Mastitis
I considered myself very lucky. Even if I had very bad engorgement throughout my days of being a moo, but I have never had a mastitis. I had block ducts before, but I was never ill, so block ducts are different from mastitis.
One of my friend had a few episodes of mastitis because she couldn’t pump regularly when she was at work or traveling. Despite suffering from pain and fever, she had never given up on breastfeeding her 2 lovely daughters exclusively for up to 1.5 years. So, it’s all about determination and knowledge. She knew she was ill so she went to see a lactation consultant immediately. When during her first mastitis, she didn’t know what was going on except being sick and weak. She had chills and arching, so she was admitted to the hospital during confinement. Luckily, she went to BFIH, so her baby was there with her throughout her stay so that she could still breastfeed her exclusively.
If you have either block ducts or mastitis, don’t stop nursing your baby. Keep nursing and pumping to empty the breasts and you will heal faster this way. Try to ask the lactation nurse to show you how to do a hand massage before you are discharged from the hospital after delivery. It helps to clear the ducts, if you know how to massage your engorged breasts.
