Natural Home Remedies For Mastitis

I had mastitis TWELVE times in the first 4 months of having our first baby. Each infection was incredibly painful, and I was incredibly ill. When I finally discovered natural home remedies for mastitis, I was able to clear up each future infection without antibiotics and also learned how to prevent reoccurrence. Learn how you can resolve pain, fever, and clogged milk ducts quickly using these natural home remedies for mastitis.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. Always consult your physician if you have infections or want to try natural remedies at home. This post shares information how to relieve mastitis infections, pain, and help prevent future infections, but is not intended as medical advice.

Post-Partum Mastitis

My first experience with a mastitis infection was four days post-partum with our first baby. Being a new mom, I had no idea what was wrong when I spiked a high fever and felt like I was going to die. My body hurt all over from iatrogenic injuries during labor and birth, milk engorgement, and mastitis fever. My husband drove me to the emergency room, worried I was having a post-partum infection. The doctor on call was concerned about this as well, and ordered tests and examinations.

When the doctor left the room, a kind, wise nurse asked if my breasts hurt or if they were red. Upon further conversation and her breast examination, we concluded a mastitis infection was the culprit of my raging fever and illness. I was prescribed antibiotics and advised to drink water. I should expect to feel better within several days.

Antibiotics For Mastitis

Unfortunately, I took the 10 days of antibiotics, and while still on day 8, I had another full blown infection again. Back to the doctor. “Let’s try a different antibiotic this time to see if it will help.” Sent home without further instructions. Repeat a third time. Clearly antibiotics were not helping me to recover from infection or preventing future infections. Not to mention they can completely ruin gut health for both mom and baby. Around the time between my third and fourth infection, I met a holistic practioner with amazing advice how to prevent and clear up mastitis naturally. While I am grateful for life-saving antibiotics in time of need, they are not my go-to health solution (for almost any kind of illness), now that I am more informed.

Mastitis Symptoms

A mastitis infection generally presents with a clogged milk duct, which feels like a painful lump in the breast. The breast may be red (sometimes with streaks), tender to touch, swollen, hot, and inflamed. A high fever accompanied with body aches is also typical. Some people have all or just a couple of these symptoms. If the milk duct remains clogged, symptoms will generally worsen until the duct is cleared.

Milk Fever vs. Mastitis

Newly post-partum mothers may experience “milk fever”, which is different than mastitis. Milk fever refers to a low grade fever, generally lasting about 24 hours or less, that a mom experiences as her milk comes in. Milk fevers are normal and not generally something to be concerned about. When milk comes in after having a new baby, it is normal for breasts to feel very tender, full, and sore. Your body will adjust and regulate the amount of milk your baby needs and this tenderness will self-resolve. If your symptoms move beyond a low grade fever, such as high fever, red breasts, painful lumps, or body aches, you likely have mastitis. Mastitis will not generally self-resolve; you must actively clear the milk ducts.

Fastest Way to Cure Mastitis

Conventional medicine will recommend a mother take antibiotics to help clear a mastitis infection. As I mentioned above, antibiotic treatment is not always effective and can also have harmful side-effects. Again, I am not a doctor, and this is not medical advice. Talk to your doctor about your mastitis treatment. I have personally resolved multiple infections using natural home remedies for mastitis and know many other moms who have done the same. Traditional cultures have also historically treated mastitis with home remedies. In my experience, natural home remedies for mastitis have cleared an infection much faster than using antibiotics as well.

Natural Home Remedies For Mastitis

I shared above I had mastitis twelve times with our first baby. I have had several infections since with other babies (I am a mom to six at the time of writing this). At the first symptom of infection, I have found the following natural home remedies to be very effective at resolving mastitis:

1. Get into a hot bath with 2 cups of Epsom salt and 2 cups of baking soda. Allow your breasts to be submerged completely, facing the bottom of the tub. Hand express milk right into the bath tub, by gently massaging and rubbing breast in a downward motion. Start above where you feel the painful lump in the breast, and rub downward toward the nipple to express milk. After doing this several times, you might even feel immediate relief where the lump becomes less painful. I have successfully unclogged milk ducts this way multiple times.
2. Nurse baby on demand and/or pump milk. While nursing and pumping, massage the breast in a downward motion, starting above the clog, as described above. Often babies are more efficient at removing milk than a pump. Try different angles of nursing, so that baby’s chin is facing the direction of the clog. “Dangle nursing”, football hold, etc. can all be helpful in removing the clog from the duct.
3. Avoid all inflammatory foods, such as sugar, gluten, processed dairy, and seed oils. Consume food and supplements high in vitamin C, D, immune support, probiotics-like fermented veggies or kefir, and minerals. Garlic is a natural antibiotic and can and should be eaten raw to help clear the infection more quickly.
4. Rest and hydrate. Drink plenty of water and try not to get out of bed more than necessary. Nursing requires enormous amounts of water, and rest is needed to help heal the body.
5. Alternate between ice and warm compress for pain relief. Listen to your body which one feels better for you.
6. Avoid breast compression. This includes avoiding underwire bras, tight nursing bras, sleeping in a position that puts pressure on the breast tissue and milk ducts, or any weight on the breasts. For example, I have needed to be mindful of holding or snuggling toddler children off to the side on my lap. Do not wear a bra or nursing tank top at all until mastitis symptoms resolve.

How to Avoid Mastitis While Nursing or Pumping

When we had our first baby, I had mastitis twelve times before I learned a few tricks to help prevent this! I was wearing underwire nursing bras that caused constriction on milk ducts, had oversupply of milk, pumped too often, and our son had an undiagnosed tongue and lip tie. While we cannot always avoid mastitis, we can use these tips to help prevent future infections:

1. Rest and hydrate. Being rundown and dehydrated can contribute to getting mastitis. I most often struggled when I was not able to get enough sleep or did too much too soon post partum.
2. Avoid constrictive bras and nursing tanks and other sources of breast pressure (see notes above).
3. Nurse or pump frequently. If you miss a feeding, be sure to pump. If you are exclusively pumping, make sure you create time in your daily routine. If you are approaching weaning time, wean off nursing or pumping slowly. Dropping one feeding at a time and watching body for reactions.
4. Allow baby to feed from one breast until breast is emptied of milk before switching to the other side. For women with oversupply, feeding from only one breast per feeding can help to regulate supply. I am one of those with oversupply and practice “block feeding” until my supply is regulated.
5. Eat a healthy diet and avoid processed foods that deplete the body.
6. Talk to a lactation consultant or a dentist/doctor who is educated about tongue and lip ties and proper breastfeeding latch. If nursing feels challenging, baby is fussy or spitting up often, baby is not gaining weight, or if your nipples are sore and raw (beyond the first week or so of nursing), these are warning signs baby is not latching properly. A shallow latch can create a challenging nursing experience. The breasts do not empty properly and baby might not be getting enough milk. Talking to a professional is very helpful in this situation.

Post-Partum Care For Mom

Being a mom to a new baby is a special blessing. It is a time of physical and emotional tenderness and huge amount of change, no matter how many children you have. Be gentle with and kind to yourself. Allow plenty of time to rest, bond with baby, and enjoy the journey. Ask for and accept help from others and release expectations of things you “should be” doing around the house. Being a mom to a new baby extends beyond the first few weeks and months after birth, and we need to be mindful to continue to take good care of our bodies and souls. I hope you never experience a mastitis infection! If you do, I hope these natural home remedies are helpful to you.

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