Day 10- Mastitis
I’ll skip day 9 because it was relatively uneventful compared to Ben’s 10th day out of the womb. To keep Sam occupied and violence free I scheduled a play date for this morning and a visit from Grandmom (my mother-in-law) this afternoon. All was well until around five o’clock. We were sitting outside and I started to feel a little bit cold. I was a little sore under the armpits. ( For those of you who may not have breastfed yet, the milk glands start under the armpit and milk can collect there making them lumpy and sore.)
When my MIL left I went inside. I still felt cold so I put on a sweatshirt and looked at the thermometer. It was 70 degrees in the house. Not a good sign. I took my temperature and sure enough I had a low fever. I didn’t put the two things together- sore armpits and a fever- until Bob reminded me that I could have an infection. Sure enough, my left breast was fire engine red and hot to the touch and I started feeling flu-ish.
It was after office hours but my doctor was on call so I had her call in a prescription for antibiotics for me. I was still hoping that I could avoid them since Ben had a little yeast rash in the diaper area and antibiotics can cause yeast problems like thrush, a condition I managed to avoid with Sam, but I wanted to have them if I didn’t get better without.
I put on a heating pad and let Ben nurse on the sore breast for a long time. I block nursed for the night, just one side at a time to make sure everything was well-drained and put heat on the sore side before each nursing session. I took advil to help with the discomfort and swelling and went to bed early waking to nurse regularly, hoping for the best.
Unfortunately I still had a temperature Saturday morning and my breast was still hot and red to the touch. So I started the antibiotics. Bob took Sam out for the day so I was able to rest with Ben most of the day. By Sunday I was feeling better. Yesterday, Monday, I was still sore, but all of the other symptoms had completely subsided.
Mastitis sucks but I’m glad I caught it early.
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May 27th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Yuck! I hate plugged ducts, and I can’t imagine what it would be like to have mastitis with an infant and a toddler. I’m glad you were able to catch it early. If you’re worried about thrush, you could always ask your doc or LC about taking a probiotic.
June 18th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Oh how miserable! Did you try Booby Tubes? http://www.all-natural- mommies.com/cart/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=32 They are totally amazing. Can be hot or cold and were so helpful to me when I was nursing.