I made a post earlier without a subject line (rookie mistake!) and HettyAmaretti recommended I repost my thread - thanks Hetty!
I have been having a really difficult time establishing breast-feeding and my most recent challenge is likely to be thrush and I could do with some of your collective wisdom.
What kind of treatment could I expect for nipple or ductal thrush for baby and I? Is it just topical creams or oral medicines too?
Just some background as to why I think it's thrush:
My baby is now 12 days old and we spent the first 5 days in hospital. We were told our latch was good from the get go, but during the feed, baby slips off ever so slightly into a bad latch and I had bloody, scabby, cracked nipples. On day 3, baby went under the blue lights for phototherapy for jaundice and we had to top up expressed feeds with formula to keep his fluids up. This stretched his tummy and we have had a tough time getting my breast milk supply back up (and still not sure I have that right yet?) and taking him off the formula. Expressing was painful, breastfeeding was impossible during these few days.
I have gone to a breastfeeding workshop at the hospital and had sessions with the advisers there during my 5 days on the wards following a severe third degree tear. I have also since gone to 2 breastfeeding support groups and a lactation consultant came to visit.
Seems I have the latch 'right' and baby is now feeding well, but it is excruciating when he latches, like little shards of glass shooting into my breasts.
Today, I have noticed the typical white coating over baby's tongue and some nappy rash. Having read around the topic, it seems these are all symptoms of thrush, and that thrush is not uncommon if mom or baby have had antibiotics (which I had three different courses to prevent infection following my 3rd degree tear).
I found the following two articles really informative (in case anyone has a similar situation) - www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A810082
and www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/pdfs/BfN_Thrush_le afletFeb2009.pdf
To be perfectly honest, I would prefer if this wasn't thrush, and to keep working on the latch and perfecting that.
But poor baby is getting a sore bum rash, a small blister and a white tongue and is more unsettled than usual. While there is a /small/ chance that he might have a tongue tie affecting his latch, I don't want to wait for the other symptoms to worsen before doing anything.....
I am calling the GP at 8am tomorrow to try get an appointment. We're both in a lot of pain.