Ladies, help! Have you experienced this pain?

The only time I ever experienced something like that was while adjusting to breast feeding the first time. I can’t imagine having that kind of pain for no reason. A call to your doctor seems like a good idea.

This is a total guess based on something a friend of mine went through. She was breastfeeding and experienced pain like you described. Naturally, she thought it had something to do with the breastfeeding. After weeks of excruciating pain and no answers or help from her doctor or lactation consultant, she went to a dermatologist and found out she had a form of eczema. I know they gave her a prescription of something, but can’t remember what it was.

You could try a warm bath with Aveeno powder mixed in. After that, put a really good lotion on your skin. Something that doesn’t contain alcohol or scents. Aveeno makes some great lotions. Eucerin and Aquaphor work very well too. If your nipples look normal, don’t have some kind of discharge, or otherwise have symptoms that worry you, try the bath and lotion.

If that doesn’t give any relief, I’d call a doctor. Hope you feel better soon!

They look normal, so far as I can tell and it just started tonight, but it’s gradually been getting worse. They don’t look dry, feel dry, etc. Can someone get eczema out of nowhere? I tried a bath earlier and it didn’t really help, but I’ll put lotion on now. I have to go to bed, somehow, because I’m pretty exhausted. Let you know if the lotion works. I hope so… Because it’s kind of freaking me out. If it’s not better by… Well, the later morning, I“ll call a doctor.

Thanks, guys.

Have you changed laundry detergent or are you wearing a new bra or shirt? I wonder if it could be a sort of contact dermatitis or allergic reaction. You would think though there would be redness if it were, but I have had reactions to some laundry products.

Oh my, DD…I don’t have an answer for you, but I DO hope you can get to the bottom of this. That has to be terrible. If it doesn’t calm down fast, yes, go to your doctor. I hope you get relief soon. Keep us posted.

I went through something like that about 5 years ago, lasted several months, and it was concluded by doctors that my nipples were dry. I tried some lotion on them for a while, but I was not very religious about using it. I also have had several bouts of pain, which I relate to nerve pain, in other areas of my body, so I kind of just lived with it, because I rarely get answers or relief from a doctor. The reason I am telling you this is not to scare you that you are now going to have random pain everywhere, but to say that eventually the nipple pain went away. I don’t think it had to do with being dry (although it can’t hurt to put some lotion or ointment there) because it never happened again and I live in a much dryer climate now.

I also think contact dermatitis is a good guess. Try Free and Clear laundry detergent for a few weeks and no softner and maybe get a cotton bra and see if it resolves itself.

If you have any discharge from your nipples, you need to see a doctor and have some blood tests for pituatary problems.

One more guess if you have thyroid troubles maybe your levels are off.

I have only experienced it after a day in salt water, swimming and water skiing, often when it is that time of my cycle when they are swollen and a bit tender to start with. The salt makes things much worse. Get some nursing pads, put lots of lanolin lotion or something like it on them and sleep in a loosened bra.

A few years ago I had a boyfriend who used have the problem and it was really bad. He would get it whenever we went snowboarding.

I’m not a lady, but I’ll take a stab at this. Since you said you are two weeks away from your period, this suggests that you are at or near your ovulation period. Fluctuating hormones could be responsible for this syndrome, and I notice that other women report similar symptoms. The above advice seems good, and I would suggest that you continue to perform monthly breast examinations to make sure there are no newly developing lumps or masses in your breasts or armpits. Also, any significant change in color or texture of your nipples or breasts should be checked out by a doctor.

Not to scare you at all, but please check this list and make sure you have no additional symptoms. If it was me, since this is atypical for you I would go to the doctor. Note: emphasis mine.

“One or more of the following are Typical Symptoms of IBC:

* Swelling, usually sudden, sometimes a cup size in a few days
* Itching
* Pink, red, or dark colored area (called erythema) sometimes with texture similar to the skin of an orange (called peau d’orange)
* Ridges and thickened areas of the skin
* Nipple retraction
* Nipple discharge, may or may not be bloody
* Breast is warm to the touch
**Breast pain (from a constant ache to stabbing pains)*
* Change in color and texture of the areola

@Marina Inflammatory breast cancer would be very rare in a young woman, and notably, would be highly unlikely to occur on both breasts at the same time. Moreover, breast pain in general is infrequently associated with breast cancer.

@shilolo I said I did not want to scare her, but I have one word for you. cak. It is worth eliminating the possibility because on the outside chance it was IBC it moves swiftly and it is deadly.

I agree, both breasts at once would make me think cancer is the least likely possibility.

By any chance @DrasticDreamer have you had an injury somewhere on your body recently, and could be having a weird nervous system reaction like RSD?

Hmm…less scary option: have you recently worn a non-soft shirt without a bra? I had a similar (very very painful sensation) from wearing a regular tshirt (sans bra).

The first few times it happened to me, I had no idea what was causing it.

I hope you feel better soon! That sort of pain is never fun.

@shilolo We have a family friend that had both nipples invert one day. She had a double mastectomy due to breast cancer

If you use lotion be careful what kind you use. Many lotions can make skin problems worse because of the ingredients they have in them. It is like licking your lips, it feels better for a bit then makes the problem worse. Using a lotion that is cream based or gel based like aloe gel or Eucerin brand lotion/cream are good choices. You could also go to a baby store and ask for some balm for breastfeeding as it is likely to work as well.

@RedPowerLady Yes, I agree with the lotion…I only use either pure aloe gel, or 100% pure lanolin (which is known as “breastfeeding” lotion and is in the baby aisle)

Ouch! Since the weather is changing, it may be that they are just dried out. If that’s what it is, the absolute BEST thing I can recommend is Lansinoh cream for breastfeeding mothers. It comes out of the tube sort of thick and waxy, but work it between your fingers a few seconds and it melts into a a creamy… cream. It looks like soft, gooey caramel. It’s easier to apply that way. If it hurts too much to rub it onto your nipples, get some clean gauze squares and put the cream on that and then just stick the whole thing on your nipple inside your bra. It’s sort of expensive (about $10), but it does last a long time and you can use it for anything! Dry feet, hands, elbows, knees, it’s even safe for lips! I love that stuff. You can read more about it if you do a quick search. It’s all natural, and is very close to human skin oil.

But, you probably want to see a doctor just to make sure you don’t have some sort of bacterial infection.

My nipples peeled and cracked at one time from being dry. Use a good lotion on them.

Thanks to everyone who replied.

A couple of things, first. I tried the lotion – I used GoldBond just in case it was caused by dry skin or might be eczema, but… That was a really bad idea. The pain was instantly 100 times worse and I had to take it off immediately. My nipples are a little off in color – they’re more red than usual, but that’s not surprising since they feel raw. The redness starts from the outside base of my nipples and forms a ring around where I’d lactate – so the part where I’d lactate is a lot paler in color. However, I do notice that there are really small red, shiny bumps that look almost blister-like, which ring the paler part of my nipples. Both breasts do feel like they’re fevered, which I noticed last night.

I haven’t made a change in detergent, I’m not wearing any new clothes, no other injuries on my body. I’m gonna call the doctor now, just to be on the safe side. Again, thank you all for taking the time to answer.

No wonder it is so painful. Could it be herpetic? I think it is a good idea to see a doc since there is blisters, maybe they can culture it. Although contact dermatitis could produce blisters also.

@DrasticDreamer

OK, you just described three more symptoms if IBC including the rash. Please, please, please see your doctor. It is rare, but wouldn’t it be great to rule it out?

Breast is warm to the touch

Change in color and texture of the areola

@DrasticDreamer While a doctor’s visit couldn’t hurt, I doubt highly that you have IBC (rest assured). IBC rarely involves the areola, IBC is very rare at a young age, and IBC is rarely bilateral (anecdotes notwithstanding). Put all those together and you have long odds indeed. Paget’s disease of the nipple is a form of breast cancer (not to be confused with IBC) that more closely mimics your case, but again, is exceedingly rare in young women and almost never bilateral.

I suspect the most likely explanation will be a primary skin disorder (dermatitis), like eczema or contact dermatitis. A google search pulls up lots of pictures. Perhaps one is close to your condition?

@DrasticDreamer When my kids get very dry skin, putting lotion on stings. I learned that the hard way long ago, when my daughter had very dry skin and I rubbed some lotion on her legs. I always buy good lotion for the kids, like Eucerin. Holy crap, that poor kid screamed and screamed. :( I found that using the lotion after a warm bath almost completely avoided the burning and stinging, except in the most severe cases. If the Gold Bond you used was medicated, that might have contributed to the pain.

I don’t know much about it, but could it be some kind of infection like thrush?

I’m glad you are going to see your doctor about it, and I hope you are feeling better soon.

@DrasticDreamer Try the breastfeeding lotion or Eucerin. Stay away from the Gold Bond. Ouch! I can guess why that hurt.

Yes. Gold Bond has menthol in it. Yeow!

Or just smear on plain old vaseline. That is what I use when I go for a long run. The sweat and chaffing can rub you raw and bloody, the vaseline prevents that and has nothing in it that would sting.

@shilolo No, the images don’t really match up to what was going on with me. They all looked really severe. On me, you could barely see the red spots.

Good news is, it’s not nearly as bad right now. If it happens again, I’ll just go straight to the doctor to be on the safe side.

Again, thanks for taking the time to answer, everyone. I’ll try some of your suggestions.

Hopefully, it’ll keep getting better every day.