You know that moment when you realize something is terribly wrong? You know, the one you feel in your gut but don’t know how to change anything. That’s what this felt like.
I’m getting ahead of myself, when my first child was roughly 5 weeks old, I started wearing my cute bras with the nice underwire in them again. I was naïve and thought I needed to look pretty right after having a baby. This caused a problem though. Did you know the milk ducts can go up into the armpit as well?? And as far down as the end of the rib cage (yes, just like a dog, kitten, or other mammal). Well, yeah, me neither. Until it happened. I moved my arm ever so slightly, and PAIN. I thought I had been stabbed by something, only there was nothing there. I rubbed my arm against the side of my breast again, and again felt my favorite bra stabbing me in the side. Going into the bathroom, I found a dime sized spot on the side of my breast, super tender, slightly marble like. I started crying, we worked so hard to get here and this surely would derail our journey.

I called the doctors, of course it’s after hours, why would this issue happen inside of normal business hours?? Waiting for on-call to return the call felt like forever (though husband said it was only about twenty minutes). Finally my phone rings, “Is it hot to touch?” No.* “Is it red and angry?” No. “Are you running a fever?” No. “Okay, it’s likely a clog, massage it and it will go away.” But wait, massage it how?!? “Try to look up a video.”
Hanging up the phone, I thought, “That was helpful *eye roll*, okay, now what, it still hurts, oh no, baby wants to nurse.” I picked up my sweet little girl, latched her onto the sore breast (it was that side’s turn), and hoped for the best. While nursing her I searched for a few things to help, still feeling like I was being stabbed. The amount of advice that contradicted itself was insane. I felt as if I was being pulled into a million directions with each new thing I read. Why are there so many different pieces of advice on the internet?
Unfortunately, no two women are the same, so the advice given won’t be the same either. In my case, heat works best, but for some ice is better (hence the contradictions). Others need massage, and some are able to get the clogs by just nursing the baby. However, the best advice that I can give all parents is to find what works best for you. If you normally prefer heat versus ice, then try that first. If you feel like a massage will work, try that. When you massage, flow away from the nipple. If you had a bag of sand and wanted to move water or rocks through to the bottom, you wouldn’t just squeeze from the top, you would grab from the bottom and pull the sand upwards. The same process works for a clog.
Thankfully, following my instincts worked for me. Keeping her nose towards the clog with a proper latch, and no underwire in the way, the clog finally released. Though the pain stuck around, it felt more like a bruise that was healing than something that was getting worse.
*In the event that you answer “yes” to any of the questions that the nurse asked me above, you may need to be evaluated for further issues beyond a clog, you can always call your provider.