is this mastitis?

[gorge2003]

i have extremely sore breasts not my actual breast though, just above them and my breastbone area feels really hot and really hurts to touch. feel a bit fluey too!

me and dd (6) weeks been having problems feeding for a few weeks and she is on formula but still having 1 or 2 feeds from me a day, has this appeared cos she isnt feeding from me enough?

i am trying to desperatly get her back onto breast....she was really fussing over it and thrashing around and was still hungry after thats why she got put on ff.

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

It does sound like a blocked duct. Do you have any flu-like symptoms, fever etc?

Can you express at all? If it is a blocked duct you need to get it cleared pronto, before it turns into mastitis. Will dd nurse from you still? The most efficient way to clear a blocked duct is a baby, but if you can't do that then pump, pump, pump!

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Duuurrr - just spotted your "feel a bit fluey".

Are there any red lines on your breast at all?

[gorge2003]

dont have a fever but im all achey.

dd will nurse from me so im gonna get her to when she wakes up, if she wont i will get the pump out! would a blocked duct really hurt above my breasts around breastbone area? kinda hurts in my shoulders too but not sure if thats just the general achey-ness i have! im not sure i will manage to express much as havent been able to for a little while now cos my milk is dropping alot with her being on ff and only have 1-2 feeds from me. think its time to really work hard on getting her feeding more if its gonna help, im in agony and feel pretty poorly!

[gorge2003]

well the breastbone area is the nasty bit...feels hot and looks red!

[Barking]

are there any red patches and/or lumps where the heat is?
If so, it sounds like mastitis.

no blocked ducts?

You could keep a muslin square (or any small toy) in your bra then give it to your dd so she gets use to your smell again.

Have you any other dc's? My dc2 use to fuss if too much going on in the background, sometimes feeding in a quiet dark room helps.

Otherwise I would ask to speak urgently with hv and bf counsellor, maybe help needed with latch?

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Oh bless you - I've had mastitis twice and it's awful. Take some paracetamol, and feed/pump as much as you can, as well as resting. Have you a dh/p? Can he take care of everything else if you just go to bed with the baby? Remember to feed/pump from the other side too, otherwise that will get blocked as well!

When she was nursing before, and still seemed hungry after a feed, did you put her back to the breast? Or switch sides? Both my babies fussed at the breast when they were this age, I have an absurdly fast let down, and it wasn't until they learned to regulate the flow (at around 10-12 weeks) that they really settled.

Lots of sympathy from here, mastitis really is the pits.

[Barking]

another thought is have you been lying or leaning at a particular angle which could have put pressure on the breastbone?

I use to get this where the seat belt lay across.

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Yes, get latch checked out by BFC.

La Leche League: 0845 120 2918
Association of Breastfeeding Mothers: 08444 122949
National Childbirth Trust: 0300 330 0771

Also, if you start to see red patches/lines on your breast you need to get some antibiotics pronto. See how you feel in the morning and if it's still bad then get in touch with te out of hours GP.

Cold flannels on the affected breast helped me, plus "combing" your breast with a wide toothed comb can help encourage the let-down reflex.

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Barking - I had one bra in particular which seemed to block me up! Have binned it now! This time round I've found it much easier because if I get a blocked duct I can get ds to help me clear it (tandem nursing! )

[Barking]

Tafka, know what you mean, some bras are just plain evil

I'd recommend the bravissimo ones.

[Barking]

So tired
I mean Bravado nursing bra

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

I heart La Senza.

[gorge2003]

nope not been leaning on my breastbone funny! there are red patches on my breastbone!

according to my hv latch was fine and i never get any pain when she is latched on some i think latch is fine. she knows my smell...any time i go near her she starts rooting for food and i put her on the breast and after say 10 mins she starts thrashing around and wont latch on again. I switch sides and she does the same thing...why is she fussing? just because i dont have much milk because of this whole feeding business or something else? i appear to have a bit of milk cos if i squeeze my nipple it will squirt halfway across the room!

i have a ds (3.5yrs), have tried feeding her in a dark room, led in bed lots of skin to skin but she still does the same!!!

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

HV's are notoriously shite at knowing anything about bf-ing. I would get the latch checked out by a BFC just to be on the safe side. Does dd fuss at the bottle too?

[gorge2003]

nope she is fine with the bottle which is why it makes me think something isnt right. Seeing my hv thursday so will ask her about a bf-ing counsellor...we have a breastfeeding group so surely that means we have a bfc....

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Not necessarily. Phone one of the bf-ing organisations (numbers below) as HV's often spout shite - mine did!

Has your dd been checked for a tongue tie? We need tiktok, really.

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

From what you've said on here, I wonder if she's fussing because it's not coming out as fast as from a bottle? But you started on the bottle because she was fussing?

I honestly don't know what to suggest - I would probably say clear the mastitis issue first, then move onto the larger issue of getting your dd back onto the breast.

Tiktok is the person you really need to speak to - she's a bfc with the NCT and far more knowledgeable about these things than me!

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

How are you feeling now?

[Barking]

Hi Gorge2003, just wondering how you're feeling today?

Hi Tafka, I echo your thoughts about possible tongue-tie or similar, my dc2 struggled with bf, it was only later we got a diagnosis of hypotonia (low muscle tone) with hypermobility (hyper-flexible joints) which due to very relaxed muscles in the jaw and tongue can affect bf.

[TAFKAtheUrbanDryad]

Bumping for tiktok...