Vasospasm & Raynaud's Phenomenon (blanching of the nipple)

Hi,

I've been seeing a Lactation Consultant (LC) who has been helping me with a few breastfeeding issues we are still encountering lately.
One of the problems I have is that after DD has had her feed and comes off on the Right side nipple, it stings and burns for a bit and looks whitish in the middle.... it can be quite painful and I thought this was attachment issues but nope, she attaches perfectly and has for weeks now since our initial attachment issues. Initially in the first few weeks my R nipple was so badly damaged from poor attachment that it was bleeding, cracked and so sore I couldnt' even feed from it for 5 days. Even expressing was so painful. It's healed well the last few weeks and I thought perhaps this stinging/burning pain I sometimes get after feeds is just the nipple still healing but nope....

My LC looked at my nipple and told me it appears I have thrush of the nipple and so I now have Canesten cream on both nipples to try and heal this and also that it's quite possible from the symptoms i'm experiencing the last few weeks, is that I have Raynaud's of the nipple.... never heard of it until she said it! She suffered from this when she breastfed too.

I've looked this up and it does appear to be what I have... exactly how I'd describe it.

Anyone else suffered from this? And how long did it last? Did it ever go away?

LC told me some women have it for the life of their breastfeeding journey (great :doh:) and others it comes and goes.... it's also linked to things like Thrush and sometimes when the thrush goes, it goes. So i'm hoping treating the thrush makes it go away :pray: to relieve it after a feed i just place my hand over my nipple and breast and push on it that helps a bit, i just have to wait for the stinging to go away... its quite annoying.

All I need now... is Mastitis and I've then experienced it all.... :lol: (touch wood I don't!!)

Ren,

I hope that this is the last issue that you experiance! I am glad that you are seeing a LC, and I hope that it all sorts its self out for you and Ava!

Kate

Thanks Kate :hug:

Just wanted to see if others out there have experienced this particular thing? It seems to only be in my R nipple.

has ava got thrush in her mouth as well? (white on her tongue)?

Wow Ren I just googled and thats very interesting. I am glad your LC is on to it though and lets hope when the thrush clears up so does the Vasospasm.

:

---

has ava got thrush in her mouth as well? (white on her tongue)?

---

Nup! No white stuff in her mouth.... but they can be carrying the candida (thrush) infection in their mouth and it's not visible I was told.... so she could be giving it to me.
I'm just treating my nipple and if that doesnt help soon i'll get some Daktarin gel for Ava's mouth (although I dont want to)

Ugh!!! One day one day.... I'll be able to say there's no issues with feeding LOL

wow i have never heard of reynaurds on the nipple.
My daughter has reynaurds in her hands which can get quite painful in the winter so i buy her specialy made infrared heat treated gloves, maybe u could get something like this made into a breast pad??

Thanks Coco, yeah i hadn't heard of it either until my LC told me about it. :doh:

it hurts after some feeds, not all feeds.... it's a strange thing! Hopefully it goes once the thrush is treated... they can come hand in hand.
Doesn't seem to be very popular as noone has really posted in here :lol:

Yes i think heat helps. Sorry to hear your DD has it :(

I have it. In the *evil* right boobie too ;)

With DS it took about 8 weeks of torture with nipple pain (agony is a better description) - especially after feeding. Cracks took ages to heal. After discussing with my MCHN I started on Nifedipine 30mg SR. It is a blood pressure medication that vasodilates (makes the blood vessels bigger). I weaned off it at around 6-8 months so I could get pregnant again (but kept breastfeeding without pain). It is not recommended in pregnancy. With DS I had significant supply issues due to the pain and not wanting to feed on that side (or the other but it wasn't as bad).

For DD I was better informed and better prepared, although I thought having a summer baby would help. I started on Nifedipine at about 2 weeks but I still ended up with a right nipple fissure that took 12 weeks to heal. I have stopped taking it again but find there are some days which are more painful than others - especially coming into colder weather.

I ALWAYS wear a singlet type top over my bra and under my shirt. I keep my breasts warm - all the time. Showers in winter were painful!! It does get better - usually when their mouths get bigger and the suction isn't as intense. I am happy to answer any questions you have but it does get better and it hasn't damaged my breastfeeding relationship. DS self weaned and DD is currently fully breastfed and doing fine.

Thanks Michelle for your post! I'm so glad it's only in one nipple! It hasn't been as bad the last few days as I'm treating my nipple with Canesten cream for the thrush so perhaps the Thrush was making it worse?! :dunno:
I definitely find a nice warm/hot shower helps relieve the pain after feeds but of course i don't have one after every feed! only morning and night! I need to find a small little heat wheat pillow to carry around and put that on my nipple lol .... my LC thinks it will go some day and won't always be with me. fingers crossed!!
sorry to hear you've had to experience this also! It's rather uncomfortable when i've just done a night feed and trying to sleep and my nipple is stinging or burning.... ugh! its annoying! and her attachment is perfect..

The nifedipine helped immensely but it also seemed to abate at around the 4 month mark (ish ;)) The drugs are worth a try if the pain is intense which mine was.

ETA - It was worse with DS (the first breastfeeder and the winter baby) than it has been with DD so maybe it does get better :dunno:

Michelle - the last few days I haven't had much stinging/burning in that nipple! I do believe that canesten cream has helped it so the thrush must have gone? Must have been caused by the thrush which is what my LC had said. She was right.
Phew!!

That's fabulous!!

Unfortunately for me the cooler weather is making my nipple a little more painful and it is turning white again after feeding. Oh well, layer upon layer upon layer of clothing and hope it stays manageable :crossfingers:

Yep, had vasospasm badly in the early days. Both my nipples would go blue then white and send radiant pain into my breast. The worst was getting out of the shower OMG the pain! My nipples would shrivel and be so painful.

My problem was a VERY strong suck from bub, and a fast flow, so she would slip back on my nipple to cope and then damage the end. It went away once she was old enough to cope with the flow (and my nipples toughened up). It does come back occasionally though when bub is unsettled and I let her chomp on my nipple for comfort - the "boob dummy" idea.

I found a warm face washer really helped after feeds, and to keep the bathroom nice and warm!

HTH

i had vasospasm with DS. My mum, and lots of my family have reynauds so i guess i may have that as well, but not to the same degrtee they do, and it never showed up until I was breastfeeding DS.
Warmth is great, I had little warm packs and they helped.

RENSTAR- I have the exact same thing!! in winter i get chill balins on my fingers and toes ...
its soooo annoying .. i just have to keep warm ... are you thin/skinny ?? apparently is worse the thinner you are .. im 2kgs off being "underweight " for my height so it affects me alot :(

:

---

RENSTAR- I have the exact same thing!! in winter i get chill balins on my fingers and toes ...
its soooo annoying .. i just have to keep warm ... are you thin/skinny ?? apparently is worse the thinner you are .. im 2kgs off being "underweight " for my height so it affects me alot :(

---

Nope! not thin or skinny (I wish!!!) :lol: you poor thing you must feel it then!!!

Well, my nipple after a feed yesterday went sooo blue/purplish!!! OMG :o i got a fright. Then it went white :rolleyes:
Some feeds it's fine other feeds it's sore!! I need to find a small wheat/heat pillow.

yes i feel it alot , but keeping warm is the only thing i can do .. i find the "boob dummy" awakens the vaso beast and i get huge amounts of pain .. i just take nurofen and heat packs every where with me (breast pad sized ones ) i also have flectalon breast pads .. but my boobs a not very big and the slide all around my bra and stick out .. lol ..

when im out at the shops i take a heat pack and heat them up in the mwave in the parents room ... helps alot ...

there is no cure , apart from the drugs you can take .. and you can wean from the worst side ..
i am tossing up weather to wean from my left or put up with the pain ... i dont plan on stopping BF anytime soon but its hard with the pain . there is a post i put up here https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...odgy-boob.html

its about my journey with Vaso ..

Charmalea - thanks hun. I'll read your story. Did you always have it from the beginning of b/feeding journey? Or did it come on gradually? Mine I believe came on after the damage that side received from bad attachment in the first few weeks when my nipple was cracked and bleeding so badly i couldnt even feed with it it was so bad. It's never been the same since and I think (and my LC does too) that the Vasospasm has come on possibly from the damage that was caused.

Where can I buy small heat packs for my bra's??? I can't find one small enough.

Interesting, I also had burning sensations while BF and when my BB got cold. I found it immesnsly uncomfortable and just put it down to BF, I never had any other problems such as attachment cracked nipples, thrush etc.. I know reynaurds can be very painful, I knew somebody who had it.