clogged duct in armpit

joyfultrex

I woke up with what I think is a clogged duct, in my arm pit. It's about the size of a pea and really hard and red. It hurts when I move my arm. Besides massage, which hurts like crazy, is there anything else I should be doing? I can't figure out how to latch him so his chin is towards the clog since it's in such an odd place. At what point do I call a Dr? We made it 13 months with no issues, so I'm lost. DH wants me to go to urgent care since it's labor day weekend, but I really don't think that is necessary.

Mandmeesh

My clogged duct was not a pea sized bump. It is usually huge and covers a large area...not red :-/

Mandmeesh

If it is extremely painful, I would be going to urgent care

joyfultrex

the redness could be because of the rubbing in my armpit from movement. It's not hot like it's infected. How long does a clogged duct (if that's what it is) typically take to go away?

Mandmeesh

Mine was gone after an hour of constant massage, dangle nursing, pumping and sticking my boob in a sink of hot water. Literally constant. I was terrified of mastitis. Lol

Nvywife

My granny is very old school and would say to put a wet tea bag on it. The tea bags bring all the nasty to the surface.

lookame3639

If the knot is in your actual arm pit it's possible it's a swollen lymph node, if it's in the breast tissue towards your arm pit then it may be a duct.

i have mastitis and what I found helpful is dipping my nipple in some hot water for 5-10minutes. When it began to unclog you could see the milk drain from the nipple, then I pump the breast. Unfortunately as soon as the breast begins to fill back up it seems to get clogged all over again...

Rrrrrachel

Hot compresses, massage. For nursing you can lay them on their back and dangle your boob down. The dangling helps and then you can point their chin wherever. How long it takes to go away depends on how long it takes to come out. I agree with everyone else that it may not be a duct, though.

TJ1979

I would put my money on lymph nose or even an ingrown hair. Do hot moist compresses or soak in an Epsom salt bath. Or both. And I have heard of the wet tea bag thing too. I would even do it warm and wet.

TJ1979

Also, keep an eye on your temperature. If it goes up, that when I would consider medical intervention.

countrycotton

Daily clogged ducts are part of the reason I stopped nursing. Warm moist heat helps a lot. I would get a heating pad, put a damp wash cloth under the cover and hold that under your arm. It should help in about 20 minutes, add as much massage as you can stand. Hope you feel better soon.

Rrrrrachel

If it's a frequent thing a lecithin supplement can help.

joyfultrex

I think you guys are right it might be a lymph node. Does that mean I'm just fighting an infection somewhere? My other shoulder/armpit is a little sore also, but I was thinking it was just from doing pull ups. Those might be slightly swollen too.

Do I do anything besides hot compresses for comfort? I don't like to go to the Dr unless absolutely necessary, so I'm going to just wait it out, unless it gets worse.

freezorburn

Hope you are feeling better this morning @joyfultrex. If not, maybe a call to your doctor's office? I remember being able to get a call back from the Dr. on call at my ob/gyn practice, and she helped me over the phone to decide what to try. As well as when to worry about something serious. Good luck!

joyfultrex

Thanks, I feel pretty crappy over all, but the arm pit is slightly less painful. No doctor today since it's Sunday, but I might do urgent care tonight. I go back to work on Tuesday, so I want to feel better before then.

camichalski

What you are describing really sounds like an inflamed lymph node. It should go away in a few days. I get them about one a month in the summer mostly when ib ask sweaty and hot.

wrightpalomo

I haven't breastfed yet so I don't know about clogged ducts-- but I do get cystic acne in my arm pits. What you're describing sounds exactly like that because of the small size and the intense pain. They tend to flare up around the time of my period but since I'm pregnant they've been just haphazardly showing up whenever they want. If it is cystic acne, the good news is that it isn't a sign of other infection in your body. My doctor put me on a long-term antibiotic but it wasn't safe to take while pregnant or breastfeeding.