Shooting Pain in Breast

According to estimates, around seventy percent of women experience breast pain at least once in their lifetime. Breast pain in women can occur on account of lots of reasons and its intensity too can vary a lot. Some women may experience only a mild pain while others experience a sharp pain in breasts. Breast pain can be limited to just one breast in some cases, while in others, it can be experienced in both the breasts. Below are some of the reasons why women experience sharp pain in breast, followed by ways to treat and prevent the same.

Causes

Pain in breasts is of two kinds, i.e. cyclical as well as noncyclical. Cyclical breast pain is the one which is related to the menstrual cycle of the woman, while noncyclical breast pain is totally unrelated to it.

Cyclical Breast Pain
A sharp pain in breasts, accompanied by other symptoms such as swelling, tenderness and pain in breasts, lumpiness or cysts in breasts, which is experienced just before the menstrual cycle, and goes away once the periods are over, is known as cyclical breast pain. It is caused due to the various changes in the levels of the two hormones, namely estrogen and progesterone that take place inside a woman's body. A shooting breast pain caused due to hormonal fluctuations, goes away on its own, once the woman reaches menopause.

Noncyclical Breast Pain
Noncyclical breast pain, in most cases, affects only one particular area of the breast or both the breasts. Shooting pain in breasts which is noncyclical could be due to some injury or trauma that has been caused to the breasts. Wearing improper inner wear can cause this type of pain too. Costochondritis, an arthritis pain that is experienced by aged women or women who have an improper posture, is another reason behind noncyclical breast pain. Some of the other uncommon causes behind noncyclical breast pain are intake of contraceptive pills, weight gain, tumors and breast cancer.

Besides these two types of breast pain, a woman who is pregnant or a woman who is breast-feeding, could experience sharp pain in breasts too. Sharp pain in breast during pregnancy is caused due to the hormonal changes that take place in the body during that time. Another reason is the changes that take place in the breast tissue, resulting in the formation of the milk cells, causing breast enlargement accompanied by pain and tenderness.

Severe pain in breast after breastfeeding could be caused due to a number of reasons, such as the stimulation of the nipples, cracking of the nipples, baby bite, bad suckle by the baby, improper breast pump, normal "let down" of milk to the nipples and thrush.

Treatment

The treatment for breast pain entails taking a few precautions as well as following certain home remedies.

• Wearing a comfortable bra can help curb breast pain in many women.
• Bringing changes in one's diet, such as including lots of vegetables and fruits and eliminating caffeine and fats, helps reduce breast pain too.
• Cyclical breast pain can be kept under check by limiting one's sodium intake.
• If a woman exercises regularly and eats a balanced, healthy diet to lose weight, the fluctuation in her hormone levels can be minimized, thereby, reducing the pain in her breasts.
• Breast pain caused due to benign cysts can be reduced by going through a procedure known as cyst aspiration, in which fluid is drained from the cysts.
• Managing stress better by doing meditation and yoga, helps in relieving sharp breast pain too.

Certain over the counter pain relievers, although not a permanent solution, can be taken by the woman for some temporary respite from the severe pain in breasts. However, if the pain in breasts gets severe by the day and makes even day-to-day living difficult for the woman, it is recommended that a medical practitioner is consulted for proper diagnoses and treatment.