Your GP will examine your breasts and take a history of the type of pain you have and how often it occurs. To check how long the pain lasts, how severe the pain is or if the pain is linked to your periods, your GP may ask you to fill in a simple pain chart.
If your GP thinks you may have non-cyclical breast pain or chest wall pain, they may ask you to lean forward during the examination. This is to help them assess if the pain is inside your breast or in the chest wall. These include:. Wearing a supportive and well-fitting bra during the day, during any physical activity and at night can be helpful.
Some women have found relaxation therapy useful in reducing their symptoms of cyclical breast pain, such as relaxation CDs or apps, or other complementary therapies such as acupuncture and aromatherapy. If your pain started when you began taking a contraceptive pill, changing to a different pill may help.
If the pain continues, you may want to try a non-hormone method of contraception such as condoms, a non-hormonal coil also called copper coil or IUD or a cap diaphragm. Despite this, your GP may suggest that you try evening primrose or starflower oil which contain GLA , as some women have found it helps them to feel better generally. Your GP will tell you how much to take and for how long.
People with epilepsy are usually advised not to take evening primrose or starflower oil. Research has shown that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pain relief, such as ibuprofen, can help breast pain, particularly non-cyclical pain.
This type of pain relief can be applied directly to the affected area as a gel. It can also be taken as a tablet. Before using this type of pain relief you should be assessed and get advice from your doctor on the correct dose, how long you should use it for and any possible side effects, especially if you have asthma, stomach ulcers or any problem related to your kidneys.
Paracetamol can also be useful in relieving breast pain, either with or without anti-inflammatory pain relief. These drugs have side effects, so will only be recommended after a discussion about the benefits and possible risks. Find out more about treatment for chest wall pain. Cyclical pain means the pain is associated with your menstrual cycle. Pain linked with the menstrual cycle tends to subside during or after your period.
Noncyclical pain can have many causes, including injury to the breast. Sometimes noncyclical pain can come from surrounding muscles or tissues rather than the breast itself. Noncyclical pain is much less common than cyclical pain, and its causes can be harder to identify. Mastalgia can vary in intensity from a sharp pain to a mild tingling. Some women may experience breast tenderness, or their breasts may feel fuller than usual.
Breast pain can be caused by a variety of factors. Two of the most common causes are hormone fluctuations and fibrocystic lumpy breasts. Women sometimes report that this pain gets worse as they get older due to increased sensitivity to hormones as a woman ages. If breast pain is due to hormone fluctuations, you will usually notice the pain getting worse two to three days before your period.
Sometimes the pain will continue throughout your menstrual cycle. To determine whether your breast pain is linked to your menstrual cycle, keep a log of your periods and note when you experience pain throughout the month. After a cycle or two, a pattern may become clear. As a woman ages, her breasts experience changes known as involution.
This is when breast tissue is replaced by fat. A side effect of this is the development of cysts and more fibrous tissue. These are known as fibrocystic changes or fibrocystic breast tissue. Fibrocystic breasts can feel lumpy and can increase tenderness. This most usually occurs in the upper and outer portions of the breasts.
The lumps can also enlarge in size around the time of your menstrual cycle. You can experience breast pain while breastfeeding for a number of reasons. These include:. Mastitis is an infection of your milk ducts. This can cause severe and strong pain as well as cracked, itching, burning, or blistering on the nipples. Discomfort or tenderness in one or both of the breasts is known as breast pain, or mastalgia.
There is, however, a difference between normal breast pain and breast pain that could indicate a more serious health problem. Women may experience breast pain during puberty, menstruation, premenstrual syndrome, pregnancy, menopause, and after childbirth. Breast pain felt during these times is considered normal. It might be sharp, stabbing, dull, throbbing or aching.
It might be felt in all or part of the breasts, one breast or both. It can also affect the armpit area. For many women, the soreness is barely noticeable. For others, the pain is so great that it affects their everyday lives. Usually the condition goes away in time. This is also referred to as cyclical mastalgia. This happens when the tissue in their breasts responds to hormones. The most common hormonal breast soreness comes from an increase in the level of oestrogen before a period.
This causes milk ducts and glands to swell, trapping fluid in the breasts. Many women have tenderness or pain in the lead-up to a period, and sometimes right through it. The hormones that cause breast soreness might also cause cyclical swelling or lumpiness.
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