Newborn clamping down tight on my nipple, what can I do?

[EarnestDullard]

3 day old DD2 is feeding well but despite getting her to open her mouth as wide as possible she still manages to clamp down onto my nipple with her gums while she feeds. I keep breaking the latch and trying again but she still grips on hard, effectively chewing my poor nipple. I'm bruised and tender and the pain when she latches on is eye-watering. What am I doing wrong? I really want to persevere but I'm starting to dread her feeds as I know how much it's going to hurt.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Congratulations on your new DD Earnest. Sorry to hear that you are having problems. Please ring the MWs and ask for some help with this, while you are waiting take some paracetamol.

Hopefully though, someone will be along with some more experience or information soon.

[HearMyRoar]

It's still very early days so it might be part that she is still getting the hang of things. I have found that bf takes a lot of learning from both of you. Also has your milk come in? If not then she might be tugging wanting a faster flow, if it has then it could also be that she is finding your flow too fast and trying to slow things a bit.

I had over supply with Dd and she used to clamp down hard to stem the tide. Once I stopped trying to force a wide latch and let her take more control she stopped biting as much.

[CaseyShraeger]

If she's managing to so that it's possibly / probably a sign of a bad latch. If she is properly latched then her tongue should be between her bottom gum and your nipple and so stop her chomping her gums together. Is there a BFC near you who could take a look at her latch in person?

[SuzanneIBCLC]

Fromwhat you have said it sounds as if one of two things is the cause. Firstly a poor latch , which could be corrected by putting baby nose to nipple and waiting for her to extend before bringing to the breast. Secondly, and more likely is simply your baby could have a tongue tie. I would recommend going to see a IBCLC who specialises in tongue tie for advise and support. There may be one in a hospital local to you and there are lactation consultants. that work privately. Goto www.ibclc.org for info and www.lcgb.org/shop_tongue.html for a great leaflet!

[SuzanneIBCLC]

PS pain with breastfeeding is never normal and is a sign that something is wrong. It is a myth to say that it is normal to suffer and pain in the early days.

[EarnestDullard]

Thanks for the replies. That's exactly it, she's not sticking her tongue out; it hadn't occurred to me before. I actually feel a lot more positive knowing what the problem is :) She does flick her tongue in and out when latching on, but doesn't hold it out for long enough to get her on the boob at the right time.

One of the midwives did check for a tongue tie and said she was fine (and she does stick her tongue out at other times), although I'm sure they can miss these things sometimes. I'll see if I can get to a BFing cafe or similar for some one-to-one help. I had the same problem with DD and switched to expressing. Hopefully this time I can get to the point where BFing is easier and enjoyable.