Advice on caring for a very sore breast please - have been bitten!

[takingitasitcomes]

I'm hoping someone has some advice for me on this one as it is very painful at the moment.

DS bit me with his shiny new tooth three days ago and my nipple has been getting more and more sore since. There's almost nothing to see when you look at it, but there is a tiny bump where the tooth went in. It's right on the edge of the nipple (not the areola). My nipple is slightly bent out of shape by it. It is too sore to touch and feels like I'm being stabbed by a knife when DS feeds from it, which I'm letting him do because I don't want to end up with mastitis on top of it.

I rang a dr who said not to use antiseptic creams on it as they're bad for DS to ingest. So... after all that, I guess I want is to hear from anyone who has ideas for natural pain relief for it or just generally how to help it heal faster.

Thanks for reading a long and rambly post - I hope you can help me!

bump

oh i really feel for you, this happened to me last week when dd cut her first top tooth. I think i had got a bit lazy with her latch, and since then I have made sure that she is properly attached and fingers crossed there haven't been any more injuries! The pain was unbelievable, and I had to force myself to feed on that side. In the end I alternated between two feeds on the 'good' side to every one on the 'bad'.

In terms of dealing wiht the pain, I didn't want to apply any creams so I just gritted my teeth and got on with it. When dd was tiny and first learning to breastfeed, I had really badly cracked nipples and the advice I had was to keep feeding to help them heal. I reasoned that this was the same thing and I have to say it did heal more quickly than I expected.

Hope it feels better soon, in my experience there is always a bit of 'rubbing' with a new tooth but once the baby gets used to it being there things get comfy again!

Thanks for the advice - I will try the aloe vera, and am keeping on with the feeding through tears and gritted teeth.

However, now there is a tiny bit of pus in the 'hole' DS created... should I go back to the Dr or do you think the advice will be the same (i.e. let it heal in its own time)?

Hmmm sounds as though this bite is worse than mine was. Might be worth a return vsit to the docs if it looks like its getting worse. Just had a look on Kellymom here and that's what it advises (go to the bottom of the page). Looks as though it should be possible to sort out fairly easily - let us know how you get on!

thanks for the link Threewheels. I'll try some of their suggestions and go to the Drs on Monday if it's not getting better.

Yes go to the Dr!!! If you've seen pus you need antibiotics. Also, do you have or can you borrow a breast pump? Because then you can slather your nipple with antiseptic cream, express milk and dump it (while baby nurses on the other side for a few days). This keeps the milk flowing so you don't get engorged and keeps up your milk supply. Also, do hot compresses, or alternating hot andcold - for comfort as well as to increase circulation and get rid of pus.

There is a homeopathic remedy for sore and cracked nipples, called Phytolacca. You can take three pilules every 15 min (or every hour when it gets better) until the pain decreases and then take three pilules three or four times a day. I don't know if it would be appropriate for an infection, but I've kept it on hand when I get lazy with DS's latch and he rubs me a bit raw.

Please do go see Dr as soon as possible, I'm very concerned about the pus. I just checked that link to Kellymom (they always have such great information) and it also says to go see your doctor if you see pus.
Good luck!!
xxxx

Thanks Jacksmama - I think you're right. It's pretty sore. I've got a pump on hand and will use it for a few days at least, and will also do the hot/cold compress thing. Will see a Dr asap.

This happened to me recently. When she was getting 5 teeth at once she kind of ground her teeth on me and made a sore at the edge of my nipple. I fed lying down on the side with the bite for a couple of weeks. Changing the position meant that DD wasn't putting her teeth where the sore was and it had a chance to heal. It did make me wary of feeding on that side for a few weeks.

I also used Lansinoh cream which helped with healing.

The teeth aren't really a problem now and it's only when she's falling asleep that it can hurt a bit.

Oh, forgot to tell you, you can combine the hot compress thing with the saline therapy Kellymom suggests - do hot compress in saline water and alternate with cold with plain water.
How is it feeling?
Don't want to argue with Mungarra btw but don't think Lansinoh is a good idea when you have an infection (pus) because I'd be concerned that Lansinoh, being so sticky, would seal off the area, better to put something on that would allow pus to drain. If you're brave enough you could try squeezing the area where you saw pus, you might be able to drain a bit, esp. after hot compress. Also monitor your temp, if feverish or fluey it's worsening, not to be alarmist but you must see a doc SOON in that case.

Thanks for the good advice. I think it's holding steady rather than worsening at the moment. I'm hoping to see the Dr tomorrow (I have to ring back in the morning to make sure they can fit me in) and am bathing/heating etc it tonight.

It's quite funny that this has happened to me as I remember answering 'being bitten by DS' to the question 'what are you most scared of about becoming a mother' in an NCT coffee morning once when we were all still pg. And that was just a fear of the bite - it'd never occured to me that it might get infected LOL!

LOL - go figure!
DS has bitten me a few times, usually when he's nursing and falling asleep - it's like he tightens his jaw without realizing it... not nice!! It's not too hard but still, hurts. And then of course my yelp of pain wakes him up again...

Update - I am already feeling better after having started a course of antibiotics this morning. When I woke up there was a scary red line running from the original bite site towards my heart, so it was clearly time to see the Dr! The a-bs have started working really quickly and I am also taking Ibuprofen every 4 hours which is helping the swelling I think. I've been told to keep feeding off that side - which is ok as the pain is intense but already not as bad as last night.

So thank you everyone for pushing me in the right direction.

OMG - I'm so glad you went to the Dr's, that red line thingy indicates a severe infection with septicemia setting in. (Know this from personal experience, stepped on something as a child, foot got infected, had that red line thingy up to the ankle... off to A&E with me...)
Could I suggest that you keep up the hot saline compress, not just for comfort, but also to help increase circulation and draw off infection.
Personally, not being into pain that much, I'd pump on the bitten side and feed off the other - a pump doesn't rub on the nipple, after all... but as long as you keep milk moving through those ducts, however you choose to do it.
I'm so happy to hear you're better. I'm just about halfway around the world from you (Pacific time zone) and when DS woke me up to nurse last night, I thought, "I wonder if TIAIC has gone to the Dr's yet... hope she's ok..."

Glad you've got it sorted TIAIC. I thought I had it bad when dd drew blood, but obviously I got off lightly. I will definitely know what to do if it happens again though!

Thanks for the kind thoughts! I'm feeling better and better all the time.

Jacksfirst where are you? I'm moving (home) to NZ next week... so will be closer in time zone soon.

West Coast of Canada, an hour east of Vancouver (in Langley, British Columbia).
Good luck with the move!!!!