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Upstate NY Babies
Talk to me about mastitis
So I never had any issues at all with nursing G. I think I've jinxed myself telling everyone how easy my recovery has been. All of a sudden today I feel awful. I'm so achy and have the chills. No fever and no red spots. But I'm worried this is going to turn to mastitis. If you've had it, is this how it starts? What should I be doing, aside from nursing as much as possible, to prevent it?
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Re: Talk to me about mastitis
Is your boob sore or feel like you have a clogged duct in any spot?
Mine started with the sore boob and then a bad headache. Later in the day I started getting chills and feeling really just yuck.. By the time I got the chills and stuff though I had a low grade fever..but it got much much higher later on.
Oh and I only noticed the red spot if I looked in a mirror, not if I just looked down on my boob.
m/c 1/2/08 and 3/12/08
Eve Amelia- Born 2/24/09. 6lb 9.9oz
Natalie Ruth - Born 6/13/11 7lb 6.6oz
I have had it 3 times and hate mastitis. I am so scared of it happening again, that I coincidently just asked my LC yesterday if it is possible to get it during pregnancy bc I feel full of milk already and never experienced that with dd's pregnancy. Luckily for me, she said it is rare.
The first time I had it was awful at 6 weeks pp and I seriously thought I would just die. It didn't help that Strong had 3 other pp moms admitted the week of my mastitis with IV antibiotics and 1 was really touch-and-go. It started with horrible chills, no energy, and kind of achy breast by the arm pit. The fever was the worst - it didn't break for 2 days, even alternating tylenol and motrin. And that was with starting Dicloxacillin within 2 hours of getting the fever. For 2 days, I couldn't even get out of bed for more than like 15 minutes at a time....my mom and Josh took turns bringing me ellie. I would also pump and they would take care of all the milk stuff and I just slept or laid there crying from the fever.
But on to you - I hope you don't have it! If you have mastitis - the best thing you can do is get on dicloxacillin, rest, and move the milk. Nurse constantly, always starting with the bad side so that you take advantage of her strongest sucking, and pump if you ever feel full. Use a warm compress before and during nursing if it helps with the pain, and ICE after nursing. Massage out the area while nursing/pumping if you also have a clogged duct.
The following 2 times I had it were much much more manageable. Sore boob and fever, but controlled with tylenol/ibuprofen and on the dicloxacillin. I never had any redness or streaking or a clogged duct. My biggest signs were lack of energy and fever, and the sore boob came later or not as bad.
I know the LC told me that mastitis often happens after you push yourself too much...all 3 occurances for me proved true. Take it as a caution you need to do less and rest. Also, I personally believe some of it just has to do with your anatomy bc all 3 of mine happened on my left boob only, right by my armpit. And it drastically killed my supply on that side. And even when I would feel full, after mastitis, I never felt full in that spot if that makes sense. Mastitis did not kill my overall supply, bc right boob stepped up and made more.
Oh.. and when I got mastitis it was from my nipples being cracked and the infection getting in that way.. (it was when N was 8 days old) Not sure if you have any problems with that..
m/c 1/2/08 and 3/12/08
Eve Amelia- Born 2/24/09. 6lb 9.9oz
Natalie Ruth - Born 6/13/11 7lb 6.6oz
I thankfully never had mastitis but reading these things made me think of something I was told about it by an LC that many of us on this board have used (Polly). I remember her saying that in pumps like Medela and probably all the other standard pumps out there today the infection can go into the motor of the pump and stay there (crazy as that may sound) making it highly liking to re-infect yourself down the road and it's also the reason why they say never to share pumps or buy a used pump. She said that's why the new Hygeia https://www.hygeiababy.com/ pumps are so great, becasue they have a hepa filter that prevents this and the filter can be removed and changed out for you or if you ever want to sell your pump later on. This is the pump I ended up going with and loved it. So I guess what I'm saying is just be careful using your pumps while you have these infections if they don't have a filter on them.
Hope this isn't what you have J! And maybe give your Dr. a call if you don't feel better soon because there might be something else or some other sort of infection going on.