Can someone please help me with recurrent blocked ducts?

[SpottyTeacakes]

I'm getting them weekly, I currently have one in each boob

Ds is 7 months and I didn't get them to start with, but have had them frequently over the past four months.

Sometimes I can pinpoint a reason, eg I might wake up half squashing my boon between my arm and body and it'll be blocked or ds might have gone longer between feeds (that's why I have them this time) but other times there's no reason. Sometimes in the same places, sometimes not.

Latch appears to be fine no pain apart from on the bloody milk bleb I can't get rid of despite trying everything including needles he is at that age where he frequently pulls off to look behind him though

It's really painful and really starting to get to me I want to keep feeding but this is making it hard. Any advice would be great

Bumping for you. Blocked ducts are horrid, sorry I've no advice xx

I used to get this with DC1 (but never did with DC2). My solution was to massage my boob during each feed, especially in the areas where I thought there might be a blockage. I just used my knuckles & rolled them firmly over my boob & the surrounding area. I'd mentally divide my boob into six slices, start at the outside & work my way towards the nipple & then do the next slice. Sometimes you could tell from DD's face that she'd received an extra squirt.
Also, if I didn't think that DD had fed much on one day, then I'd express a bit off in the shower the following morning, mainly focussing on the bits when tended to get blocked. Actually, if you've never done that, I'd recommend doing that anyway as you'll learn which points seem to produce milk.

Hi Spotty, am BF my 2 week old DC5 and have suffered horrifically with this both for this baby and DC4. I have now managed to control it using the following tips and has made BF the joy it used to be :)

Okay....

Before feeding (about 20 min before) either run hot water (as hot as you can bare without burning yourself) or microwave a wet nappy and wrap around your boob (lobe I had blocked was towards my armpit so I would compress nappy with arm). Allow the heat to work and firmly massage lobe towards your nipple - this heat brings almighty relief!

Take antiinflammatories! This really really works!! Nurofen (not plus) or my dr has prescribed diclac. Cannot emphasise the difference this has made and I am not a natural pill popper.

Express from the effected boob after feeding and heat ensuring boob is well emptied and moving breast contact around to stimulate all lobes.

Mine resolved after 2 days doing this. Hope this helps!

Thank you I've had a bath, massaged whilst dangling(!) and hand expressed am now pumping as they're not shifting. One of them is right at the top so almost impossible to get ds's chin there! I do massage it when I've got a blockage I will start doing it as a preventative measure too.

Will get some ibuprofen and def try the wet nappy thing. Looks like we'll be staying in today!

Yes, it's not a look you want to answer the door with!!

Kellymom has some advice for recurrent blocked ducts . There are lots of different suggestions there, hopefully something might help.

Thanks I've looked at kellymom and LLL I particularly love their suggestions of staying in bed all day to nurse they seem to be aimed at newer babies really

New bra! Fitted by someone who actually knows how to measure you I am evangelical about this. Markies fitted me at 34D but a specialist nursing bra service measured me as 32DD. Doesn't sound hugely different but it was incredible how fast things improved. The seam of the old bra was basically slicing across my boob and the back strap was waaaay too high. Within half an hour of changing the blocked duct has eased and since being fitted I haven't had one yet (fingers crossed).

I've been on the bra intervention threads and gone from shitty m&s 34B to a 28E the panache bras are lovely and I wear a sleep bra at night (which is so comfy I would wear all the time if it didn't come up to my neck!)

I've got another one!! Not painful yet though. Hopefully ds will clear it when he wakes up from his nap...

I suffer the same thing - although mine is always in the same place and frequently turns to mastitis.
I had tried everything I could think of - I was a lunch with a friend of mine (a consultant obstetrician who is very 'old school') who said she'd had the same problem with DC3. She tried acupuncture with great success. I was so surprised as she's so 'traditional' but she said it really worked. I'm just looking up practitioners in my area now!

I'm going to get a breastfeeding necklace as I'm wondering if the distraction is making it worse. It's interesting about acupuncture but as mine are generally in different places I winded if it would work?

Lecithin supplement (lecigram is the brand name) is recommended on a few sites. I tried it and stopped getting blocked ducts, could have been coincidence but it's worth a try.

Oh thanks minipie I will definitely get some. Hope you and dd are doing well? We have a fb group if you wish to join (assuming you haven't already!)

aw thanks Spotty! I'm the last person on earth not on fb though. all well here, dd is now enormous! hope all well with you and DS and the blockages sort soon, so sore isn't it.

Two in one boob, do I get some sort of prize??