You've got be kidding me, another plugged duct??

[TwinFoxes]

I mean really, the girls are 11 months old now. When is this going to stop?? And the girls are asleep so I have to pump, which isn't nearly as effective. :cry: So I guess you're never really out of the woods when it comes to plugged ducts....sigh.

[wencit]

:hug:

Plugged ducts suck! Who knew that a tiny bit of milk backed up could cause so much pain?!?

I, too, struggled with this problem for quite a while. One thing that helped me a little was to take plenty of lecithin -- about 3600mg a day. I noticed that if I decreased the dosage, I'd start getting that telltale lumpy feeling again. Also, check your nipples for any signs of a bleb (milk blister), even a tiny one. I would keep popping mine and thinking that all was clear, but the skin would just heal over itself and cause the same problem over and over. It wasn't until I finally cleared the bleb once and for all that my plugged duct problem went away.

Here's some info on Kellymom about recurrent plugged ducts:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mom/recurrent-mastitis.html

Good luck!

[gatorsmom]

Ugh, that is terrible. Interestingly enough, it was around 10-11months that I seemed to develop frequent plugged ducts with my first 2 babies. LIke several per week. It's a major reason why I weaned both babies around that time. Well, that and the frequent biting.

If I were you, I'd wake a baby and latch em on. I've done that before at night if I couldn't find relief any other way.

Sorry you are dealing with this. Hope it comes out soon!

[Momof3Labs]

Do you take a lecithin supplement daily? I swear it helped so much the second time around (I had a lot of plugged ducts with DS1 - and mastitis 5 or 6 times, no issues with DS2). I had great luck using a small heated rice pack to break up a plugged duct - make one out of a baby sock, warm in the microwave, and tuck into your bra to wear around for a while. Then when you nurse or pump, it will clear much more quickly.

[pastrygirl]

Lecithin, lecithin, lecithin! I needed to take it the entire 28 months that I nursed my son. Every time I tried to stop, I'd get clogged milk pores. I took 3 pills daily for a while until everything cleared up, then was able to take 1/day for maintenance. If I got another clog, I started taking 3 again.

[TwinFoxes]

Thanks for the lecithin tip...it's one of those things that I seem to remember hearing about but never followed through on. But I'm going to get some. I've never even heard of a "bleb." Uh, excuse me while I go check...