Yesterday morning, I thought Anna had bruised my right nipple badly. It ached and throbbed and hurt like hell when she nursed and even when she wasn't. It got worse during the day, and by evening, it felt like someone was dragging barbed wire through my nipple while she sucked.
This morning, I tried, but I just couldn't keep her on. The pain was so intense, the only way I can describe it is just like the "transition" period in natural childbirth, but the pain was focused on my nipple, not my low back. I was crying and gritting back screams.
So I went online and figured out pretty quickly that I had a yeast infection.
Did you know that pharmacies around here don't open until nine? Crazy. We walked through a few pharmacy aisles while the window was closed, but couldn't find the "gentian violet," the gold standard for treating nipple yeast infections. We finally were at a pharmacy when they opened the window, and the pharm tech quickly brought me a tiny bottle and said, "$1.62 please." Dang. I would have paid nearly a hundred for a remedy.
When we got home, I went into the bathroom with Chris and Anna, and I stripped down to the waist and made a few piles of burp rags. I rubbed vaseline on her lips, and sighed when I read that the gentian violet was ten percent alcohol. Oh well.
I swabbed her mouth with the dark purple liquid and watched the staining spread. Then I painted my milk spouts with the stuff and giggled at my reflection.
I probably used too much in her mouth because she was drooling purple. When I put her to breast, the purple spread all over her face. Oh dear.
The good news is, the relief was immediate. It barely hurt at all when she sucked for the first time. As for Anna? We were able to wipe most of the gentian off, though the inside of her mouth is still stained. I feel bad that I made BJ's granddaughter look all goofy when she finally is able to show her off to her family and friends.
