Breastfeeding & Cheese Graters

[YuzuSake]

I heard a comment in a show that breastfeeding felt like running a cheese grater over your nipples. I have never breastfed and this comment has stuck in my brain as it really made me wince. Is it accurate? Or sometimes it can be and sometimes it isn’t? I figured if anyone had a good idea of this it would be MN!

I have breast fed 4 kids and it was only painfully sore for the last one and that only lasted the first couple of weeks. I would curl my toes and wince the whole time, so I get the cheese grater analogy. But it resolved after the nips toughened up, lanolin, manage to latch correctly etc.

I found my nipples really hurt when breastfeeding dc3, but i hadn't had anything like that with dc1 and dc2.
It was mainly first 2 or 3 weeks iirc and then it was ok after that, and I fed her for 6mths with no problems after that.

It was really painful for me, I wanted to cry and winced every time he fed but he had tongue tie and a not deep enough latch that caused me to have nipple trauma. So imagine having a wound and then someone pressing or squeezing the wounded skin. Ouch.

If it hurts that much then yes something isn’t right. It doesn’t mean the mum is doing something wrong. The baby has to learn to latch correctly. It can be sore at first. But cheese grater no! If it’s that bad then it’s likely a tongue tie or thrush or something else. Because when the latch is deep enough the nipple is far back against the babies soft palette. If it’s rubbing and making mum’s nipples sore then it’s rubbing against the hard palette at the top of their mouth. It doesn’t matter if someone says it looks good. If it hurts it needs adjusting.

Oh look womansplaining is now a thing too 😂😂

True for me. I stuck it out for 6 months with my first buy did do a few bottles for a 'break'. It was horrendously painful!

A recurring theme I am reading are medical professionals not taking women’s pain seriously, even when it is agonisingly painful. It is very callous.

I’m relieved that for many women it isn’t painful and even pleasurable, but surely something is not right when women in excruciating pain are not being helped more proactively, and basically told to just get on with it?

Definitely not for me.

a slight tingle at let down but otherwise comfortable. Fed two babies past a year

Nipples are really sensitive - the baby shouldn't be latched to the nipple at all or it'll be excruciating. The baby should latch to the areola and the nipple is at the back of their throat, untouched.

Surely all the women who experience pain have the wrong latch? Isn't the main point that pain indicates a bad latch.

I didn't breastfeed for long, but it was painless the whole time unless the latch was wrong - then I'd readjust her until it wasn't painful.

That’s it in a nutshell yes

Haha I don't have any children, but a kitten once went for my nipple when she was on my bed, and it felt like being sandpapered.

BF was very painful for me, made my toes curl. But that was because I struggled with latching and despite midwife spending lots of time trying different positions I stopped and used formula.

@MyTaupeHare my nipples are really sensitive, can't bear anyone touching them. However breastfeeding doesn't feel uncomfortable for me in the slightest. If there's pain there's a problem

It's frustrating to see people who didn't experience pain say that this always indicates a poor latch. The first 6/8 weeks of Bf my first baby was honestly the worst pain of my life (many checks to make sure latch was ok) and I'm amazed I stuck with it. I have ended up EBF x2 for 18 months each and see the benefits, but I wish I had been warned that it can be painful for some women. My nipples were in a lot of pain and letdown was awful. I also experienced real issues stopping bf, both with mastitis and with a massive hormone slump, despite cutting down slowly.

I think in the UK everyone is so keen to improve the rate of BF that no one is honest about the physical and mental toll it can take. The commitment involved is massive.

@snackprovidersupreme

Completely agree! I had so much help, my local HVs were amazing, was checked multiple times for tongue tie, had no end of lactation consultants. All said latch was great, couldn’t find any issues. Absolutely agonising 6 months and had to stop for my own mental and physical health!! It’s not the same for everyone and it makes you feel like even more of a failure when others who are not in your position try and tell you differently!

Also I seem to be in a minority, but I found bottle feeding so much easier, especially when out and about, and the bonus of my husband being able to help too.