I Squeezed Blood

When Tufeil was 3 months old i suffered from a Plugged Duct on my left side.

How i knew it was a plugged duct? Only the bottom part was engorged and not the rest. and a yellowish dot sprouted. Called a friend and she said to just continue nursing the babe on that side and it will go away... The engorgement was gone in slightly more than 24hours. but the DOT did not.

For the next month i suffered from searing pain during and AFTER feeding. I read up more on the internet and realised its prolly due to poor position/latching. So i started sitting up when giving on my injured side to properly align his tummy to my tummy and such. The pain was gone during the 2nd month but the dot was still as prominent as ever.

On top of that, my supply was also affected. Very little and the flow was VERY SLOWWW!!! 30min pump to get 80ml at the most if i was lucky.

Then come the 3rd month, the pain was back again. So I called KKH's lactation nurse. She told me to just keep rolling it and to use warm packs to dislodge the plug but to call her if it doesnt work. Well.. i can't really tell her if it works or not cos i had NO CLUE HOW TO DO IT! I mean what does "rolling" entail? and i have a hot/cold pack but im not sure how to heat it? and how to hold it if its HOT, damn it!

So i just bore the pain... Until...

The thursday before the Hari Raya weekend, i woke up with extreme pain. I called in sick. (Or is it the other way around? *Wink*) Went to the GP and she poked me w a sterile needle. She said it worked on the last and only patient she had for this condition. But milk still didnt come out. She thought it might be cause the milk just below the plug has hardened and told me to continue with warm pack. When i exasperatedly told her i dont know how she told me to use WARM towel.

Er..... I didn't get the 2 days MC as intended. You see.. one of the CAUSES of plugged duct is fatigue and i sure am fatigued! and needed ample of rest and relaxed nursing sessions to cure it.. and right ambience to "Air it" (like you could air it at work, huh!) but still didnt get... Aiyah!


As it prolonged... my supply has decreased even more! Average i can only get 40ml over a 30min period of expressing. Its sooo tiring lor! But i know this is because im afraid to give baby my injured side. My mind was practically flinching at the thought of the incoming pain. But i still manage to pump between 350 - 400ml a day for baby. How? My right side compensated for it. Alhamdulillah.


Second Hari Raya weekend was a nightmare! Left side got engorged. this time it is milk blister. The difference? Its clear and look like a blister on your foot lor! Mum helped me a lot applying the HOT towel and massaging me. Thank god for that cos im sooo scared of hot water i can't think of squeezing the towel! no way! Again, in about 30hours, the engorgement was gone, but not the blister.

This time around i was wiser. I used a moist cloth to rub the blister away! But it wasn't that easy. At first, i managed to deflate it.. i think there was a hole somewhere... but in a second it would be filled with milk again. It took prolly a week. I got fed up and literally PICKED at it and tore the skin away. i dont want another duct to be clogged ok! The supply is already dismal enough!

THEN! at work when i pumped, BLOOD oozed out instead of milk. there were like 5 GIANT DROPS. I paused and expressed the other side first and returned to it and it was ok. The next time it happened a few days later, it persisted even after leaving it to air dry for a bit. It came out to 30ml of 80% blood!

I was scared shitless, i tell you! How how how?! i screamed in my head. If i dont pump, i wont have enough for baby. If i continue to pump blood, i will prolly faint from its loss! Oh God oh god!
I called a few friends who told me to put ice on it to heal as you would to a nosebleed or something. and hold off the pumping for a few hours.

But im still worried, it was 4pm and the last pumping session was 8:30am! If i dont pump soon, the body would prolly think baby is not drinking and produce even less milk. not to mention it was starting to engorge. but supply was my ultimate worry.

I got in touch with a private lactation consultant. She could see me the very next day! Which was a friday. I was sooo happy! "Finally, i can fight this supply issue with proper positioning!" i thought. When i asked what do i do now? she told me to pump on the LOWEST pressure.

When i got home i did just that and then nursed Tufeil on that same side too and it was all ok.

Then i started to reconsider my appointment w the consultant. Do i really need it? For one, i dont have $100 to spare. For another, i have a busy day of PLAY @ Work with the mid-autumn celebration PLUS i also have a much awaited lunch appointment. So i decided to cancel it. I promised to myself to read more on positioning the baby and correct it myself.

BMSG - Breastfeeding Mother Support Group (Singapore) FINALLY returned my call. Their consultant can pay me a visit at $65. OK i think i will consider that at the next pay day.

Ya Allah, please help me enjoy breastfeeding.