Ow! Please help - one very swollen/engorged/painful nipple

[MrsKitty]

DD is 5 days old. Milk came in on Tuesday and have been very engorged since - midwife came today & told me to express off excess which i've now done via pump. However, one of my nipples remains very swollen--several times the size of the other! It's also very hard, tender and shiny. Have tried to keep feeding DD off it but it feels like she's grinding glass into my nipple as soon as she goes on, and it doesn't fade!

I fed DS for 12 months and think midwife assumes things are OK (Although so did I till today!) Have been having some trouble with latch/pain but have been trying to resolve myself with changing position etc. Went to a BF support group yesterday and counsellor said latch looked fine, but I'm still having pain. Am worrying now that I won't be able to sort it. Any suggestions? Particularly re: cause/solution to giant nipple?

Rugby/football/underarm hold - you need to really drain that boob entirely. Take two paracetamols an hour before you are going to feed her and just feed continually till it goes.

If you show signs of mastitis get it checked though.

Congratulations!

There just doesn't seem to be a flow through the giant nipple- is it possible it's so swollen that the ducts have become impassable? worry if that's the case then i will exacerbate problem if poor latch? There's certainly milk in there as rest of breast is feeling full& lumpy again.

Called MLU earlier,they just said to keep feeding and see how it is in the morning. Any more advice or just support very welcome - i sense it's goig to be a long night!

Hot flannels on the nipple/hottish bath and massage the nipple (take painkillers first). Does sound like a blocked duct

Thanks chocolate massaged breast & nipple with olive oil last night - certainly helped, although still struggling to express anything off before DD latches - can express after she's fed though so assume she's getting something too. Breast now feeling softer after she's fed but engorges again and nipple goes large and inflexible again soon after. Now that it's reduced a bit I can now see that the nipple is also covered in several largeish blisters - not sure if this happened before the swelling or if it's as a result of DD having to latch to solid nipple. Things do appear to be improving though (fingers crossed) so I think I can see a light at the end of the tunnel...Now if I could just get her to feed more regularly.... (she'll happily go up to 6 hours at times which I know is too long but it's near impossible to get her to latch when she's not interested before that.

Found out yesterday that bf specialist MW's do a drop in clinic on tues so will try to attend.

Poor DS (2.5) has been pretty much deserted by me whilst i'm holed up in bed trying to get this sorted - i hope it happens soon

Is she jaundiced? If she's sleepy and not interested in milk - ds was and it wasn't picked up for ten days.

Glad things are getting better.

It is tough the first few months with two - be kind to yourself - your son will survive

MW thought she was "ever so slightly jaundiced" when she visited on day 3 - didn't mention it again on her last visit (day 6). HV due on monday so will see what she thinks. I don't think she is - not that i've noticed anyway. She has got a cold (already, bless her) very snuffly and sneezy - no doubt due to MIL thinking it an excellent idea to show up several times this week with a stinking cold - ds got a bit of it too.

Today's been much better - feeding more frequently, and engorged breast has felt emptyish for the first time -think you were right about blocked ducts - managed to actually produce some milk from nipple prior to a feed earlier and had about 6 little chunky milk lumps come out from various points of my nipple followed by very thick yellowy milk. just need to heal these blisters now...I wonder how quickly one mum can get through a tube of Lansinoh?

Thanks for your support choc really appreciate it.

LOL remember this stage all too well! DS was diagnosed as jaundiced by HV - wasn't noticed at all by midwives. Take her out for some fresh air - that'll help.

I think cheeze strings may have been invented by a mummy with blocked ducts

Well done you, seems like the crisis is passing

Eeeewwww at cheeze strings! LOL

Funnily enough there are five of you here on this topic with blocked ducts - perhaps it's the weather?