Breastfeeding / nipple shields

[UGH1]

My baby is 4 weeks and have resorted to nipple shields on midwife advice as my nipples are so sore and feeding became excruciating. The shields have allowed some relief and have been able to continue.

However, since using the shields baby is feeding much more frequently and is more restless and sleeping in much shorter stretches. Could this be related to the nipple shield use or just pure coincidence !?

Thanks!

Hi :)

I used shields for around 1 week straight with my son but found the same thing. Sadly I don’t think they get the same amount of milk as they do when sucking directly on the nipple.

You will hate me for saying this but I found shields were good for giving my nipples a ‘break’, but certainly not a permanent, long term thing.

My advice is to try and soothe your nipples whilst using the shields for 1-2 days (by soothe I mean using regular lanisoh cream, regularly washing them and letting them air-dry, rubbing milk into them etc). After a couple of days you should slowly start to ease back into direct feeding (2 feeds shield - 1 feed nipple) and then after another day or 2 use the shields every other feed, until you can stop using them.

I did find cream, washing and using shields to give them a break worked for me.

Good luck xx

Oh I should have also suggested.. even if you are happy with your latch, it’s always a good idea to get it checked.

I found a local drop in breastfeeding clinic close to where I live and they were great. They didn’t cure my nipples but they did give some helpful advice, helped me find a new position that was more comfortable and also it was nice to be able to talk to people who were familiar with what I was going through!

@Spencer2

Hi! Thanks for your response, really helpful and thought that would be the case 😅. Seemed to much of a coincidence... I'll will go with trying to ease back to no shield feeds!

It was 27 years ago now but if my midwife in the hospital hadn't introduced me to nipple shields I would never have stuck with breastfeeding - baby wouldn't latch properly and my inexperience meant I couldn't tell which made everything worse. When used in conjunction with Kamillosan cream the shields worked brilliantly until my nipples got hardened off after a couple of weeks. By the time my 3rd child came along I didn't need either for more than the first week.

I used shields for a week or 2 when breastfeeding as I was in absolute agony. I didn’t notice an increase in feeding but maybe I just didn’t realise at the time. However just having the break allowed my nipples to dry up and heal and once we tried again without the shields it was so much easier and plain sailing from there on.

Are the shields well fitted to your nipples and not too big?

I fed my daughter using shields from 1 week old to about 5 months. I'd occasionally try to wean her off them but she was never having it until at 5 months she just pulled them off and latched like that was what she always did. I didn't notice any increase in feeding but I barely managed to latch her on at all once my milk came in until I used the shields so she was definitely getting more than she had been before! With DS I didn't use shields and he never did the marathon feeds that DD did but there were other factors besides the shields so couldn't say for sure that it was purely because of them.

@Kinsters thank you! He generally fed super well without shields it was just soooo painful.

I'm hoping it may just be a coincidental blip and he'll go back to less feeding and more sleeping... I can dream!

I actually used nipple shields long term! From about two weeks (I was in agony - bleeding, cracked, got mastitis) until 12 months!! I tried to wean off a few times but I actually got scared.

A breastfeeding consultant suggested them to me at 2 weeks, but i was supposed to wean off at week 6, I just didn’t.

I am not sure if DC fed for longer because he wasn’t getting enough milk or not, so can’t be helpful there, but he was exclusively breastfed and the feeding didn’t feel endless at the time.

Same as @Brainqqq - I breastfed three babies using shields the entire time (11 months, 17 months and 14 months respectively). Never noticed an issue with supply or weight gain. I definitely couldn’t have continued without them as it was just too painful so I considered it was better to breastfeed with them than give up without! Good luck with whatever you decide.

If the issue is pain then hopefully after your nipples are healed you can wean off the shields (I don't see any problem using them long term but it's a hassle you don't want to be dealing with if you don't have to). DD couldn't latch without them so I couldn't wean her off.

Someone in one of my baby groups mentioned some silver nursing cups (look on Amazon) that were apparently miraculous for nipple pain. You could spend loads of money on wonder cures though! Some babies just have a rubbish latch that causes pain. DD couldn't latch properly and when she did my nipples ended up so sore. DS latched on like he'd been taking lessons and I never had any pain at all.

Have a look at the Facebook group breastfeeding for yummie mummies, if you post on there you will get loads of good advice especially from breastfeeding consultants, they will even assess your latch etc for you

Could simply be that he's in his 4 wk growth spurt. They tend to be more clingy, cry more, feed like demons and sleep is disturbed

I came on to recommend silver cups but someone beat me to it! My Italian SIL gave me them when I was breastfeeding and they saved me after weeks of sore, cracked, bleeding nipples.

@OneMoreCookieMonster that's what I'm hoping!!!

He's currently in the baby carrier attached to me and is fast asleep so am encouraged to think that...

I'll still work on hopefully getting my nipples to a place where I don't need the shields but will use them if I need as really want to continue breast feeding!

I have the silver cups! They worked super well in terms of stopping the nipple sticking to the breast pad which was awful. Currently testing some rite aid hydrogel disks which were recommended!