Breast Pain When nursing..thrush?

Contact a lactation consultant ASAP!!! They are great and can really help you. The hospital where you delivered should be able to make a recomendation. Besides the thrush, the baby could be latching incorrectly and that is what is causing more pain. GOOD LUCK!!! I hope it gets better for you!

Hi K.,

don't give up just yet. the first 6 weeks of nursing any baby can be tough and even tougher when you run into problems like thrush. but trust me if you can get past this infection and past the six week mark it does get easier and becomes so easy and very enjoyable.

seek help. have you talked to a lactation consultant? If you don't have one, your local hospital can probably help you find one. if you want to try and make the nursing successful, it s worth the money spent to have one make a home visit. only take adivce from your peditriacian if they are in favor of breastfeeding. (some are not and can be very discouraging)

try to hang in there. it is so beneficial for both you and your baby.

W. K

This is very normal. I did not breastfeed my first child because of the pain, but was more openminded and stuck with it the second time around. There are breastshields that friends of mine have found helpful. The shield over your breast and provide some "protection." The whole process of breastfeeding I did not find "enjoyable" either, but per stigma..."it is best." (My 3 1/2 yr old just got her first ear infection and was a very healthy infant/toddler eventhough she was formula fed!)

Do what feels best for you. If it is too overwhelming and you are frustrated and upset by breastfeeding, the baby will feel this. Make the decision that is best for you and enjoy your baby.

contact a lactation consultant immediately, dont make a decision based on pain which should not be happening. i was very sore at the beginning for like 3-4 weeks, but then it was fine. if your daughter has thrush both you and she need to be treated at the same time and make sure to completely get rid of it. some people say they had to use different medications or took awhile to treat successfully. if after you contact your lactation consultant and she confirms , you still have worries, why not pump to keep up milk supply until you completely heal from the yeast(now im saying this assuming you had it diagnosed by a doctor).
please dont give up, just get a lactation consultant to make sure your latch is perfect first as it might be that and not even related to thrush.
good luck.

I read some of the responses that you got and just wanted to add this: My son had a yeast diaper rash that took forever to go away because we were both on antibiotics when he was born. It never spread to his mouth or my breasts and I have to believe it is because I took acidophilus (the bacteria found in yogurt). You can get it in tablet form at a health food store and it helps to restore the good bacteria in your system and it also will help decrease the growth of the yeast. It passes through the breast milk too so it will help restore balance in your daughter's system too. Also, try not supplementing with formula for a while. The sugar in the formula can add to the yeast growth. Breast milk has antibacterial and antifungal properties so this is not a problem. I also used the tea tree oil in a diluted form since it can be harsh on sensitive skin. You can buy a spray bottle and put water with 1-2 drops pure tea tree oil in it and use this to wash your breasts after you feed her.

Has it always hurt to nurse? I had difficulty with this, minus the thrush and mastitis, and the lac. consultant kept telling me how to get my son to open his mouth wider, but he couldn't. I finally took him to a pediatric chiropractor and after 2 sessions (very gentle!!) he latched like a champ without any more pain. It is very normal for babies to sometimes get a bit jammed where the spinal vertebrae meet the skull during the birth process. So if you are both getting treated for thrush and it is clear but it still hurts to nurse, it might be worth getting checked out by a pedi chiropractor.

I know how frustrating nursing can be in those early weeks, and I know I was ready to give up. I am glad I didn't , but evry situation is different and at the end of the day what really counts is Happy Mama, Happy Baby. If you try everythig and you still are unhappy with nursing, there is no shame in giving up.

Good luck

Please google la leche league in your area and call a leader! These women volunteer (read - free!), are very experienced, and are dedicated to help nursing mothers. I have found tremendous help and comfort with a variety of issues over the course of nursing in two states. They will not feel imposed upon and will not expect anything in return. She will most likely gladly come to your house and help you with your specific problem. Watching you nurse, she will see if the baby is latching on correctly and help guide you to guide the baby to make it less uncomfortable. Ultimately, once the thrush is healed and the latch is correct, nursing will be pleasant and relaxing for both you and your baby. Please don't give up!!!
Good luck to you!
L.

It's definitely the thrush. Hang in there, and I think you'll be glad you did!

Kim - Your doing great and she is a beautiful baby. They are so right about it getting easier after the 6 week mark and your are so close, stick with it. It will all be a dull memory after a few months and the benefits will last a life time. (Kinda like childbirth).

Hi K.. i had thrush with my second baby. It was the most painful thing. Someone described the pain in your breasts like smashing a glass bottle on the inside. I was like, yes, that's exactly it. It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO painful. I went to a lactation doctor and she helped some. I also tried the gentian violet adn yes it is very messy, but it helped a lot. It turned my bras purple and my son's mouth. pretty funny, but it really worked. There's something else though, thrush is candita which is yeast. My pediatritian also told me at the time that I should cut out as much sugar and white flour as possible during the time we had thrush. I also took acidophilis.

Anyway, I can tell you from experience that it did go away and it got much easier. Breastfeeding isn't always an enjoyable experience in teh beginning. I felt like such a loser at first because I would hear all these moms saying how great it was. I also struggled a lot in the beginning, but once I got the hang of it I really did enjoy it. I bf both of my sons till 14 or 15 months.

Hope you'll be feeling better soon.

I would really encourage you to keep going. I had a smooth breastfeeding experience with my older daughter, but I was experiencing a lot more pain with my twins and it turned out they both had thrush. Around 4 weeks I was thinking about how I wasn't really enjoying feeding time like I did with my first child, but the medicine worked and the thrush went away. Now my babies are 11 weeks old and breastfeeding is going well. After sticking it out through the tough early days, I find it is so much easier to nurse than to prepare bottles. Good luck to you.

-Kim, DO NOT WASH OFF THE MEDICATION! That is what is fighting the bacteria. She already has it in her mouth, so why do you need to wash it off? ---My first son and my fourth son also had thrush. With #4 he had it coming home from the hospital! He actually got it in the hospital! I was a c-section, so there was no other way to get it, except from someone in the hospital, like a nurse touching him. Well anyway, I honestly could not get rid of it after months. Meanwhile, my son, since newborn, had to take formula and nurse because I was having oral surgery. So here we are with a newborn with thrush, and then I had to introduce formula and that caused him to stop pooping and a ton of gas! Not pleasant. After my Dr's wouldn't do/give me the Diflucan because I was nursing, I went online and searched for something homeopathic. I found some great advice, but the one thing that I did, and that was the easiest, was too apply the cream every 2 hours. The bacteria actually grows back very quickly and 2-3 times a day just doesn't do it sometimes. I also had yogurt, with live cultures, every single day. I know the reason for the gas was the formula, but I also found out that the thrush can cause stomache upset too. Now he had been off the formula for 2 months, but still had the constipation/gas. Once I did the constant application of the medicine, it went away! I can't remember how long, but I am thinking at least 7-10 days. I was so relieved. I also used Lansinoh lanolin on the boobs. That stuff is also instant relief! You can pick it up at your local drugstore for around $8-9 dollars. Pricey, but worth every single penny. You can even use it on diaper rash, cuts, burns, etc. So it does go along way. Please don't give up nursing. It gets so much easier! I promise. But you have to help yourself to understand what your body and his body are doing. Yah, formula might "sound easier", but a lot of babies cannot tolerate even the "gentlest" formula. I hope this helped some. I would do a search under thrush and breastfeeding and see what you can come up with. There were many different options that women took. I was extremely grateful that it was just constant applications that made it work. -M.-

It sounds like you have a Yeast Infection -- call your OB ASAP.

HI! Talk to yur doctor you may also have mastitis. Do your breasts (one or both) feel hot, hard or lumpy. Mastitis can be very painful and you will need medication to fix it. I had it 3 times when my daughter was less than 3 months old and it is painful. The medication and nursing will clear it up you just have to get through it. Nursing actually helps heal it!

Also let me encourage you to keep breast feeding. It is a rewarding and wonderful bonding experience for both you and baby. It is also VERY cost affective! NO bottles and NO formula! A.

Hi K.,

Have you seen a lactation consultant? I found breastfeeding to be painful in the beginning and I was amazed at what a difference it made to see a good lactation consultant. The woman I saw is amazing (she is in Ulster County, NY by the way; not sure where Delanson is) and she had my son latched on immediately and I was amazed at how different it felt. I think the key things were making sure you had enough pillows -- I used a Brest Friend breast feeding pillow with another pillow on top of that -- and also holding your baby's head firmly in place at the breast (of course make sure your baby's nose is not constricted by your breast tissue).

Also, when you hit six to eight weeks (I know that sounds a long way off right now), you'll turn a corner and it will get much, much easier.

When my breasts/nipples were sore I used a hair dryer on a low heat setting -- just wave the hair dryer back and forth; the heat is very soothing.

Good luck!!!

K.,
I also had the yeast in the breast. It was very difficult to get rid of. At around 3wks after birth, my breast felt like chards of glass! The pain was horrible, especially when showering! If your nipple has a red ring around it, you have yeast. You and your baby will pass it back and forth until you effectively get rid of it. In addition to the anti-fungal creams, you need to modify your diet. For several days you need to limit carbs & sugars completely and eat 3-4 containers of plain yogurt. Yeast thrives on sugars!You also need to take a single dose of difluxan (sic) to rid the yeast infection. Until I did all of this, I couldn't get rid of it. By the start of month 3, we were both fine and continued to breastfeed for 12 mos. Stick with it, if you can. Hang in there! I'm sure you are very tired and in pain. All my best, A.

Hi K., I feel for you even though it has been ages since I nursed mine. I can only suggest supplementing more often until you heal. Hopefully you won't have to stop since it is so good for both of you. You could also contact the La Leche league for suggestions. I'll pray for you, Sincerely, Grandma Mary (mother of 5)

hi K., im sorry you are having such a rough time. it will get much better after you get rid of the thrush, and i think you will really love it. try to give it a chance without the thrush before you quit, if you can. and if you cant, dont worry, you have already given your baby a wonderful gift and a happy mommy is more important, imo.
meanwhile, the first thing you need to do is get rid of the thrush. i dont know much about it, i never had it myself, i do know that it hurts. i think i have heard of using gentian violet (sp?) for thrush, people swear by it. i would google it and see, and i would definitely call a la leche league leader and/or a lactation consultant to be sure you are doing everything you can. there are lots of docs who just dont have great info about breastfeeding, la leche can point you in the right direction. they have helped me so much over the years, i have never been to a meeting, ive just gotten phone numbers off the website and i have found wonderful helpful supportive people who are so generous with their time and expertise over the phone...... also check out these 2... my computer is down, im on dh's laptop so i dont have my links to put in, but dr sears and dr jay gordon, if you can find the websites, are very helpful. but definitely try la leche. also, are you sure you have a good latch? it is critical, and can cause a lot of pain if you dont. also, are you sure you dont have a clogged milk duct? is the pain localized in one spot? can you feel a lump? is it hot? if you have any of these things, it may be a blocked duct, especially if you are giving more bottles. it can also be very painful, but is easy to get rid of. i have had lots of those. email me if you think it might be that, i can help. good luck, D.

get yourself checked for mastitis. do you have a fever or anything?

Hi K.. I never experienced thrush, but I think I had every other breastfeeding ailment that exists (mastitis, cracking & bleeding, plugged ducts, blebs, etc.) I can sympathize. I know what you mean when you say it is not enjoyable because it is uncomfortable. I was in tears with my second daughter for almost 6 weeks everytime I nursed her. If you really want to breastfeed, my only advice is get whatever medical help and lactation assistance you can (it sounds like you are already doing this) and then pull up your bootstraps and know that this is a temporary bump in what can be a long and beautiful road ahead. It is worth it--be a fighter! Good luck--hugs.

Don't give up...I too had the same thing while nursing my son. Talk to your doctors about getting on an oral medication for the thrush such as diflucan. They gave me just like one pill the first time and the thrush came back so they gave me like a weeks worth of pills and put the baby on an oral medication too, and it worked a charm. The trick is both you and the baby need to be on the medication at the same time otherwise you will just be giving it back and forth to eachother. Hang in there and know that once the thrush clears up it will be sooooooo much better.

As some other people have said the first six weeks is tough, but stick to and then you will wonder why you ever hesitated with the breastfeeding. It will become so easy and natural you will be happy you stuck with it. La Leche League is a great resource to help you through this too if you need someone to talk to or help you with any issues you may be having.

Don't give up and keep going. If you need to talk, I am here to chat...just keep working at it and you will be glad you did.
G.

The only thing I can think of is that maybe she is not latching on correctly. Check and make sure she is. The thrush can cause terrible breast pain for you while she is nursing, until it clears up. Hang in there. I went through this too. It is not easy but it will pass.

I bought a book called The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding. It was very helpful and had pictures to help. You could also call the Lactation Consultant at your local hospital.

I had problems nursing with my first son. The pain is usually due to the baby not latching on properly. I did 2 things. I called someone form La Leche. They will actually send a consultant to your house. My saving grace was a nipple/breast shield. It was THE ONLY thing that worked for me. Medela makes them and they cost only a few dollars. We had to use that up until we were done nursing at around 6 months. A friend of mine used one and eventually, didn't need it as the baby got older.
Good luck!

Are you sure she is latching on correctly? I've nursed all three of my children and the baby still does. The only time it hurts is when he firsts gets on because sometimes he almost slurps it in instead of just opening his mouth.

If you are having trouble, call the lactation consultant where you delivered. They are there to help even though you are home now. I cried every day the first 3 weeks with my oldest son and went on to nurse him for 13 1/2 months. My middle was 22 months and my baby now is 10 months and still nursing.

Personally I can't imagine doing anything else. I don't have to worry about buying formula or heating bottles much less doing any of it at night. On the other hand, it is supposed to be a positive thing between the two of you.

I just ask you seek help from an LC first. I have two friends who each just gave up and told me they tried everything when I know for a fact they did not. It's their choice but I just know there is more they could have done to make it work well.

Good luck,
L.

http://APerfectMoment.MyArbonne.com

Hi! Congratulations on your new baby and for sticking with the breastfeeding through the discomfort. I would suggest contacting a lactation consultant- Breastfeeding Resources in Stratford CT was absolutely amazing. I had LOTS of trouble breastfeeding at first, but with their help it turned into a beautiful experience and I nursed my baby for a year! If it doesn't work out, though, please don't feel bad- you've already given your baby a great gift! Good luck!

I had thrush with my first baby and I feel your pain! It's horrible, and sorry to say that for us, meds eased it, but never took it away completely. It didn't go away until I switched him to bottles. However, something that helped ease the pain, was putting grated carrots in my bra!! Grate some carrots keep them in the fridge, and after you nurse put a few over your nipple in your bra. For whatever reason it really helped. And I know other mom's who found relief that way too. I also tried tea bags, but found the carrots worked better for me. Try them both and see what works for you. Use real tetley tea, not herbal, and see if it helps. Keep your chin up, in the big picture of your babies life, this is just a little grain of sand... xo

Hi! I experienced the same thing when my daughter was 2 months.. I think I had it a while before it was diagnosed and undermedicated by my OB at first w/ the vaginal dose of Diflucan. I went to a lactation consultant and then w/ information given tome by them I called the MD and got a higher dose of meds.. Anyway It took a while but evenutally it cleared and breastfeeding then was a whole different story.. no more pain... Take the time to Make sure you get a good latch - it helps, and take advil or tylenol for the pain.. There is alot of info out there on the internet that can help get rid of it - just have to pick which things to do are best for you... Try to hang in there - it WILL get better.. That being said, you should do what is best for you and if you have to quit try not to feel guilty. BF will get easier and quicker.. My dd is 7.5 months and now I love it! Good luck!

Hang in there and see if it passes after the thrush is cleared..

K.-

Do not give up! My daughter just turned one and it is the one experience that I thought I would not be interested in carrying on for so long. When I first started BF-ing, I had a LOT of pain, especially on my left side (of course it was the side she favored). It got so bad that I even had cutting and some minor blood. Everything I thought I read and thought I new seemed not to work. The best thing I can suggest is to get in touch with your local La Leche League. They helped me tremendously and gave me more encouragement then I can begin to tell you here. If you live in the Chester/Washingtonville NY area email me at ____@____.com and I'll get you in touch with LLL. They meet once a month but are available via phone and email just about 24-7.

The good news it that you are BOTH being treated for the thrush. This is a common mistake by doctors not to treat you each at the same time as this kind of intimate contact is like having relations with a partner who has herpes or some other communicable disease. You BOTH need treatment!

As for the pain, I purchased a set of specially shaped gel packs that fit into my nursing bra. I found them in Target. I would kept them in the fridge and use them while she was sleeping. This allows the milk to be reduced. After using the pack though, I sometimes needed a warm shower to get the milk to flow again. I found that often the shower was a good place to massage the breast and work out any sore spots. I had a few lumps I was worried would become clogged/infested glands. When they hurt too much for me to do it, I asked my husband to do it. Of course, he would get all goofy - "I get to touch those?" - but with a little explaining that I needed this for medical help and that they hurt severely and that this was not intimate contact but a way to release the pressure I was feeling, he understood. He is a nurse so he got over it quickly.

A few other tips I would give: Keep them dry. Massage a bit of milk onto the nipple to keep it supple then let them air dry. Avoid pads if possible. You can apply almost anything to them to assist in the healing (I finally had to use bacitracin), but only the Lanolin is okay for baby to "eat" - wash everything else off prior to feeding. Give yourself time to heal. Keep nursing even through the pain (and trust me I know it is hard!). It's okay to supplement if that is what you feel you need to do. Be proud of what you are trying to do! And, again feel free to contact me or LLL!

Nursing isn't always easy...and in the beginning or during thrush it is painful...if you can get through this, I really think you will grow to love and cherish this time...but if you can't, Don't beat yourself up...a happy mommy is the most important thing for baby and if you are so focused on the misery...you're not focusing on the most important thing and that's that beautiful baby!

I just healed a case of thursh NATURALLY in about 3 days. Those creams and meds are very unhealthy for you and your baby.

1. RAW ORGANIC APPLE CIDER VINEGAR- pour some in a shallow bowl and dunk your nipples in it for 30 seconds at a time 4-5 times a day and then allow to airdry.

2. Make a drink of 2 tbs the ACV, 1 tbs, lemon, 1 tbs honey and mix with water. Drink 2-3 times a day.

3. Give your baby a 1/4 tsp of RAW ORGANIC EXTRA VIRGIN COCNUT OIL. It's tremdously healthy and should help purge the yeast naturally.

Please do not stop breastfeeding.

Also, try to avoid sugar, dairy, alcohol, and simple carbs.

This works. I swear by it.