Zach left Wednesday afternoon for Macon (he had to work the evening shift selling Aflac to prison employees) and decided to stay until Thursday night so while having all my pain I also had Kye all by myself! Surprisingly though it went really well! Being alone with him is tough because I don’t have help but in a way it was also nice because I could do anything I wanted and not have to get someone elses opinion! It was a good opportunity to start the suggestions Stacy gave me with babywise and they worked! He only woke up once during the night! I was so pumped!!!
Once we got up for the day yesterday I decided to call the lactation specialist at the hospital. I tried pumping like Stacy suggested but I wasn’t getting any results and it hurt so so badly, so it just wasn’t worth it. I talked to the lactation lady for about an hour and she told me she wanted me to come up to the hospital so she could see my breasts and watch me nurse to see if she could figure out what is wrong.
Having a baby on a schedule is awesome but trying to do it right makes somethings difficult. I told her I’d come up there at 1:30 so after his 10:30 feeding I had to shower and get ready. Since I am really trying to get him to nap at the proper times I decided to leave the house when he was supposed to start napping as he will FOR SURE sleep in the car! I called Ashley and we met up for lunch at Firehouse Subs (random but it was right next to the hospital..and it’s not good btw).
It was great to get to catch up with her but while eating Mr. Rusty called and said Courtney was in the hospital. She’s 34 weeks pregnant and Paytons heart rate dropped so they had to monitor her and Courtney’s blood pressure was really high. I finished up with Ashley and told Mr. Rusty I’d come over there as soon as I could.
When I met with the lactation lady she watched me nurse which was SO nerve-wracking! She’s a pro and I was so scared she’d say I feed him the wrong way or something. She said he gets a good latch and I do a good job (phew!) but that my nipples are much more red than they should be and that since I am having pain during pumping that my issues probably aren’t related to my breasts being overly-full as pumping would make them feel BETTER not worse if that were the issue!
She researched and researched and told me that she thinks it is yeast and that since Kye wasn’t treated he is probably passing it back to me over and over, even though he doesn’t show any symptoms. What’s funny is this is what I’ve thought from DAY ONE! I have to learn to trust my gut! She also said that some women take longer to get the yeast out of their systems and her recommendation was for me to take more meds and get Kye meds too!
After I left there I went back to my car and called Mr. Rusty and he said Courtney was in a room where I had just been! So I took Kye back up to the labor and delivery floor and Mr. Rusty watched him for me while I visited with Courtney. It was kind of neat to be on the other end of things. I watched the machine as it read Payton’s heartbeat (which was fine) and Courtney’s blood pressure (which was still high). I stayed up at the hospital because Mrs. Charlotte was there too getting tests run for her lungs (which also turned out okay). Wasn’t it just a fun family hospital day? haha!
I ended up staying at the hospital and waiting to hear what they were going to have Courtney do next because Kye’s nap time came up again and I really want to be more hardcore about his sleep schedule so I let Mr. Rusty hold him for his nap! While in the waiting room I called my doctor again. I told the nurse everything and that I really need medication and she did the typical, “let me talk to Stacy and call you back.” When she called back she said Stacy really doesn’t think it’s yeast and for me to continue to pump after feedings. I told the girl that I HAD to have something, even if they don’t think it will work.
While waiting for the nurse to call me back again I called Kye’s doctor. I told them that I had just brought him in a couple days ago and I know they didn’t see any signs of Thrush (which is yeast in the baby’s mouth) but that I needed them to give him something. It couldn’t hurt to give him some kind of meds and just see if it helps me, worse case scenario he doesn’t have thrush so the meds don’t do anything! I had to wait for them to call me back as well.
Luckily, they called back and I guess I had made a convincing case because they called him in a prescription for Nystatin. I called back my dr. office and told them to tell Stacy that his dr. agreed to give him something so I need something to. With yeast in the mother’s breasts everything I’ve read says to treat mommy and baby at the same time so I don’t want to start Kye on something unless I’m getting treatment too.
This time Stacy herself called me back! I was so so so worried she’d hate me for not trusting her advice with the whole pumping idea but she was fine with it! She said she was only a little annoyed with the lactation lady b/c she tried to tell me what was wrong with me when she really isn’t a dr. I told her my situation and she said she really doesn’t think it’s yeast. FINALLY I said what my gut has said all along! I told her I was sorry but that I have to learn to trust my gut and that I just think that’s what it is. She totally understood (I need to start voicing my gut more often!) and said she’d call in another dose of the diflucan that I took last time (the three day dose) and she told me to buy some Monistat to put on my nipples after each feeding and then wipe off before I feed him again.
They told Courtney that Payton is fine but that her blood pressure worries them (she has Lupus so she’s a high risk pregnancy anyway) and that she needs to stay on bedrest until Payton comes. It sucks for her but I know I’d do whatever it took to make sure my baby was healthy and I’m sure that’s what she’ll do!
So from 8 in the morning until 5:30 yesterday evening I was dealing with my breasts. If that doesn’t prove how badly I want to fix this and still be able to breastfeed then I don’t know what would!!! I decided to wait until this morning to start doing all of them. My medicine is easy, one pill each morning for three days. The Monistat will be annoying but it’s doable…Kye’s medicine on the other hand is a PAIN. It’s 1/2 tsp FOUR times a day!!! For TEN days! Ugh! That AND his Zantac! Fun stuff…but it will all be worth it if it works!
I’m trying not to think what I will do if it doesn’t work but this is probably it…I just have to pray it all works because the lactation lady didn’t know what else it could be and Stacy seems at a loss for other ideas as well!!! One thing I have found that helps is Motrin. I took a couple the other day for a headache and my breast pain virtually stopped until the Motrin wore off! It’s great for a quick-short term fix but there is no way I can take it on the regular for 5 more months! Keep those prayers coming that everything works out okay!
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Trust your gut! When Damian was three days old his pediatrician insisted he only had a small case of jaundice, but I didn’t agree. The man and I almost got into World War 3 over it so he finally agreeed to send him for testing. In the end I was 100% correct and he had a bad case of jaundice. I got rid of him and found a pediatrician that we love. When it comes to you and your baby listen to others, but definitely go with your gut.
Clayton was put on Nystatin right after birth because I had Leukoplakia, a thrush for adults. it was a pain to give them meds to him but it worked. I know that Kye isnt showing any signs of yeast but if he has it the meds should help. I am so sorry that you are struggling with this and I am thinking about you and as Rachael said in an earlier post you have to do what is healthiest and best for you and your son. I did not produce enough milk to sustain Clayton and he was miserable and cried every 45 minutes for more food so I switched to formula to supplement and dried up all together. It was awful at first but once he was getting enough to eat and I could feed him without feeling guilty for not producing enough we were all happier. I am not saying quit by any means but please know that you are doing wonderful and please stay positive!