More of the things they don't tell you

Thrush in your boobs. I've been meaning to write about this for ages. This is a long post and probably most interesting to new breastfeeding mums...and probably deeply boring to anyone else. Feel free to skip this one if you prefer!
 
It's something I had no idea even existed prior to giving birth, never mind how common it is if you breastfeed. In our antenatal classes, our breastfeeding counsellor (with her wide range of bright pink accessories and knitted breast to show us how to hand express), proudly showed us breastfeeding positions with her dolly. I often felt as if I was in the presence of an adult five year old. When I asked about pain or problems with feeding, she always insisted that if you get the positioning correct, you'll have no problems whatsoever. The latch-on is key, so she said.

This isn't true. Latch on is indeed key, but most women experience all kinds of problems with breastfeeding. I got thrush in my boobs (along with five other new mums that I know) and it was like being stabbed with needles deep within the tissue. Especially at let-down (when the milk comes in, for those not versed with the lingo). It was agony. I finally went to the GP, worrying I had mastitis (something I had actually heard of). I was immediately diagnosed with thrush.

I was given Daktarin cream, which was next to useless, and my son was given a liquid that made him projectile vomit when he accidentally swallowed it (Nystatin). I went back a week later to say it hadn't worked, but that I now also had athletes foot. Another common problem post-pregnancy, apparently. (Warts are also common, incidentally - I might as well tell you all I know). The GP told me to use the cream on my foot and gave me Fluconazole tablets to take for my boobs. To cut a long story short, the GP wouldn't give me any other treatment for my son, despite the fact he kept vomiting, which wasn't helpful as he was meant to 'hold the liquid in his mouth'. It was clearly not treating him at all, because as soon as it went in, it was washed out with vomit.

After the second course, I figured out that my disposable (anti-leak) breastpads (plastic-backed) made it worse, so I bought merino wool and silk reusables. You're meant to sit with your boobs out and free as much as possible, but when your child is born in the lead up to winter, this isn't really that feasible, so I struggled.

I ended up having five courses of treatment, all in, which, in my opinion, didn't work. 

After extensive research and questioning of more experienced mother-friends, I finally bought three rounds of very strong probiotics; bought grapefruit seed extract (GSE) liquid to apply to my nipples every hour or so and let them air dry before putting them away; used the GSE liquid to swab the inside of my son's mouth; doused my nipples in my own breastmilk and let them air dry again; bought grapefruit seed extract tablets to take internally; and cut out all yeast, sugar (including fruit juice) and refined products from my diet. Fresh food only. You cannot imagine how difficult this is with a small demanding child - not being able to snack on easy to eat food, but having to prepare all my meals from scratch. Three and a half months on and I can finally say that I'm thrush-free. Hurrah!

The NHS sucked big time for this and I have to say I've found that it has sucked for most pregnancy or post-pregnancy problems. When I was about 7.5 months pregnant, I developed awful hip pain and was told that there was nothing that could be done and I should probably stop cycling. I did so and it actually got worse, at which point I could no longer return to cycling anyway. After complaining fiercely, I was offered treatment by the physio department. Great, I thought. In fact, they were only offering me a crutch, an offer that arrived after the birth of my son, so I politely declined it. It was a good job I took matters into my own hands and attended a reflexology session, which immediately (within hours) alleviated all hip pain.

Anyway, I know this is a long post, but I'm angry at the NHS for treating only my symptoms and not trying to treat the cause. My message is that if your GP says nothing can be done, or if their treatment is not working, don't give up. Solutions are available. I have solved two of my problems myself (hip pain and thrush) and am now working on the third and final problem - reactive arthritis, also, I was told, common after pregnancy, with nothing to be done other than strong anti-inflammatories. Once this has been resolved I shall report back again.