Just wondering if anyone else has had this. I'm down to nursing my 2 year old once a day now, and for the last three weeks my right side of my right breast and areola is tender and sore, no bumps or redness, no fever etc. I've had blocked ducts in the past and they have gone away in 2-3 days. It hurts so bad when she nurses - it hurts when you press on it. I went to the Dr. and she was clueless - she ordered an ultrasound - she thought it was a pulled muscle - it's not. I feel like if she stopped nursing it would go away. ???? errrr very frustrating. Thanks in advance for your help :]
Have you tried nipple shields? I had to use them in the beginning to enable myself to breastfeed with cracked nipples, but I do not see why they would not provide you with some comfort as well.
Good for you to keep trying. I still breastfeed my 2 year old and have had to deal with milk blisters. Good luck.
I'm wondering if that's an internal thrush. You might need to go on Diflucan for a few weeks. Generally, you will need a "loading" dose of several hundred mg to "knock it out" & then 2 wks or so of 100mg.
Good for you for nursing until your child decides to wean herself!!!!!!
Hope you feel better soon!
PS:
After skimming through some of the responses, I am SHOCKED to see the response by Tracy B. Wow! How unsupportive!!!!!! Clearly she is not well educated on the enormous, life-long bennefits of child-led weaning & extended nursing, in general! Please ignore her & do what is right for YOU and YOUR child!!!!!! Sorry about that.
Could you be pregnant? A couple weeks into a new pregnancy your nipples start to hurt when nursing. I always continued nursing mine through the pregnancy, but it does hurt a bit.
It DOES sound like a plugged duct. Nursing less will probably only make it worse. I would try always starting her on the side that hurts b/c that is when her sucking is strongest. Hope you are feeling better soon. Congrats on keeping up the nursing for this long!
By the way - I would ignore the rude response from Tracy. Not sure why she even bothered to respond!
K.,
Is your daughter teething? Some times when they are teething they nurse differently and that can cause pain. I was still nursing both of my kids when they were two and I remember painful times when they were getting their 2 year molars. You could try nursing in different positions to see if that helps. If it is teeth giving her tylenol might help both of you feel better. Also I've noticed that some older children nurse with lots of motion or a bad latch.
Pregnancy can definitely cause sore nipples, but usually its both nipples and all over!
You might try calling one of the local La Leche League leaders, she could probably give you lots more suggestions and encouragement.
Good-lock,
K. L.
I am having the same problem. I figured it was from nursing less... I put vasalene/lansinloh on it and it helps a lot.
Best of luck and keep up the good work!!!
If it's your aerola and/or nipple, it could be that the baby isn't latching properly. I had this problem with all 3 of my kids, but with my last (almost 3 yo) it was the worst. It hurt so bad that I wanted to quit, but being my 3rd I knew what the problem was. I didn't bleed much, but it was so sore that even a loose bra hurt. I finally trained him to latch properly, used a lot of lanolin, and after a couple of weeks everything went smoothly again. I hope this helps you.
Congrats! Your dedication and unselfishness to stay with nursing for 2 years in many a eye is an admirable thing to do. :)
I have had mastitis several times and not had any redness or streaking or any of the other symptoms for days. I am betting on a blocked duct and at this point say CONTINUE nursing to help clear it, apply heat, massage. Stopping at this point might not help it or if it is on the border of mastitis send it to the infection side if unable to clear the blockage.
a call to the local LLL is a good suggestion.
Nursing a 2 year old is not creepy... the World Health Organization recommends that ALL kids are nursed until 2. That being said, it may be time for you and for her to quit nursing-- that's up to you. Maybe you want to speak with a lactation specialist (since your dr is clueless)? I wouldn't ignore it...
i've had the clogged duct thing too and it felt bruised like you're describing, but i'm clueless too! good luck, but mainly i wanted to congratulate you on nursing so long! i love hearing that. i nursed my daughter till she was 2 and i was a few months into my second pregnancy. weaning her wasn't at all as difficult as i anticipated, thank god. take care, and meanwhile, maybe alternate heat[a warm compress] and ice on your sore breast in 10 min. intervals till it feels better?
I say stop nursing! She's 2! I have a 2 year old who just got off her bottle, and that was long overdue! She just needed it for comfort. I know there's a great connection with nursing (did it with my 2 oldest) but you gotta stop sometime! And i'm sorry to say it, but nursing a two year old is kinda creepy. And if you're in pain---stop!
I bothered to respond because it is my opinion! I have a 2 year old and I can't even fathom her nursing! She has 20 teeth and is way more than capable of eating food. When do you plan on stopping? I thought the norm was 1 year. I was only giving my opinion, not trying to upset anyone! Maybe creepy wasn't the word to use... but I do think it's wierd!
Besides, not all responses have to be sunshine and roses... sometimes the truth is cold, hard and hurts. And I am entitled to my opinion the same as all of you.
So -- if you're in pain, stop.
