I GOT MASTITIS 3 TIMES IN 2 MONTHS — HERE'S WHAT I WISH I'D KNOWN AS A NURSING MOM
I knew something wasn't right when I found myself flipping on my car's seat warmer as I drove to pick up my toddler from preschool. It was August in Los Angeles, and the abrupt full-body chills caught me off guard — maybe I was coming down with something after burning the candle from both ends? My newborn daughter was about 6 weeks old, and I generally felt as if I were operating on adrenaline and vibes.
Then I noticed the sports bra I was wearing also felt tight and uncomfortable. Later, when I went to change my clothes, I felt heat radiating from a curiously sore and red breast. At that point, it occurred to me that I might have mastitis, which I only knew of as a potentially scary ailment related to breastfeeding.
Within the next month, I learned a lot more about it. I got mastitis again twice before wrapping up my breastfeeding journey. Here's what I wish more moms knew about preventing, identifying, and treating mastitis, i.e., what I learned the long and hard way.
Don't know much about mastitis? Makes sense — not everyone gets it
Mastitis is breast inflammation that can sometimes include infection. Symptoms usually include breast swelling, pain, redness, and warmth; fatigue; fever; and other flu-like symptoms, like the chills I experienced. It affects an estimated 10% of nursing moms in the United States, but I'd never experienced it with my first baby, so why did it keep coming back with my second?
Having different mastitis experiences with different children is perfectly normal, says Linda Hanna, R.N., I.B.C.L.C., and director of care at maternal health care platform Mahmee. "Breast infections [from mastitis] have nothing to do with how long a mother has breastfed one or any of her babies," she says, adding that the risk "has to do with the way the milk is removed from the breast and how often and how much milk is removed."
For me, this wisdom tracks; my feeding experience with my daughter was totally different from that with my son.
My son and I got the hang of breastfeeding within a few weeks, with the help of lactation consulting and some formula bottles to keep his weight up as we worked on our rhythm. My daughter, however, struggled to gain weight from the start. The pediatrician suspected that milk wasn't effectively moving from the breast to the baby, most likely due to poor latch.
In order to help her gain weight and continue nursing, I opted to pump exclusively. For weeks, this worked well, but then mastitis struck not once but three times.
I wish I'd known that these things can cause mastitis
I ran into several (mostly avoidable) issues that might have contributed to my multiple cases of mastitis:
Latch issues
Every few days while exclusively pumping, I'd look at my baby and think, She seems bigger and stronger now — maybe that means nursing will be easier for her, so I'd try breastfeeding again. For some people, this might work, but not us. With an improper latch, she didn't get the milk she needed and she didn't effectively empty my breast.
Letting milk remain in your breast for too long isn't just uncomfortable (hello, engorgement). It also contributes to clogged ducts and mastitis. This was likely how I got mastitis the first time.
"Breastfeeding mothers need to keep milk moving through the breast," says Hanna. "Milk movement reduces the risk of fluid sitting in the breast and reduces the risk of mastitis."
Skipped or inefficient pumping sessions
Exclusively pumping doesn't increase risk of mastitis, Hanna says, but that's so long as you use the pump correctly, which is often easier said than done.
Sometimes I was not an A+ steward of my pump. Skipping a pumping session is a tempting choice when you're exhausted and your stash is big enough to cover your baby's next meal. While the short-term gain here is undeniably sweet, it's also risky because, again, it can contribute to clogged ducts and mastitis. I think that's what caused my second bout.
Using the wrong flange size or pump settings (including speed and pressure) can also reduce milk expression and cause a backup, Hanna explains, so keep an eye on those factors as well.
Weaning too fast
My third instance of mastitis felt unfair, because I had already fully weaned — or so I thought. After getting mastitis a second time, I decided that switching to formula made the most sense for me and my baby. I knew from my firstborn that safe weaning requires a gradual process of dropping pumping (or nursing) sessions, allowing your body time to recalibrate.
Unfortunately, I went too fast for my body, and felt those telltale flu-like symptoms one morning two weeks after I stopped pumping.
Follow best practices for weaning (i.e., do it slowly), and pay attention to feelings of uncomfortable fullness in your breasts. Tactics like shifting to gentle hand expression and shortening each session over time (as opposed to dropping sessions cold turkey) can signal your body to slow down milk production and reduce your risk of infection. Working with your doctor or a lactation consultant can also help ensure safe weaning, for you and your baby.
What I wish I knew about treating mastitis
Now that I'm fully done with my pump and my daughter is thriving with formula, grumbling about my three rounds in the ring with mastitis feels a little like crying over spilled milk. But, as any nursing parent knows, sometimes it's fully warranted to do just that.
Here are a few tips I wish I knew about mastitis before I had to learn the hard way … thrice.
Take NSAIDs and use ice packs at the first sign of symptoms
Do you suddenly have red, swollen, hot, breasts, in addition to flu-like symptoms of fever and chills? Break out the ice pack and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), stat, to reduce the inflammation and get you back on track. NSAIDs like ibuprofen (aka Motrin or Advil) are safe for breastfeeding and pumping moms.
Even though you feel crummy, try to keep nursing or pumping as normal; stopping can contribute to milk stasis and make the infection more severe.
Get antibiotics if your symptoms aren't better within a day
If your symptoms don't improve after a day of ice and NSAIDs, call your OB/GYN to discuss what's going on. They'll likely prescribe you a round of antibiotics to kick your case of mastitis.
When you're armed with info, mastitis doesn't have to be scary
For what it's worth, NSAIDs, ice packs, resting, and staying hydrated helped me treat my mastitis the second and third time within 24 hours, without the need for antibiotics. I found that early intervention was key for getting ahead of things.
Ultimately, each baby and postpartum is a new experience, complete with unique joys and challenges. For me, mastitis was new to my second go-around on the parent ride. And now, with a few months of distance, it feels like nothing more like a figurative fever dream as opposed to a literal one.
2026-02-09T15:57:10Z