The safety pin
Mar. 7th, 2022 02:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
whitewriter, I had noticed a mini mars bar sized lump in top part of my R) breast and remembering the advice of the home midwife (to point the baby's chin towards the problem area)-- I spent about an hour trying to think up ways to get her to feed in a position whereby her chin would point to the top part of the breast. The only way I could think of doing it was side laying (which I had only tried once, and it seemed at that time, to be suited to a larger baby) and to have her do side lying position in an upside down fashion. Like breastfeeding in a 69er position.
Youtube confirmed the idea (the internet will literally confirm anything) and after 45 mins of me continuously feeling up the lump, having a shower, trying to hand express it and also machine express it out) and me staring at Wendy waiting for her to wake up, she woke up, and I got to try it. 10 mins later. Lump out. Magic baby I thought, saving me from mastitis.
Then on the 3rd week, I had another issue.
This time, no amount of 69-ing was working. Wendy was getting more frustrated at the R) breast, and I also showered and pumped, and got almost 0 out. I hand expressed and also to my shock also got 0 out. Which never happens. There's always something there. So I'm freaking out, my friend Elena is on the whatsapp in Melbourne hearing my struggles - goggles and found that you can use an electric toothbrush to "break up old milk" inside the breast and then express it out - so I'm sitting in the kitchen with the electric toothbrush in one hand and the baby in a bouncer she's too young for as she sorta half patiently and half hungrily waits for me - to get the block out - to no avail. I even tried a large vibrating massager my mum lent me (Asians and their massagers...) = no effect.
Along the way, I had noticed a white bleb on my nipple but didn't think about it until - at the 11th hour where she's crying and I'm crying and considering to phone the ABA (which in hindsight, I just should have, but the hotline website said only gives out general info and I thought, but I've tried all the general tricks) - I googled "white spot on breast" and an ABA factsheet on it explained ways to unblock.
In the article, they mention a needle.
That's when I thought -- where the hell am I going to find someone to dig around my nipple with a needle? (especially at 1130pm) I don't think even the nurses in E.D. would know what to do. Maybe the doc might (and how many hours would I have to wait with a screaming baby for that) and furthermore: do I want some random digging around my nipple with a needle? Like who better to do it than myself, so I can feel my own pain - and stop if it's not working etc.
Not like I'm afraid of needles. But the standard first aid kit doesn't have needles - except the ones for blisters (and they're really short) - and I couldn't locate those. But I found.. a pack of safety pins.
I cleaned one with some methanol (cleaning alcohol) and with great hesitancy, (like a teen poking a needle through a pimple on their face) - poked at the bleb - no pain - and poked some more - and not too long after - milk started spurting out of the hole I had created with the bobby pin.
What a relief.
Pete is pretty funny with the baby, he just holds it whilst it screams in his face.
Little Wendy just yells and yells and he just holds her. and I'm like why don't you try -- swinging or walking or whatever and he says "it doesn't work" so he resigns himself to just bearing through it.
Which is kinda funny and kinda sad. I guess he doesn't want her screaming by herself (the way I see it, - if she's in the crib and safe, then a few screams won't hurt her. So when I came back to them and popped her on she must have had a massive feed off that blocked boob.
I've since gotten a stash of sterile needles from a secret source for the next time. But I won't forget my own bravery at poking a safety pin at my own nipple at 11:30 pm at night.
Youtube confirmed the idea (the internet will literally confirm anything) and after 45 mins of me continuously feeling up the lump, having a shower, trying to hand express it and also machine express it out) and me staring at Wendy waiting for her to wake up, she woke up, and I got to try it. 10 mins later. Lump out. Magic baby I thought, saving me from mastitis.
Then on the 3rd week, I had another issue.
This time, no amount of 69-ing was working. Wendy was getting more frustrated at the R) breast, and I also showered and pumped, and got almost 0 out. I hand expressed and also to my shock also got 0 out. Which never happens. There's always something there. So I'm freaking out, my friend Elena is on the whatsapp in Melbourne hearing my struggles - goggles and found that you can use an electric toothbrush to "break up old milk" inside the breast and then express it out - so I'm sitting in the kitchen with the electric toothbrush in one hand and the baby in a bouncer she's too young for as she sorta half patiently and half hungrily waits for me - to get the block out - to no avail. I even tried a large vibrating massager my mum lent me (Asians and their massagers...) = no effect.
Along the way, I had noticed a white bleb on my nipple but didn't think about it until - at the 11th hour where she's crying and I'm crying and considering to phone the ABA (which in hindsight, I just should have, but the hotline website said only gives out general info and I thought, but I've tried all the general tricks) - I googled "white spot on breast" and an ABA factsheet on it explained ways to unblock.
In the article, they mention a needle.
That's when I thought -- where the hell am I going to find someone to dig around my nipple with a needle? (especially at 1130pm) I don't think even the nurses in E.D. would know what to do. Maybe the doc might (and how many hours would I have to wait with a screaming baby for that) and furthermore: do I want some random digging around my nipple with a needle? Like who better to do it than myself, so I can feel my own pain - and stop if it's not working etc.
Not like I'm afraid of needles. But the standard first aid kit doesn't have needles - except the ones for blisters (and they're really short) - and I couldn't locate those. But I found.. a pack of safety pins.
I cleaned one with some methanol (cleaning alcohol) and with great hesitancy, (like a teen poking a needle through a pimple on their face) - poked at the bleb - no pain - and poked some more - and not too long after - milk started spurting out of the hole I had created with the bobby pin.
What a relief.
Pete is pretty funny with the baby, he just holds it whilst it screams in his face.
Little Wendy just yells and yells and he just holds her. and I'm like why don't you try -- swinging or walking or whatever and he says "it doesn't work" so he resigns himself to just bearing through it.
Which is kinda funny and kinda sad. I guess he doesn't want her screaming by herself (the way I see it, - if she's in the crib and safe, then a few screams won't hurt her. So when I came back to them and popped her on she must have had a massive feed off that blocked boob.
I've since gotten a stash of sterile needles from a secret source for the next time. But I won't forget my own bravery at poking a safety pin at my own nipple at 11:30 pm at night.
