Surely this is a ridiculous reason to go to A&E but what do I do?!

[ColourfulHairbands]

I know there’s men on here but I don’t care anymore! I have to post on here for traffic and to see if anyone has ever experienced similar.

For nearly two weeks I’ve had extreme pain in my nipples. The pain doesn’t come and go, it’s there constantly and the best way to describe it is that I have shooting pains directly from my nipple going into my breast.

My nipples have been hard for two weeks non stop. You know the feeling of having hard nipples when you’re quite cold and eventually it gets a bit uncomfortable, that’s my life.

I have no clue what’s going on. I haven’t stopped breastfeeding or anything like that. I don’t know if it’s a hormonal thing (I have the implant so not a side effect of my period). I called the GP and he was none the wiser bless him. He booked me in for a blood test this Wednesday but he did say that he doubts anything will show up. I called 111 and they said go to your GP or A&E.

I’m seriously considering going to A&E. I don’t know how they can help me (they probably can’t) but I think I may need to be examined at the very least. Has anyone experienced anything like this? The pain is bringing me to tears daily and I’m starting to worry that this may be somewhat serious

I've breastfed 3 kids and have had breasts for a good while now but never knew you could get breast thrush until tonight!

Count yourself very lucky, as I do! Also bf 3 kids and knew you can get thrush in them but never have, but the descriptions of the pain I’ve heard from other mothers are horrific. Often described as being like barbed wires being pulled out from deep inside through the nipple, hot thorns inside the breast, etc etc

You can get thrushcon nipples without breastfeeding!

i have had it a couple of times and it is AGONY. Exactly how you explain.

get breast pads and cannestan cream and the oral tablet on minor ailments (pretend it is for vaginal thrush or they will make you do to the doctor).

One of the things about nipple thrush is your nipples can look completely so you wouldn’t know

good luck OP

Thank you for all the helpful comments, especially from those that are suffering with Raynaud's syndrome.

So I spoke with the GP this morning and throughly explained my issues. He was adamant that I don’t need to be seen and I need to do the blood test first (I’ll finally be going today because it’s been so long). He’ll then call me with a plan once he gets my results back next week. Of course I was very confused because I’m in so much pain. I don’t know how he expected me to wait even longer when he already said that he doesn’t think the blood test will reveal anything.

I then mentioned that my asthma has been really bad and I’m constantly coughing etc. He then said I’ll need to come in for a face to face appointment to have my breathing checked. So I’m only getting seen because of my bloody asthma anyway!

I have an update for you😂

I had a face to face appointment with my GP only because he wanted to assess my asthma as I’ve been struggling with my breathing recently. Once he’d finished he says, ‘will it give you peace of mind if we do a breast examination.’

Once he realised that my aerola couldn’t even be touched gently without it hurting, he realised the severity of it. In the end he prescribed me with Nifedipine in order to treat suspected Raynaud’s. He also checked my hands and feet to see if there was anything that stood out. I also had my blood test just now so the Doctor will be able to see if there’s any other issues than low iron.

Thank you so much to this thread!! Another reason why I absolutely love MN. The thrush cream has helped the pain slightly but I really do hope this medication will help take the pain away. I definitely need to make sure I stay as warm as possible!

This is known on Mumsnet as javelin arse (proctalgia fugax)

Fantastic. Today I learned… 😂

Another Reynauds sufferer here just to echo what others have said about keeping your hands, feet and nips as warm as possible. I can often be found massaging my breasts in the middle of winter (I did not help myself by moving to a Scandi country!). Those re-usable hand warmers down your bra work wonders if you're out and about or don't want to spend your time constantly fiddling with yourself.

@Garman I can't even read about the pain without feeling sick. I just don't know how I missed any knowledge of this though. Just shows women's health education still has a long way to go really, probably because women have just cracked on for years x

A few days later and the pain isn’t anywhere as bad as before! I still have a few sharp pains but I’m hoping by the time that I finish the antibiotics that the pain will go away.

Thanks again peeps✌️

I love that you are keeping us updated!

I didn’t even think anyone was still watching this tbh😂 but people were so helpful that they’ve literally cured me! I feel like I have to give an update at the very least😬

I'm always intrigued how medical issues end up turning out. It's also really helpful for anyone with similar issues in the future. It's frustrating when posters don't update. So pleased you're feeling better.

I’m confused- what antibiotics are you on? Nifedipine isn’t an antibiotic and I don’t see you mentioning them anywhere else?

@Raspberri thank you so much! The comments on this thread really helped me as I’d never heard of Raynaud's syndrome before so I appreciate everyone’s help.

@ChocChipHandbag well whatever Nifedipine is then. I’m hoping once I’ve finished taking it then the pain will go away completely

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/nifedipine/about-nifedipine/

I’m not sure it’s a “finish the course” type of medicine. It’s a long-term treatment.

@ChocChipHandbag from what my GP said, I need to trial the medication first to see if it solves anything. They were prescribed for ‘suspected’ Raynaud’s syndrome so I’ll finish it and see if it makes any difference. Thanks for the help:)

Ah OK, gotcha. If it does work you’ll probably need to keep taking it by the looks of things. Good luck, glad you’re feeling better.

@ChocChipHandbag I also get the results back from my blood test and I have extremely low Vitamin D and Iron. Seems like I’ll be taking a few vitamins/tablets long term! Thanks so much😊

Silver lined gloves for the Raynaud’s Syndrome in the winter. Full sympathy here because it is painful as f.