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insegnante Forum All-Star
Joined: April 07 2006 Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline Posts: 1143
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 11:23am | IP Logged
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Hi,
Just wondered if anyone had experience/advice/resources for plugged ducts past the frequently nursing infant stage. Without being graphic, this is the worst plugged duct I've ever had. I first noticed it Wednesday night I think. Not only is nursing as often as I would with an infant somewhat unrealistic, and quite painful (just short of agony), nursing also so far hasn't seemed to do a thing to resolve the problem. I tried nursing shortly after a warm shower to no avail. I will keep trying to nurse slightly more often and to do so after a shower, but does anyone have any tricks that might not be listed among the usual advice but work? Everything I read seems to assume that both baby's needs and wants and mom's milk supply are at the stage when frequent nursing is pretty standard anyway.
As for how this probably developed, for months now our 29-month-old has nursed mostly when he wakes up at night (sometimes that's all too often, sometimes not at all for days,) once in a while to fall asleep at night or for daytime naps, and for comfort if he bonks himself etc. Sometimes it would be more than a day between nursings.
Recently he's been sleeping wonderfully well at night. And I've been sleeping on my stomach or on my side in ways that may have contributed to this problem when I didn't nurse for a day or longer.
Thanks for any ideas,
Theresa
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JennGM Forum Moderator
Joined: Feb 07 2005 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 11:54am | IP Logged
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Theresa,
I've only had experience with one, but I was the plugged duct/mastitis queen! And despite all the advice my son's nursing *never* helped solve my problem.
I did very warm washcloths repeatedly on the offending side, did acrobatic moves to soak the side in a bowl of warm water. After that I stayed in the warm shower for 30 minutes or so and just worked on squeezing the clog out. There also might be a whitehead or something on the n*pple that you can squeeze or pop. Then you can squeeze out some of the dried milk (like spaghetti) if that doesn't make the milk flow.
Cabbage leaves do soothe the pain.
There was a homeopathic remedy I took that helped me never have another problem. I'd take as soon as I felt something coming on. Search the forums for old threads on clogged ducts or mastitis.
__________________ Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to & ds1 '03 & ds2 '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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MicheleQ Forum All-Star
Joined: Feb 23 2005 Location: Pennsylvania
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 12:29pm | IP Logged
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Theresa,
If you can get him to nurse make sure his chin is pointed towards the plugged duct. This always is a help to me. You get better suction that way and sometimes it will solve the problem.
Of course you may have already done this but I thought I would mention it in case you hadn't.
God bless!
__________________ Michele Quigley
wife to my prince charming and mom of 10 in Lancaster County, PA USA
http://michelequigley.com
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 06 2006 Location: Oregon
Online Status: Offline Posts: 12234
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 1:35pm | IP Logged
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heat and massage.. hard as you can stand (but don't injure yourself massage).. I would also be taking garlic and, if not pregnant, ginger.. to head off any infection.. also cranberry is supposed to help I think.
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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esperanza Forum All-Star
Joined: Aug 17 2005 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 3:28pm | IP Logged
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Theresa,
I have handled situations like this by drinking lots of watered down cranberry juice (pure-no sugar added). ...staying in a long hot shower massaging from the chest out towards the nipple and expressing in the shower. I'll apply castor oil to the area and cover with moist heat (reapplying moist heat often if I can't get in the shower).
I actually keep castor oil in my shower in case I feel plugged ducts starting up or for just that congested feeling one gets sometimes.
Homeopathic Phytolacca decandra works well, too.
Praying you get better soon.
__________________ In His Peace,
Tammy Gonzalez in VA
dh-Johnny
mom to Tara-'85, Noelle-'88, Jeremy-'91, Elizabeth-'93, Emma-'96, Dominic-'99, Gabriel-'01, Elijah-03
and Jacinta-06
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insegnante Forum All-Star
Joined: April 07 2006 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Jan 26 2007 at 4:11pm | IP Logged
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Thanks for all the ideas and prayers! I am considering all the suggestions and plan to try some this evening. Any other ideas, I'll still be reading.
Theresa
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ALmom Forum All-Star
Joined: May 18 2005
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Posted: Jan 29 2007 at 3:49am | IP Logged
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Rest in addition to all the above - and for as often as possible leave off any restrictive clothing like bras (as far as modesty allows of course). I just kept working the plug until relief and also applied heat with a heating pad when I rested in addition to hot showers while expressing. I also found that expressing before nursing helped the child to work the area too.
Janet
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insegnante Forum All-Star
Joined: April 07 2006 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Jan 29 2007 at 7:34am | IP Logged
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The night of the day I posted this, I took a shower followed by soaking and a warm compress and hand expression followed by nursing. I think it was when I nursed him the next morning that major progress was noted, and the problem is basically gone by now :) Thanks for the input, it was helpful!
Theresa
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