Stubborn blocked milk duct

Hi,
I'm after some advice on how to help my stubbornly blocked milk duct.
Started having trouble on tuesday, wednesday breast was red and sore and I had fever, general body aches and super fatigue. I managed to kick that by feeding heaps, massaging, hot showers and compresses, and sleeping. Since then the fever, general body aches and fatigue have gone and the breast is much better, no more redness and only sometimes sore.
But there's still a blockage in there. I can feel a line from my armpit down to my nipple which is kind of like a thick cord and there are a few hard bumps along the way. It gets worse between feedings and massaging + hot compresses and a feed help reduce it a bit but really it hasn't changed much in the past 5 days just keeps going up and down a little.
So does anyone have any suggestions?

dangle feeding - have bub laying down and you get on your hands and knees and 'dangle' your boob to feed. gets trickier as bub gets older though.

you could ring aba for some ideas

ice can help after a feed too. alternate warmth and heat. heat when you will feed / express get milk moving.

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dangle feeding - have bub laying down and you get on your hands and knees and 'dangle' your boob to feed. gets trickier as bub gets older though.

you could ring aba for some ideas

ice can help after a feed too. alternate warmth and heat. heat when you will feed / express get milk moving.

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I used to find 'dangle feeding' quite good - they say to position the baby's chin over in the area of the blockage - so if the blockage is around 2 o'clock area going by your description - then position yourself over the baby so their chin will be at 2 o'clock.

Also I used to massage with an electric toothbrush handle - the vibrations can help apparently.

Thanks HotI and wysiwyg!
I've been doing the massage with electric toothbrush the last couple of days.
I just tried the dangle feeding. DS did pretty well at it for a few minutes then wasn't into it anymore. I'll keep at it. I think it could really help. I was struggling to find a way to get his chin on the spot (yep 2 o'clock wysiwyg) and finding football holds difficult now he's so big and also not really hitting the right spot. He normally has his chin around 4 o'clock so this is right at the opposite side, probably why it's having trouble.
If it's not better soon I'll contact a lactation consultant.
Really don't want it to get infected again, that really sucked.

I'll have to give ice a go too. Though I must admit I'm struggling a bit to be so coordinated with the right temperature compresses at the right times. I'll just have to make it more of a priority and try to get it set up for the next feed.

I've read very recently that blocked ducts can turn into absesses if not cleared quickly. I have a similar story...but I woke with a fever and aches and a very swollen/hard sore boob. I fed, massaged, hot compresses and expressed as much as i could. After 2 days I had no more fever but still had a rather large blockage (in a similar position to you). I kept expressing massaging etc and after a couple more days it was almost gone. But I still haven't been able to get rid of it all! I think I may have to head to a gp to get it checked out...I had never heard of breast absesses before I read about them on the ABA website yesterday. I wouldn't be surprised if that's what mine has become.

Oh that sounds kind of scary BotchedTabby and soo similiar to my situation.
I hope you clear it soon! And me too
Let me know how you go

Yeah apparently they have to put a drain in to get rid of it. I'll let you know how I go. Hopefully yours cleans up very soon!

ouch! I hope it clears soon for you both!

How are you going nyigi?

I finally went to a gp and she prescibed antibiotics. I thought this was strange without an ultrasound and seeing that I have no fever etc but a quick google suggests abs are the first line of treatment for it so I'll see how I go.

I hope it helps!
I went to a gp too but he said as I didn't have a fever there wasn't anything to do and even if there was still a lump it wasn't a problem, just keep trying to shift it and even if it doesn't go away it's really no problem.
I was really frustrated and annoyed.
My lump is pretty small now but hasn't changed in the last few days. I'm not really sure what to do. If I wasn't checking for it I don't think I'd notice it which makes me tempted to just leave it. But then I also worry about it getting worse. I guess I should just get my act together and contact a lactation consultant.

That's what I originally thought...that if there is no fever what's the point of abs? But if its an absess it could contain the infection and not cause too many problems until it gets worse? So abs might actually be useful. I'm not too concerned about a blocked duct but my worry is what if it's something else?

Maybe a female gp might be more helpful? The one I booked with seemed to get it straight away which was great. She even complimented me on breastfeeding which was nice.

Btw my lump is exactly the same. Barely noticable and not causing any problems (aside from reduced supply on that side).

Yeah the something else has me a bit worried too... I figure it's unlikely but....
Yep I was really annoyed with the whole gp experience. I called and made an appointment with my normal gp (a lovely lady) but when I got there it was a guy I'd never seen before. I guess my doc was away and the receptionist hadn't mentioned someone else was filling in. I had a double appointment for me and for my 9 month old who has been sick for the last month and the doc was really dismissive of everything. He didn't check my boob at all (and while I'm happy to skip that too I figure it's kind of part of their job to check what's gong and make sure it actually feels like a blocked duct rather than something else) just said it's not a problem no fever=no antibiotics and nothing else to be done. Really a lump isn't a problem when breastfeeding, oh but yes do try everything you can to shift it... Then he listened to my son's lungs and went "yep lots of slime but no sign of infection, he'll be fine, no problem that this has been going on for the last month and triggered 2 out of hours doctor visits for virus induced asthma and suspicious recurring fever" I totally get that sometimes you just have to wait these things out but I objected to the dismissive attitude and it doesn't really inspire much faith in his conclusions.

I'll contact the lactation consultant and see if I can get into my normal gp on monday.
Really I would have contacted the lactation consultant earlier but I've been putting it off cause she's the daughter of a friend of mine who died a couple of years ago and the last interactions I had with her were regarding her mother's death so it just feels a bit awkward.

While I'm sorry you're also in this situation, it's really nice sharing it with someone! Fingers crossed the antibiotics do the trick for you

That gp sounds useless! Unfortunately I don't have much faith in a lot of gps, I've seen many terrible ones.

Definitely try and get an appt with your usual gp. I would be very worried about a chronic respiratory infection in a child. Lots of phlegm would likely equal an infection right? A gp I went to last week for my son because he had croup gave us a steroid script "just in case" despite his chest sounding clear...he was getting very bad at night though.

An lc should have some good advice about the appropriate steps to take. It will be interesting what she says.


It's a sucky situation to be in...any lumps in that area are extra worrying too. It's good to have someone to talk to about it. I'll let you know how the abs go.

Yeah gps are really hit and miss. And they are pretty notorious here in the Netherlands for their wait and see approach and reluctance to prescribe anything. My normal one is great though. I'll check if she's back before I make my next appt!

I'll let you know what the lc says :)

Good luck!

Well that got a very different reaction. I sent an email to the lc I knew and got an auto reply saying she was on holiday and I giving the contact details of another lc.
So I sent her a message and she just called me back and wants to come over and see me at home to see what she can do. Sounds like she's taking it pretty serious.
Unfortunately my insurance doesn't cover lc costs :(

That's good she's taking it seriously. Sounds expensive though.

Well the lc I'd initially contacted replied to my email even though she's on holiday and she said it really sounded like an abscess and I should go back to the doctor and ask for an ultrasound. So I decided to cancel my appt with the other lc and try the ultrasound first to save some money.
I saw the gp this morning. Got an awesome guy who did his training at the practice a while ago so I'd seen him before and he's just fantastic, especially great with the kids. He took everything seriously. He doesn't think it's an abscess but booked in for an ultrasound to check. He also gave ds2 a good checking over and while the advice is the same I'm now confident it's coming from a well-informed and considered position.

So I wait for my ultrasound on wednesday and take it from there.

How are you going with the ab's botchedtabby?

Wow that's great that he listened and was so helpful! Why doesn't he think it's an abscess? So he thinks its just a blocked duct?

The abs don't seem to be doing anything tbh. Though maybe its a little smaller?

He thinks it's a blocked duct rather than an abscess because it is still interacting with how full my breast is so it feels bigger when it is full of milk and gets smaller after a good feed. Though it never goes away completely and really I think it feels like there's just more hard places around it when the breast fills and while they go away easily with feeding this little bit doesn't. Mine is also really small now, sometimes it takes me a while to find it and I start to think it's finally gone but then I feel it again. It's about half a centimeter diameter I guess.
I asked the doc I saw about treatment if it is an abscess and he said abs wouldn't work cause it's encapsulated so it would need to be punctured and drained.
I really don't know. I think it's really strange that it's been there for 2 weeks now and I can't shift it. Makes me think it really in connected to the infection and maybe there is an abscess it's just really small and also gets in the way of the milk flow which causes more blockages in the area when it gets full. Oh well I'll keep trying to clear it and see what happens with the ultrasound tomorrow.
I hope yours is getting smaller and soon is gone completely!

Oh that's interesting. Mine is definitely still there after a feed but it does get smaller/softer. Its more like 2-3cms. I find it strange a duct would be blocked for so long. I don't seem to be able to shift any of it by expressing.

Well my ultrasound was all clear, no abscess all looks normal. So it must just be a small blockage in a milk duct. I still find it strange it's taking so long to clear.
Sometimes I feel it pulling on that spot when ds is feeding so maybe that's good and more of that will clear it...
How are you going BotchedTabby?

That's great nyigi...i never knew a duct could be blocked for so long.

Mine is still there. Sometimes it seems softer or smaller then other times no different and just as hard as it has been for weeks now. I've booked another dr appt for once ive finished the abs.

Me either! I've only had blocked ducts for less than a day before this.
Good luck!!!

Went back to the dr and she gave me an us referral. She thinks its just a blocked duct and nothing sinister.

Sounds good. When are you going for the us?

How are you going botched tabby? have you had your ultrasound yet?
I think I cleared my blockage yesterday!
I hadn't been pumping cause my son has been home and I figured he was better at clearing the breast than the pump, but yesterday he went back to his childcare and I wasn't sure how much milk he would drink there. So I pumped as much as I could and he also wanted to drink soon after he got home. I think the pumping and massaging and compresses I used during the day shifted it, cause I could still feel it but it was different. Then he must have cleared the last of it when he got home cause I couldn't feel the lump anymore by the evening.
The area was a bit sore yesterday evening and is still a bit tender. So I'll be keeping a careful eye on it. But I'm hopeful it's cleared now.

I really hope you are going well and yours clears soon too!

I had the US on Tuesday and got the results today. Apparently all they found was 'dense glandular tissue' so I guess it's just a blocked duct. The gp said to just keep expressing, massaging, compresses etc.

Good to hear you don't have an abscess botched tabby, though I also found it somewhat annoying there wasn't a clear solution.
How are you going now?

Yeah it is. All the dr could tell me was to keep doing what you usually do with a blocked duct. Yet in the past doing that has worked within 1-2 days!

The blocked duct is still there. It's quite large so honestly can't imagine it going anytime soon. It's not bothering me though.

Oh sorry to hear it's still blocked though good that it's not bothering you.
Have you tried contacting the ABA to see if they can give any other advice?

Damn now I've got mastitis again in my other breast. Never had any problems with it when feeding ds1 and now 2 bouts of it in 2 months :(. Hopefully I don't get another stubbornly blocked duct this time.

No I didn't think of contacting aba. ..I didn't think there was much more I could do aside from getting an automatic toothbrush!

Oh no about the mastitis! I almost got it again in the same side on Wed as ds missed a feed. Caught it just in time though. I've had mastitis so many times and I've no idea why other than having oversupply and being very sensitive to breastfeeding hormones. My mum never had mastitis and she had 4 kids!

I hope it clears up very quickly for you xx

Thanks botched tabby. Antibiotics are doing their work and I'm feeling much better.
Oh I feel really sorry for you getting mastitis frequently. It really sucks.
I asked my doctor about it last week cause I was a bit surprised I've breastfed for 2.5 years all together now and no problems with mastitis till now and then two times in two months but she said they don't really have any explanations.
How are you going?

That's good you're feeling better.

I still have the blocked duct...I thought it was a little smaller but it honestly doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

Oh how irritating!
Mine finally shifted with lots of pumping while massaging followed by a hungry baby who hadn't drunk nearly as much as I'd pumped while at childcare.
I'm guessing you've already tried lots of pumping, massaging and feeding though. Maybe it was just time for me too.
Really hope yours shifts soon! I know it's frustrating