I have a clogged duct and have been unsuccessful with getting it unplugged. So far I have tried hot compress with and without nursing (several times), hot shower with hand expressing, pumping with hot compress, and general message with and without nursing. I think the major issue is the location, at the top of my breast, which enables me to get son's chin at the clogged location when nursing (which has been successful with other clogs I have had). It has been over 24 hours and luckily I have no signs of Mastitis.
So ladies, any other suggestions I can try? Thanks for your help!!
Thanks everyone! I FINALLY got rid of it. I was very worried because it got worse and half my breast was as hard as a rock. I pretty much sat down and used heat for about 20 minutes then manually expressed the milk out on and off for almost an hour. I didn't think I got it until I nursed my son a few hours later and he totally drained it...sweet relief!!!
take some soy lecithin pills, ibuprophen
rest
nurse as much as possible
cabbage will reduce supply-- be careful
This is going to sound odd but it worked for me. Go tan with nothing on top for like 5 min. The extra heat was enough to do it for me when I had one in the same place.
put raw cabbage inside your bra and where it for a few hrs it works great i know it sounds funny but it does work
good luck
It sounds like you're doing the right things... I would go for some not-so-gentle massage. In my experience, sometimes you really need to mash on your breast while nursing or pumping or hand expressing in the shower - to get the clog out. Make sure you nurse first off that side, even if it's just for a couple minutes before switching, to keep things moving. Is there any way you can get your boy into a different position for nursing - maybe even upside down (while you're side-lying on the bed, for example) to get him to stimulate a different part of your breast? Mastitis really sucks - I just got done with 2 weeks of antibiotics b/c of a nasty case of it myself.
