Awww, you've got it tough. *hugs*
Seriously recommend getting a family member to pick you up the thrush pill - you can get it over the counter at any pharmacy. It's not prescribed when you're breastfeeding, so doctors just give the gel which does nothing if the thrush has gone into the milk ducts. They actually give the pill to babies born with AIDS, as they are born riddled with thrush (even in their brains), and the pill is the only way to fix it (so it's pretty safe). I used to find the first let down excrutiating with thrush, and it would slowly ease into more manageable pain. Tried gel for a week and it did nothing, had the tablet and noticed a difference the next day, with huge improvement over the next week. Will treat your daughter too via the breast milk, as she'll have oral thrush if you have it (you pass it back and forth if you're not careful), which can give some sore white blisters in the mouth that could effect her feeding too.
I liked the natural papaya gel for cracked nipples too, plus letting them 'air dry' after feeds for a bit (rather than putting the breast pads straight on) to help make a less moist environment for thrush/other nasties.
From memory I think it took me around 6 weeks to be confident with knowing I was doing it all ok, and by 8 weeks we were working together like pros. It is hard work, but if you can get it to be a nice relaxing time together then it's well worth the effort - many, many months of snuggle feeding time to look forward to after all the first unpleasantness is past.
Struggling with breastfeeding
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