What is Mastitis? A Self Help Guide

By Rebecca Baxter

Do you have a blocked milk duct? Are you looking for natural mastitis treatment options? You poor thing, I know just how painful clogged ducts and mastitis are.

Stop reading right now and go get yourself a heat pack!

Right, now that you're a little more comfortable I'm going to teach you a new way of massaging your breast to clear your plugged milk duct.

Gently cup your painful breast with the opposite hand and wobble.

You might feel a little silly doing this, but vibration is going to help you break up that blockage and move all the inflammation (which is causing you pain).

This technique is called the Shimmy Shake, and is the only technique in my book I can describe without pictures.

It's easy and so safe you can do it as many times a day as you like (preferably at least once every hour or so for about a minute).

This is just one of the techniques available in "What is Mastitis? A Self Help Guide". The book contains 35 pictures giving you a step by step guide through:

8 massage and stretch techniques for plugged milk ducts
7 partner assisted massage and stretch techniques
4 natural remedies for the treatment of mastitis
4 signs you need help from your doctor
6 causes of mastitis and blocked milk ducts and how to avoid them all
6 signs and symptoms to help you quickly identify any more plugged milk ducts
6 breastfeeding positions to use depending on which milk duct is blocked

Relieve the immediate breast pain so you can rediscover the joy of breastfeeding. Discover how to manage blocked ducts and mastitis with natural techniques that you can do in your own home.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rebecca Baxter
• Release date: Sep 30, 2012
• ISBN: 9781301259113

Rebecca Baxter

I'm an osteopath (a type of physical therapist) working in Brisbane, Australia. Since graduating in 2004 I've become particularly interested in the treatment of mothers, babies and women's hormonal issues. I noticed that there is no information on the web about how to massage your breast effectively to unblock plugged milk ducts. Treating new mothers I know that this is such a common problem and so easy to treat yourself. I teach all my new mothers and late stage pregnant patients the techniques in my book to help them address any blocked ducts before they turn into mastitis. After 2 years of writing and tweaking, photographing and editing I'm finally proud to say that I can share this with so many other mothers out there. I hope it empowers them to go on to a successful, fulfilling and wonderful breastfeeding experience.

Book preview

What is Mastitis? A Self Help Guide

By Rebecca Baxter

Text copyright 2012 Rebecca Baxter

All Rights Reserved

Smashwords Edition

Please respect the hard work of the author by paying for individual copies of this guide. Your honesty is appreciated.

Table of Contents

What Are Blocked Ducts and Mastitis?

What Are the Symptoms of Blocked Ducts and Mastitis?

When You Need to See Your Doctor

How Your Baby Can Help You Through Your Mastitis

6 Different Breastfeeding Positions You Can Try

Natural Remedies for Mastitis

15 Massage and Stretch Techniques

Epsom Salts Soak

Hot and Cold Compresses

Cabbage Leaves

The Importance Of Sleep

What Triggers Mastitis and How You Can Fix These Problems

Poorly Fitting Bras

How Your Posture Affects Your Breasts

Incomplete Emptying of Milk

Poor Breast Pump Use

Nipple Damage and Poor Attachment

Fatigue and Stress

Causes of Unsettled Behavior in Babies

Being Hungry or Thirsty

Feeding Problems

Feeling Pain or Discomfort

Being Over-Stimulated or Over-Tired

Pain from Digestion

How to Cope With an Unsettled Baby

Your Action Plan

About Rebecca

What Are Blocked Ducts and Mastitis?

Your breast has many glands that produce milk. The milk then flows through ducts and is sucked out by your baby. Sometimes those milk ducts get blocked causing a build up of milk behind them. This will feel like a lump.

Mastitis occurs when one of those blocked ducts becomes inflamed, and then it may become infected, this happens to one in six breastfeeding mothers, that's 16.5%.

It is safe for you to continue to feed your baby

Some mothers worry that their milk is off, or infected and that they shouldn't keep breastfeeding their baby because their baby may get sick. This is not the case.

A blocked milk duct and mastitis are initially caused by extra milk blocking the duct. The best way to clear a blockage is to keep breastfeeding as frequently as possible.

The techniques in this book can be used whether or not you need antibiotics

If you are able to clear blocked ducts quickly using the techniques in this book, you will also be much less likely to need antibiotics. If infection does occur, antibiotics may be necessary to support your body’s healing process.

Antibiotics don’t treat the cause of the initial blockage though. The techniques in this book will complement the antibiotics by helping to remove any blockages, which will help you avoid recurrent bouts of mastitis.

If you do need to see a doctor, the techniques you are about to learn can also help to calm the pain while you wait for an appointment.

Quickly clearing a blocked duct helps maintain milk supply

Pain, stress and fatigue can all impact on milk supply. Getting any blockage cleared quickly will help you maintain your supply by decreasing pain and fatigue, and making breastfeeding enjoyable again. It will also help to increase the flow on that side, making your baby less likely to be fussy at the affected breast.

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What Are the Symptoms of Blocked Ducts and Mastitis?

A blocked duct on it's own will just feel like a lump. It may be a little tender to touch, but not much pain will be present.

The earliest symptom that mastitis is developing is usually the breast becoming warmer. This is a sign that inflammation has accumulated in the area. The body’s natural reaction to this increased pressure is to remove it, and so the excess milk is forced into your bloodstream.

At this stage you may experience flu like symptoms that rapidly lead to a fever. This is because your immune system sets up a response to your milk as though it was a bacterial infection.

If the duct is not cleared you may also go on to get a bacterial infection because the bacteria feed on