tears, on the verge of giving up totally. spent all night lat night in tears whilst feeding my 3wk dd. turns out i have mastitis (sp) im in sheer agony! he s prescribed me antibiotics, and said to just feed on it and massage in a warm bath or shower, but to be honest with you it hurts so much i dont want to to feed on that breast. its right underneath my breast which even hurts to bend. any advice im gratefull for

[ImaVeryMerryChristmasFairy]

{{{{{hugs}}}}
no advice from me I'm afraid. I'm sure someone better will be along in a min

[Macdog]

Sorry to hear you having probs.
Best thing is to feed from it as it will ease off. I know that's probably not what you needed to hear .
Warmth will help with the pain and the antibiotics will kick in soon.
Get well soon {{{hugs}}}

[fishie]

poor you. here is lots of info. i seem to recall a suggestion of feeding in the bath? i've only had blocked ducts, but shower certainly helped.

[dara]

antibiotics will help very soon. In the meantime if you can't face feeding (and I know what that feels like!) try hand expressing in a warm bath - get your other half to bring you a nice cup of tea/glass of wine and stay there for as long as you like to help you relax, then just press on the hot, lumpy area and stroke firmly towards the nipple until you see the milk spiralling out (I found it much easier to do with as much of the breast under water as possible). It won't be a problem just to feed on the other side for a day or so. Good luck. It is a horrible thing to have but it can clear up very quickly and completely.

[belgo]

Please don't give up now - it will only make the problem worse! When I had mastitis, I took to my bed with my baby, and bf as much as possible, especially on the infected side, and in as many different positions as possible, and rested as much as possible. I know how painful it is, and how awful you must be feeling, but it will go very quickly with the right treatment!

[bundle]

I had mastitis 3 times with dd1, it's bloody agony. try feeding so your baby's chin is nearest to where the redness is, get your partner to ring her to you for feeding and rest as much as you can. feeding is the best thing tbh. take paracetamol if you're in pain and it should clear up soon. if you feel any fulness after it clears up try expressing (by hand if you don't have a pump) xxx

[bundle]

(that should be bring her )

[laundrylover]

I agree with the feeding lots but Ibruprofen will be better than parecetemol as it is anti immflamatory. In fact you can take both at the same time on an alternate basis (does that make sense?).
My last few bouts I have cleared without Abs as I also have thrush so this is a no go, so.....ibruprofen, feeding with gritted teeth and combing the lump with a wide toothed comb or my DDs hairbrush which has those hard spikes with a plastic nobble on the end.....that is a MN tip that really works.

Keep us posted and please don't stop feeding it'll all be forgotton about soon!!!!

[Tinker]

Ibuprofen is very good. Mastitis is so painful.

[eggnog]

Huge hugs. I had repeated mastitis and it is agony. There is lots of good advice here already, but what kept me going was someone saying to me, ' take one feed at a time'. i got through by saying to myself that each feed was my last. if i really couldnt face it i would express in the bath and get my mum, who came to stay and help out, to give the milk from a bottle. as the antibiotics kicked in it became easier and easier and here i am still bfing now 8 months later.

[umchuck]

So sorry to hear that you're in so much pain. I have never had mastitis but i did have incredibly chapped painful nipples for the first few weeks of BF and I found that Savoy cabbage leaves soothed and drew the heat out... just a thought.

x

[shonaspurtle]

I'm really feeling for you! I had this last week. Just wanted to repeat what pp said - the antibiotics work really quickly. You will be feeling a lot better soon so hang on in there if you can.

It's sore, but massaging the sore place towards the nipple helps clear it and ibuprofen and the cabbage leaves help with the heat and swelling.

I hope you feel better really soon.