Whew! That stuff is NASTY! Wednesday i felt like I'd overdone it a bit, and noticed a bit of tenderness in my left breast-but it was only upon latching on, so I figured it was leftover irritation from some of the yarnking around the LO has been doing. By 2am my back was KILLING me, and I felt like I might have a fever, but the thermometer was a bit too cold to work with. By 6am, all I could do was huddle under the covers and shiver. It took every ounce of strength I had just too position my baby so she could latch on and in truth, I couldn't have cared less if someone had just popped a bottle in her mouth and let her glug down a bunch of formula and I never breastfed a single day again.
My temp was 103.6, I could hardly walk from the back and thigh pain, I couldn't think clearly and frankly I felt like I'd been hit by a mack truck. AND all the while, my breast pain itself was MINOR-as if I'd spent a minute or two permitting a bad latch.
My midwife diagnosed me with mastitis, and I must admit, I was skeptical. I wasn't really presenting with any of the symptoms I remember from seeing it in cats or dogs. There was no rock hard boob, red streaks, or even much pain. I started on antibiotics, and the fever peaked at 104.6. By 5pm Wednesday afternoon, I'd sweated the worst of it out. I slept a LOT, and DH bless his heart, took over night time baby co-sleeping duty. He just handed her over for feedings. It really helped. Today has been MUCH better, and I'm feeling more like my old self, though interestingly, I have more breast pain-but we took a trip that kept the LO alseep longer than she would normally, so the boobs just didn't get emptied as often as they usually do.
Anyway, I wanted to post about the experience-incase anyone else suffers from something similar. Kellymoms.com states that 20% of moms will suffer from mastitis in the Western world, and most will get it within a few weeks of delivery-so watch yourself girls!
My temp was 103.6, I could hardly walk from the back and thigh pain, I couldn't think clearly and frankly I felt like I'd been hit by a mack truck. AND all the while, my breast pain itself was MINOR-as if I'd spent a minute or two permitting a bad latch.
My midwife diagnosed me with mastitis, and I must admit, I was skeptical. I wasn't really presenting with any of the symptoms I remember from seeing it in cats or dogs. There was no rock hard boob, red streaks, or even much pain. I started on antibiotics, and the fever peaked at 104.6. By 5pm Wednesday afternoon, I'd sweated the worst of it out. I slept a LOT, and DH bless his heart, took over night time baby co-sleeping duty. He just handed her over for feedings. It really helped. Today has been MUCH better, and I'm feeling more like my old self, though interestingly, I have more breast pain-but we took a trip that kept the LO alseep longer than she would normally, so the boobs just didn't get emptied as often as they usually do.
Anyway, I wanted to post about the experience-incase anyone else suffers from something similar. Kellymoms.com states that 20% of moms will suffer from mastitis in the Western world, and most will get it within a few weeks of delivery-so watch yourself girls!
Man, you've had some rough issues with boobies lately. Glad you are feeling better!
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