Ask Judy: How Can I Prevent Mastitis?

Dear Judy, I have a breastfeeding question. Every time we drive in the car for long spells, my daughter doesn’t nurse as often. I have been getting these crazy bouts of mastitis. It’s not just a surface plugged duct, its a sudden, deep plug that hurts worse than you can imagine. I don’t know if this is normal, but basically this happens, my body cranks up a crazy fever, chills, etc. I just let it burn (I’m a naturalist!) and in about 6-8 hrs, its over. For the next 24 hrs its still “plugged” or whatever, but I make sure she still nurses that side even though of course she doesn’t want to. And within a day or so its gone. I have been getting them more and more frequently. Can I prevent them? This happened two times in the past month – both times from a long car ride. My daughter is currently 18 months old but nurses very frequently and still does not eat very many solids. She snacks, but I don’t think gets a lot of calories from food. I doubt this will stop me from breastfeeding, but man, in the car with a fever, I have to say it crossed my mind!

I’m so sorry to hear about the mastitis. Some women are more prone to it than others. For those long car rides, you might want to try either hand-expressing or pumping if your daughter isn’t nursing enough. You should also make sure you are wearing a loose fitting bra. One of the ones you purchased from me had an underwire – you probably want to avoid wearing the underwire when you go on a trip and wear the non underwire one instead. That way your milk ducts won’t be getting compressed. Not nursing as much during trips is pretty common – my son did the same thing. The car ride probably lulls her to sleep a little more and then you are out and about doing things once you arrive, so there are too many things to see and do.

I did a series on my blog about mastitis – some of these articles may help you as well – take a look:
Childbirth Followed By Mastitis
Experiences Of Mastitis
Mastitis: One Mom’s Journey And Advice

I hope some of these articles will help!

Have you ever had mastitis? Do you have any advice for this mom? Please leave a comment and share your experiences and recommendations.