Breast Problems After Nursing

Sounds like yeast and I would treat it from inside.Get something from the health food store.I would also treat the baby for yeast.

I haven't had that happen personally, but considering that it's a fungus, I would think that maybe it's still in your bras, and you're giving it back to yourself. I would wash them on really hot, add some vinegar (bleach if they're white), and rinse on really hot. You may also want to google to see if there are other ideas for how to make sure a fungus is killed from clothing. Aside from that, I would make sure you're wearing cotton bras, at least while you're healing, so that the skin can breathe, and it will be more gentle on you.

Hi! I tried nursing right after my son was born, but was unsuccessful. However, what I did try to do w/the help of hospital lactation consultants just tore my nipples apart. They became scabbed and obviously uncomfortable. I met w/a lactation consultant at another hospital and was advised to get a prescription from my doctor for an ointment called All Purpose Nipple Ointment. It is hand-made at a pharmacy (not the big-box ones, but smaller, family-owned ones. Your OB should hopefully be able to help you here. I was in Boston when my son was born.) It is pretty pricey, but after a week or so I was practically completely healed. I have most of it left because you don't use more than a dab at a time. Good luck!

I had the same problem. I tried every cream and even the liquid to put in the babies mouth. Nothing seemed to get rid of it. I read on breastfeeding.com that you should use equal parts vinegar and water and rinse your breasts with it as often as you can. After doing this it went away. Anytime that it would start to turn red again, I would repeat with the vinegar water solution. I actually kept it in the bathroom so that it was readily available after showering. Good luck.

Not sure if this may be the reason or could be contributing to your problem, but if you have a sensitivity to latex (very common), you could be reacting to the nursing pads. Wouldn't hurt to check and make sure. Good luck and hope your problem gets resolved soon!

That is exactly what happened to me when my daughter developed thrush and passed it to me. I had to change my nursing pads any time they were wet, and use the meds, and wash carefully, etc. Not a fun time. My Dr. told me that it would be really great (help me a lot) if I could go topless (of course in the privacy of my own home/bedroom) b/c that would allow air to get to skin instead of constantly keeping it in a moist state, which would lead to it getting worse. I had to make sure I was fully dry after showering, putting the medicine on, and sometimes when my daughter would nap, I would as well, with a towel to help me wipe away the extra milk that would come out instead of having a bra with nursing pads. Eventually the milk quit coming and I think that helped it clear up. From diganosis to the end of treatment took about 2 weeks, and my daughter was really young (1 or 2 wks old when it started), and I was able to start nursing again a week after it was all cleared up.

Ouch! A couple of thoughts come to mind...yeast are fungi and do thrive in dark moist areas so the nursing pads are probably not helping you and are likely hurting you in this case. I like the advice others have about airing your nipples and I've never heard about using vinegar but it's worth a try. Clotrimazole is an antifungal and betamethasone is a steroid so one is treating the fungus and the other is decreasing the inflammation. You're on the correct treatment path but you can try other complimentary methods if desired. A nipple shield or shell may help keep them away from things that stick to the inflamed area when you have to have clothes on. My final thought is about the baby. You don't mention if you resumed breastfeeding or had him treated or checked for thrush as well. You may have had small cracks in your nipple tissue that allowed the fungal infection to only affect you but if there are any white patches in your son's mouth, he should be treated at the same time you're being treated so you don't keep passing it back and forth if you resume breastfeeding. Hope this helps.

You might ask your doctor if this could be a yeast infection as it is not uncommon to acquire one after having been on antibiotics. You shouldn't be using any other ointment besides the ones they gave you. Lotions and gels can seal in any sugary milk with the bacteria. Make sure your nipples air dry. And if you are still making milk, express a tiny bubble out and massage that in, letting it dry. Breast milk is lubricating and has antiseptic qualities. But, your breasts must dry before clothing them. And don't seal the breast milk in with lanolin or lotion!

You might also wash your bras in bleach or vinegar to ensure you aren't reinfecting yourself. Sounds extreme, but if the antibiotics aren't helping, and this is not a yeast infection, it could be thanks to the warm synthetic environment your bra creates.

Best of luck.

If this is thrush, you are best to pay attention to what you are putting into your body as well as what is coming in contact with your breasts.
Most regular dr.'s don't have a clue about issues around nursing! Contact a lactation specialist asap!
Tea tree oil is the best treatment for fungal infections. Take a few drops and dilute it with oil,almond oil is fine. Acidophilus capsules are tablets 3x a day is also helpful.
L. M