Should I stop BF? I think I have thrush and LO is 15 months

[omy]

I would appreciate some advice please. one of my nipples suddenly started to have shooting pains out of the blue and I think it is thrush. I have cut out the foods in my diet that encourage yeast, but perhaps I should stop BF - I don't want LO to get a bad case of thrush - it would be horrible for her.

I still BF in the morning and evening and I had no plans to stop until LO was 2 as we both are happy. I would be sad to stop but not devasted as she is quite happy with her bottle as well.

omy, if you have thrush in your boob, then your lo will already have it in her mouth. I have had thrush with all 3 of my children whilst bfing. Its horrible, but easily sorted. Go see your gp. You will need a daktarin cream for your boobs ( both) fluconazole on a 10 day course from memory ( because its in deep tissue a short course won't work), and your lo will need daktarin oral gel rubbed into mouth tissues. inside 2 weeks u should both be back on top form.

There is an issue with getting some of the above prescribed to a b/fing mum as the law has changed, but as your lo is 15mnths I would have thought that would make a difference. Even if you were to stop b/feeding you would both still need to be treated, good luck.

Thanks kitkatqueen, I will go an see the GP. It is gradually getting worse so I had better deal with it. I assume that if I stop BF the treatment will work more quickly? How long did you BF for? People keep asking me when am I going to stop and there is a sense that I am being rather sentimental and silly to keep BF.

personally i'd get us both treated and carry on feeding. but then i am all for letting them self wean, so it really depends what you want.

omy, makes no odds whether you keep feeding or not, will take the same amount of clear up time.

I bf dd1 for 13mnths ( became pregs and milk reverted to colostrum she stopped bcos she didn't like it)

then fed dd2 until she was 18mnths ( she self weaned so I thought! then found out I was pregs with ds)

ds is now 16 mnths and I am still b/feeding and 24 weeks pregnant

so I have either been pregnant / breastfeeding or both continuously since may 2003. Yep I'm a bit nuts but don't hold it against me Believe me Thrush is not the massive obsticle that it was before the fluconazole etc. Don't forget that with your dd being 15mnths you are able to take nurofen ( as long as it suits you etc) and that makes a massive amount of difference!

Give me 2 mins to find another post I read the other day. print it off and wave it at people who try to put you off continuing - hell wave it at your gp if you need too!

Here it is... I think the last line says it all. Good luck.

First feed Helps to stabilise baby?s blood sugars and
protect baby?s gut
A great opportunity for the first skin to skin
cuddle
1 day The antibodies in your colostrum provide
natural immunity from infection Helps womb to contract towards normal size
2-3 days Sticky black meconium is cleared more readily
from baby?s bowel
Instant relief for hot, swollen breasts when
your milk comes in
1 week Transition to world outside womb is eased
Frequent feeds means time to sit or lie down
and for you and your baby to get to know each
other
2 weeks Food and drink always ready at the right
temperature, adapting to baby?s needs
Hormones help you get back to sleep after
night feeds
4 weeks For premature babies lower risk factors for
heart disease in later life Saves time sterilising and making up bottles
6 weeks Half the risk of chest infections now and up to
seven years old
Breastfeeding likely to be easier and you can
go out and about without bottle feeding
equipment
2 months Lower risk of food allergy at three years old if
breastfed only Reduced risk of ovarian cancer in later life
3 months Five times less likely to get diarrhoea now and
a reduced risk for the whole year Fewer visits to GP as baby less often ill
4 months
Half the risk of ear infections;
Reduced risk of asthma now and protection
continues up to six years
Feeling of empowerment at having been solely
responsible for growing your baby to four
months
5 months Five times lower risk of urinary tract infections A lovely way to reconnect with your baby if you
go to work
6 months Lower risk of eczema now and up to six years
old Less risk of osteoporosis in the long term
1 year
Three times less risk of becoming obese by
age six and a lower risk of heart disease as an
adult
No need to buy formula milk at all, saving at
least £450 this year
2 years Likely to have higher than average scores on
intelligence tests
Expect fewer visits to orthodontist when your
baby is a teenager;
Risk of breast cancer reduced by eight per
cent

Omy, one last thing - if your gp wants proof that its thrush before giving you treatment the way they do it is to rub a cotton bud on your nipple, so its not painful or anything, but its also completely useless. 9 times out of ten it will not show up thrush anyway and takes normaly about 4 days to come back. Your best bet may be to get down to a local b/feeding group discuss the prob with the lactation consultant and go from there. If you can say to the gp that the lactation consultant believes you have thrush you are over one hurdle. The breastfeeding network had a fabulous printable leaflet on thrush but it will have changed in info since the law change last year. May still be worth investigating.

Brilliant help and advice! thanks! What do you mean about the law change?

Ok bear with me its a bit long...

Last year ( or the year b4?)the law changed regarding gp's prescribing drugs to pregnant / breastfeeding women. Every drug needs to have a licence to be allowed to be prescribed to a "group" every license costs a lot of money. Fluconazole and daktarin were never originally licensed for bfing mums because there aren't enough of us to make it profitable. However, the amount that gets through into the breast milk is way less that the amount prescribed to preterm babies in the NICU so it has generally been considered by GP's that it can't do any harm and even tho there isn't a license, they prescribe it anyway. If there was a problem they would be in deep s**t so I have had a gp prescribe for me, but tell me that if there were any probs it would be on my head not hers... Don't know of any statistics showing problems at all.

Anyway about a year ago the law changed, saying that now gps may only prescribe within the product license, and there is still no license so in theory they can't. Personally I would try it anyway and then kick and scream if the didn't come through for me. That is the best explanation I can give based on what I was told by a health care proffesional, but if anyone knows better I am sure they will jump in any minute and correct me...