I have thrush deep in my milk ducts (deep, shooting pains, burning, it's not mastitis or plugged ducts, no signs of that)and oh boy it is painful. My daughter is 7 weeks. She's being treated with oral nystatin. My doctor prescribed my Diflucan a few days ago and I started taking it but now I feel worse. I was just curious if any of you moms have taken Diflucan while nursing and how long did it take you to feel better? Also did you or your baby have any side effects? So far my baby doesn't seem to have any side effects. Thanks for your time!
Ok, so after 20 days on Diflucan at 200 mg a day (very large dose) and no difference in pain I decided to try going to a naturapath doctor. He took my temp. (98.7) and did a blood test and found out that I had an infection, not thrush. He said that if I did have thrush that Diflucan would have knocked it out really fast and that med works wonders for getting rid of yeast. (I also went off all sugars, yeasts, breads, anything that would feed yeast and it did nothing.) He said most women (on average) tend to have lower body temps (97 ish)and that 98.7 for me was a low grade fever. And the blood tests showed slightly elevated levels of white blood count (or something like that) which looked like an infection. He prescribed me antibiotics and I stopped nursing (just pumping for two weeks) and so far I am feeling a lot better. I will try to start nursing again in a few days. I think I got the infection right away from my nipples cracking and bleeding (my daughter did not latch on right from the start). Well, just too bad that I had to go through all that Diflucan and my poor daughter got that in her system too and now the antibiotics but oh well. The other cool thing is that my milk supply has actually been really good since I've been pumping because I empty my breasts out completely each time which makes more milk. I have been freezing the excess and have a nice supply now! Thanks to all you moms who gave me your advice and hopefully someone can learn from my mistake!!!
When I take Diflucan I have to eat something. It makes me a little nauseated. You should notice a difference in 3-5 days. It's good that you and the baby are being treated. If only one of you were, the yeast infection would just keep getting passed back and forth.
Did your doctor test you to make sure you have thrush? My doctor didn't and I wasn't getting any better and I went through 28 days of diflucan and my baby was on nystatin. I finally figured out I didn't have thrush when I took my baby to the ER because he was spitting up blood. Turned out it was blood from me. He wasn't getting a good latch. I went to Evergreen Breastfeeding center and they recomended I see Dr. Mary Ann O'Hara a breastfeeding doctor in Seattle. She is the best thing that has happened to me. Turns out my son had a tied tongue and she fixed that. She also sent me to see a Physical Therapist who also specializes in breastfeeding issues at Seattle Childrens Hospital. We worked on breastfeeding positions that work for me and my son. I was in excrutiating pain before I saw them. I told my friends the I imagined what I was feeling would probably be what it felt like to get your toenails ripped out. After seeing both of them the pain went away rather quickly. It took me months to figure this out and months of pain. My son is 6 months old and I am now able to feed him without any pain. I would contact Dr. O'Hara, she will take the best care of you and your baby and get you on the road to pain free breastfeeding. Her number is ###-###-####
I know your pain. I'm not going to tell you not to take the Diflucan, but WHILE you are doing that, make a solution of 5 parts water to 1 part vinegar. Use it every hour, swabbing it on your breasts with a cotton ball, and soak it on right before and after nursing. It will take the pain away within an hour, and if you keep using it for a few weeks, it will end the pain completely.
I went through nine months of pain--the shooting pain that you are experiencing--before I found this suggestion in a La Leche League pamphlet. Any time I felt a twinge of pain, I started using the solution again, and the thrush never returned. Most doctors don't know about the solution, though. My doctors didn't.
Trust me, the pain will go away. But you have to use it all the time. And wash your nursing bras, burp rags, anything that gets the milk on it, with a little vinegar. It's the only thing I found that really works (and it doesn't stain or anything, either).
Sounds like your doctor is giving you the proper care and is well aware of what's happening with your baby. It will be like a one-two punch for her, as she's getting a broad spectrum of anti-fungal treatment. Increase your fluid intake. And pump both your breasts after you've nursed your daughter each time. This way you will vacate the breast and help to flush your system of the infection. This is hard to get rid of, and both of you are infected. Washing her face, your breasts are important. Also if she spits up, make sure you're washing her clothing/bedding in hot water, with two rinse cycles, the first one should have white vinegar in it (1/4 cup). This will help remove any remnants of soap residue and other stuff in the wash. If she has a pacifier, be sure to throw it in the dishwasher to clean/sanitize it. It would probably be a good idea to not have a pacifier until this all cleared up.
If the pain persists for you after 3 days on the medication, call your dr and let him know.
Hi R.,
I would say take ALOE....it helps a lot and is very safe for babies. :)
Blessings,
K.S.
I think you already got some good answers. Most people say that gentian violet works better. It should be taken up to 4 days at a time then you need a break. If it's not better then it may not be thrush. I don't think there really is a test for it. I had if for 3 months before I did then gentian violet and then it wend away in a few days.
Check out dr. jack newman articles on the subject.
http://www.drjacknewman.com/help/Candida-Protocol.asp
http://www.drjacknewman.com/help/Gentian%20Violet.asp
I've taken Diflucan. The best thing to do to get rid of yeast is to take a LOT of probiotics. That means buy the good bacteria in megadoeses. My favourite is Dr. Ohira's Probiotics. My experience is that Diflucan alone doesn't get rid of yeast. However, taking a daily supplement of friendly bacteria goes a long way to getting rid of yeast. That and eating pickled things, such as sauerkraut, pickles, and suck.
Hi.
I had thrush, I feel that pain, my son also had it, but we had it at different times. My son was 11 weeks early, so every day I went to the hospital, and while there I had TONS of help from all the nurses and specialists. My son never brestfeed from the breast. I had to pump, and when my son got the milk that I had pumped while I had the infection, he also got it, was treated and all is fine now.
Ad for the pain, the meds your on should start helping in a few days, but like anything, it will get worse before it gets better. I was told that before I pumped I should use a hot pad over myself for a few minutes, to "loosen" things up a bit. It seemed to help.
have a nice day
A.
I did also have a thrush in my milk ducts and I hear your pain. I tool Diflucan for 2 weeks and I felt difference in 3-4 day after started taking it. My son had no side effect. Ialso used Gentian Violet on my nipples and it decreased the pain immediately. I ate lots of yoghurt, took echinechia, probiotics and cut out sugar and anything with yeast during my treatment.
Good luck!
