My Breast is Sore | Is it Mastitis?
One of the most common fears I see from our clients is the fear of getting mastitis. We’ve all had that one friend who warned us about that terrible infection - right? Well, the good news is - that we have learned a lot about mastitis in the recent years and we now know how to best treat it without needing antibiotics or medical intervention. I also want you be clear in your understanding of what mastitis is, and for that matter, what is isn’t.
What IS mastitis?
By definition, mastitis means inflammation of the breast tissue. The word mastitis is Greek with “mastos” meaning breast and the suffix “itis” meaning inflammation. My hope is that by defining it, we take some of the fear out of it. Now that we know WHAT it is, let’s talk about why we see it.
Why do we see mastitis?
We can see breast inflammation for a few reasons, including but not limited to; engorgement, trauma to the lactating breast, tight clothing or binding of the breast, ineffective milk removal, infrequent milk removal, lack of sleep, mental and physical fatigue, etc.
Determining the cause of your mastitis is crucial to combating it. I say “your” mastitis because, everyone’s experience is different with a different root cause and treatment approach needed. Rarely does one treatment protocol do the trick for everyone so again, understanding why you’re seeing it is very important.
I think I have it, so what now?
As we discussed, knowing what mastitis isn’t is also important. Mastitis ISN’T; bilateral soreness in both breasts. It also ISN’T shooting pains that subside when you place your hand over your nipple. Mastitis also ISN’T a massive infection that calls for an ER trip or several rounds of antibiotics.
If you suspect you have mastitis run through this checklist - if you are experiencing 1 or more of these symptoms, keep reading.
Are you seeing:
A red tender spot on one breast?
Red cat-like streaks or claw marks on one breast?
Are you feeling run down and flu-like?
Are you feeling a dull achy pain deep within one breast?
Any hard spots on one breast?
If this sounds like you, then you MIGHT be experiencing some breast inflammation so I’m glad you’re here. Now let’s discuss treatments.
Treatment Options | Depending on the Cause
Engorgement | If you suspect your mastitis is from prolonged engorgement we need to address it ASAP. Pumping and/or hand expressing in addition to breastfeeding can be helpful. The idea here is that we need to remove the milk that is sitting in your breast to clear those potential pockets or lakes of infection. Hands on pumping can be helpful for this as well.
Tight clothing or binding of the breast | If you’re recently getting back into your pre-baby workout routine and now you’ve noticed soreness in one breast, it could be due to a bra or tank that is too tight. If your clothing is leaving red marks - it’s too tight. Best practice here is to size up one size from your postpartum size.
Ineffective milk removal | This is the most common reason we see mastitis! Especially if you’ve been dealing with latch pain or nipple breakdown. When we have breakdown on our anatomy we are widening our risk for introducing bacteria which can lead to mastitis. Working with an IBCLC to improve latch technique is of upmost importance here. To improve milk removals while breastfeeding you can use hands on massage while feeding or use a pump after breastfeeding to help encourage further milk removal. It’s important to use the pump to help, not hinder this situation any further so again, an IBCLC is really needed. In the short term frequent icing can help ( 20 minutes sessions of ice on the effected breast, no more than 3 times a day) and OTC anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen are highly recommended. Remember - our goal is to reduce inflammation here. No heat. No deep tissue massage.
Infrequent milk removal | This is our second most common reason for seeing mastitis. Is baby sleeping through the night so now you are too? A few days of going upwards of 6 hours without removing milk can lead to milk stasis or milk sitting within the breast. How you remove the milk is your decision but whether it’s baby or pump you need to be routine. Set a milk removal schedule and stick to it. Icing can help ( 20 minutes sessions of ice on the effected breast, no more than 3 times a day) and OTC anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen are highly recommended.
Lack of sleep |
Mental and physical fatigue |