Blocked milk duct?

[Shanster]

I keep having a problem with my left breast, where milk seems to build up into a lump which I can't shift. It is really painful and I'm worried it might turn into mastitis. Baby is now asleep for the night, and despite making her feed from that side for an hour before bedtime the lump is still there. Expressing doesn't seem to help either. This is the third time this week it has happened, but on those occasions the baby was able to shift the lump by feeding eventually. So strange, I have been BF for 5 months now, and other than getting engorged from time to time I have been fine. What could be causing this, and more to the point, what can I do to relieve the pressure?

That sounds very painful, I sympathise I had this recentlt and my youngest nurseling is 10 months old !!!

I found this Kellymom page to be very helpful here

HTH

It does sound like a blocked duct, I had this, and following Dr Sears website, just tried to feed and feed and feed as much as possible. There was also a small white spot on the end of my nipple, which I pierced with a needle, and the lumpy bit deflated like a balloon!

Poor you, blocked ducts are horrible.
I used to try: warm bath, massage boob in direction of nipple, paracetamol and lots of feeding. I did get better at spotting the signs earlier and that did help.

I had this and have written on another thread about what I did to get rid of it, I know it was going to turn into mastitis as I was getting fluey feelings. So I worked all night to get rid of the blockage with hot water bottle, alternating flannels hot and cold, massaging and baths along with aligning baby's jaw with the lump to feed (and constant feeding from that side!) and it went.

What I did realise is that I was getting this on the same side for a reason, I was holding my breast for the baby to latch on and continuing to hold it and that pressure from one or two of my fingers clamped around my breast was causing the milk to be blocked.

Good luck getting rid of it, it's really painful and I feel for you.

Thanks for the advice, I just looked at the KellyMom page and found that I have what does look like a milk blister on that side. Am at work now and pumping is agony today. I worked from home this morning so that DD would be able to feed from that side, but she is now crying whenever I try to feed her from that side.
BF is the easiest most convenient thing in the world when it is going well, and such a pain when it doesn't!!