Mastitis question!?

Question

i am breastfeeding my 3 week old daughter, i want to know how to prevent mastitis before i even get it, i have a hard time letting my nipples air out because i am constantly leaking and my milk gets everywhere, and if i do get it will i be able to breastfeed while i have it???

Answer 1

Mastitis usually occurs in the first couple of weeks from breast engorgement resulting in infection.

If you are emptying your breasts at each feed then you should be fine. Having said that though, my kids used to get enough milk from one side a feed so then next time I would use the other side.

If you feel your breasts starting to get engorged (extremely full and hard like rocks but not much coming out) then get in the shower and run hot water over them to encourage a let down and then let the milk run freely. Or you can try laying warm/hot towels over them to encourage them to flow.

If though as you said, you're leaking all the time, I doubt you will get masitis because you're breasts are releasing the milk and not engorging/storing it.

To let your nipples air out, do it after a feed when you have a lot less milk to leak out and just make sure you changed breastpads frequently. I used to use a folded up face washer in my bra because I leaked that much in the first 6 weeks. As your body establishes how much your baby needs it will stop producing as much and you will notice the leaking stop.

Good luck and good on you for breast feeding! Keep it up!