Stuff no one told you # 451 - dealing with a blocked nipple pore

This is something we'd all prefer never to have to know about, but if you are planning on breastfeeding then please read on.    A blocked nipple pore is easy to deal with if you know how but can cause major discomfort in the breast and lead on to more serious conditions such as mastitis if you don't recognise it when it starts and treat it appropriately.


The first time it happened to me was when C was six weeks old.  It was a beautiful day and we driving to Mount Usher Gardens in Wicklow.  I became aware of a hard area in my breast that I thought was a blocked duct  (when she was handing out boob blockages, Mother Nature was particularly generous to me so I already had considerably experience in the field despite my recent arrival in Mammyland).   I massaged and massaged but to no avail.  The hard area got bigger and lumpier and more and more sore.   I'm not quite sure why it dawned on me what the problem was but when we stopped for coffee I went into a toilet cubicle and searched my nipple thoroughly for the offending blockage.  Another unimaginably unglamorous moment in the life of a new mother.  


After a bit of scrabbling around in the folds of my own nipple, I located a white dot that was quite literally the troublespot.  Very relieved to find the source, I couldn't remember the treatment so decided we'd better head home and went to tell P.   As I sipped my coffee, my boob was becoming sorer by the second and so I went back to the bathroom to have another look.   I decided to give in to my urges and have a squeeze and then - whooooosh!!   The plug popped out and a torrent of milk gushed out like water out of a fire hydrant.   It kept going for over a minute as all the milk that had been backed up exploded out of the pore.   The relief was enormous and, I must admit, exhilarating (hey, I hadn't been out much that year).  So much so that it was actually worth the whole horrible experience.  I ran out of the loo to spread my good news, put C to the boob to finish off the job and ten minutes later I was good as new and off to enjoy my day out.


This ehow post on blocked ducts is a good thing to have in your bookmarks folder as it goes through a process that might help you to identify the sort of blockage you are dealing with.


With any luck you will never again have to refer to this stuff.   I sure hope I never do!   One way to keep pesky pore plugs at bay if you are prone to them seems to be to wash and dry your nipples after every feed.   Prevention is better than cure, and all of that.