Thrush going on 2 weeks???

BootsOrHearts · February 2014

I've been treating it with nystatin for the past week, took me that long to figure out that's what it was. I've been treating baby too (FWIW, we rarely nurse anymore). I've been steam cleaning my pump parts before each use and changing nipple pads every time they get damp (which is not often, I'm not a big leaker).

Does it normally take that long to work or should I be calling the doctor back to ask about more aggressive treatment? It doesn't seem to bother baby, if he even has it. He has a white tongue but he always has. My nipples are really tender and itchy. :-(

JJ1973 · February 2014

I have been battling thrush for three weeks now. My son does not have any visible symptoms. I was treated with diflucan for 10 days along with the nystatin ointment. I was also given a script for that Jack Newman's all purpose nipple ointment, which has been a god send. It has to come from a pharmacy that compounds things so there was a bit if a barrier getting it, to start, but I find it to be much more soothing than the nystatin and from what I've read about nystatin, probably better (many people complain that the nystatin ointment may even contribute to thrush). I've completely stopped the nystatin at this point (it felt counterproductive). Mine seemed to be doing better last week but but never fully went away. I just started another round of diflucan and I'm sanitizing everything, and this week pushed for my son to be treated (the pediatrician didn't want to treat initially but from what I've read, this is important to do even if there are no visible symptoms as to not pass it back and forth). I suspect my son's latch problems contributed to thrush, initially (he just had a tongue tie release on Monday). I've read air exposure is important, but my nipples are so sore that I don't feel comfortable going braless, so I have also been changing my nursing pads after EVERY pump or nursing session (I've gone through three boxes just in the past two weeks. Those things are tricky because even when they feel dry, they can carry moisture that is a breeding ground for yeast. I've heard you can even use regular lotrimin or other over the counter fungal fighters on nipples. There is always the chance that it is bacterial and not thrush so you should be in communication with your OB if it goes on too much longer. But usually if it looks and feels like thrush, it is thrush (that would be the most common explanation). Bottom line - I would ask for diflucan treatment, that nipple ointment I mentioned (maybe in combination with the nystatin if you find it helpful, which is what was initially recommended to me). Run your symptoms past your OB by phone maybe. If the diflucan doesn't work along with everything else, I guess that may mean you are dealing with something else. Without doing some sort of culture (which has never been offered to me), the best they can do is listen to your symptoms and treat the most likely suspect (in this case, thrush). I'm sorry you are going through this - it sucks to be so uncomfortable when dealing with everything else related to feeding our little ones.

JJ1973 · February 2014

Forgot to mention that I have also been intermittently popping the 600 mg Motrin they gave me after my c-section. That has helped with the pain from thrush, but obviously is not a good long term solution.

BootsOrHearts · February 2014

Thank you! I will talk to my OB. I have been treating baby with the nystatin also just to be safe.but if he has it it doesn't seem to bother him much.

Thrush going on 2 weeks???

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