Top tips for blocked duct please!!!

[Somersaults]

I have (what I assume is) a blocked duct. I have fairly localised pain on the underside of my breast. It's tender to touch and hot. Slightly redder than the rest of the breast but not massively so. When I massage it i can feel lots of little lumps. DD is 11mo and only usually has a morning and bedtime feed now as I work full time so I can't nurse every two hours as the website I read suggests! I've fed her more than usual around work, had a warm bath and a warm compress, hand expressed in the bath but it is still tender and lumpy.

Any top tips for relieving it? Please?!

Ibuprofen is great for getting the swelling down as well as pain. Lecithin supplements can also help, and really quite firm massage in a hot shower.

Hope it's better soon!

Thank you. I shall have a search through the drawer and try to find ibuprofen and I'll have a hot shower before bed. Firm massage sounds rather painful! I will grit my teeth and go for it though!

Hot water (from the tap) in a nappy to use as a compress - it stays hot a lot longer than other compresses.

Then hand expressing under a hot shower, alternating that with running a comb over the sore bit. Don't know why it works but it does!

This sounds more painful than it is - promise. Use some oil to lubricate the area and then take a comb and run it repeatedly as firmly as you can over it towards the nipple. You can use the comb flattened against your skin if the prongs are too sharp.

You will need to feed your baby afterwards to draw out any dislodged blockages and I've found changing the baby's position really makes a difference - so if the baby would normally lie across your body, try tucking its body under your arm so they're facing the other way (called football/rugby ball hold I think).

In the past I've found that heat, followed by this and then feeding has worked. I hope I've made sense.

Well at this point I'm willing to try anything!

I am curious as to how you discovered that combing your boobs was the answer...

DD is down for the night now but I will pump afterwards and hopefully that'll be better than nothing.

I recently had a blocked duct and found that heat, firm massage and feeding DD3 in different positions all helped. I found feeding DD with her body tucked under my arm (is it called rugby ball hold or something?) ie in the reverse position to how I usually feed her worked best in the end. However, DD3 was only two weeks old at the time, not sure how well an 11mo would take to being held like that!
Hope you get it shifted soon - it's blimmin' painful!

If you can see a white spot, gently pop with sterilised needle, instant relief. This won't work if it's mastitis though.

Thank you everyone. Some great ideas and on that LLL page too. I do appreciate it and I'm off to have a hot shower now.

Are you unblocked OP?

No :(

Just the same as yesterday and I've tried loads of the advice given, hot baths, hot showers, nappy compresses, combing, massage, rugby ball hold, dangle feeding, expressing, extra feeding but still no relief.

I used heat pads you can get for muscle pain. I would slap one on and because they retain their heat for up to 12 hours they worked well as hot compress.

Ooh good thinking. I might have some of those lying around somewhere. I must try to dig one out before bed. I'm hoping her nice long morning feed will clear it (but I've been hoping that for every feed for the last two days now.)

At what point should I start to worry? How long should these things last?

Well, in "practising what I preach" news, I got a blocked duct, but have mercifully managed to get rid of it - I (look away now, those of a squeamish disposition) was actually able to see the block in my nipple after the whole ibuprofen/massage/heat thing and sort of popped it out like squeezing a spot in the shower. Cue fountain of milk (seriously, it was like Versailles or something) and great relief. Really hope yours gets better soon.

I've had blocks that lasted a couple of days, but not more than that. I think you're ok as long as you don't start getting fluey symptoms that might indicate an infection.

Try and position your lo so that her lower jaw is as close as possible to the painful bit iyswim? Agree with hot shower/massage tips but I always found the jaw thing to be the most effective.

Check your temperature as can be a sign its developed in to mastitis if its still blocked. Mine develops at the same time as the lump! Must have rubbish immune system. The only thing that give me relied was expressing/feeding every 3 hours for 15 mins, not ideal but helps and can stop it developing in to mastitis.

Still blocked. I've just spoken to a lovely lady on NCT helpline who suggested continuing with what I'm doing as it doesn't seem to be getting worse but o consider calling GP if no improvement within next day or so.

My temp and everything is fine so far thank goodness.

And both DH and DD think dangle feeding is hilarious.

Have you got a White spot on your nipple?