Dear Readers, I am mildly horrified to tell you that I am taking echinacea. A well meaning friend here offered me some and.... I honestly don't think it can make the situation any WORSE. (I appear to be non-allergic to it. Bionic pointed out that I am only allergic to things that taste good. Readers, I regret to tell you that it tastes exactly like you would imagine.) That sound is me having a hearty serving of humble pie, made entirely of anecdotes, with a crust tasting of ground up roots.
The mastitis continues to afflict me- though I am pleased to say my ability to convince randomly selected urgent care docs to do what I want remains intact. I have driven to Research U, 90 minutes away, where they basically said HMMMMMM. But they are willing to continue dealing with it long distance, including prescribing and cultures, and they understand that I have a legitimate reason to be concerned. (I become stroppy when I feel I am not being taken seriously.) On the other hand, two experienced clinicians find that there's no underlying reason or thing I am doing wrong, so I've eliminated some possible causes. HMMMM and I will update you when it inevitably comes back next week.
* i.e. brief and subject to typos and bizarre auto corrections.
Hey, if you're not allergic to it, what's the harm? Besides it tasting foul. Shall I ask my nurse cousin who recently overcame mastitis what her magic herbal extract was?
ReplyDeleteI believe you have some antibiotic-resistant bacteria colonizing your milk ducts, and they only bother you when you're "milking." They're probably barricaded behind a biofilm. I bet they got in through cracked, bleeding areas with child #1. It's as good a theory as any.
The micro biome: Not Always Beneficial!
That is my theory too! Complete with biofilm.
DeleteAt this point I am taking almost any weird herbs into consideration.
Nurse cousin says 1/4t coconut oil with 2 drops lavender essential oil and 2 drops tea tree oil, mixed, then applied to affected area. I suppose if the essential oils soak into the milk duct area, they could disrupt the biofilm and kill some stuff. Your infection might be just too far in for a surface treatment like that.
DeleteThanks! Dr at uva thinks the problem is primarily in the nipple, since I get nipple pain and *then* a blocked duct, so.... it might help!
DeleteI feel compelled to point out that you should stop taking the echinacea before trying the essential oils. Otherwise you won't know which magic herbs did the trick...
DeleteOh! And Nurse Cousin had mastitis with all 3 of her kids, too, before trying the essential oils and succeeding in ridding herself of it. Perhaps if it starts in the nipple, there is something to all of that.
DeleteExcept I don't care what worked as long as it goes away! Anecdotes, blah blah, not evidence, but evidence hasn't cured it so bah. I remain deeply skeptical but also a little desperate.
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