Painful letdown - please come and tell me it gets better!!

[petisa]

All I can say is owwwwww! It's like having my boobs squeezed in a vice or something. Dd2 is only 3 weeks old - please tell me it gets better!! [hopeful emoticon]

it does!

poor you - good on you for persevering.

Yes, it does. :) I can't remember when it did, but it wasn't that long I don't think. I think it changed from painful to uncomfortable to absolutely fine.

Congratulations on your daughter and well done for getting this far.

It will get better! :)

I used to have terribly painful letdown (enough to bring tears to my eyes!) and, as AngelDog said, it gradually subsided until one day I realised it didn't hurt any more. I think, for me, the pain started to lessen from around 4 weeks and I was (and still am) pain-free from about 3 months. I know other women who have got become pain-free more quickly than this though.

Letdown is now rather a pleasant tingle for me. So if you can grit your teeth and grin and bear it for a short while longer, you may even start to enjoy letdown in the end!

Ouch yes, utterly agonising to begin with. Was so fed up with all the 'it's the most natural process in the world, if you're doing it right it's fine' brigade and so completely relieved when my midwife came by and said it was normal and would improve. It did. Just took a while. If you can bear to just grit your teeth and cry each time, one day you'll realise you don't need to. But I do remember overwhelming despair when dcs unlatched for no apparent reason and then wanted to get back on :(

Yes it does, when your supply balances out a bit in a few weeks. Means it's all working very well, if that's any consolation!

itsatiggerday - you have just reminded me of that particular despair when they unlatch and you realise you have to go through the pain again! Double despair because it was such a faff getting DD to latch on in the first place. OP - everything about bf does get better, honestly!

Does anyone know if you get letdown pain for a second child or are all your nerve endings permanently deadened by then? Please tell me this is so! :)

Mumofemily - unfortunately I got it for dd2 as well. But then I had massive oversupply issues both times round, so maybe if you didn't... Both girls did feed very differently, so I think a lot has to do with the baby as well (holding out hope for you there...).

I have quite painful letdown as well - I don't mind that much as every time I feel it it sort of reminds me that I am successfully breastfeeding after a disaster first time around, so it is kind of a "good" pain - but I've noticed it is a lot worse if DD (6 weeks) goes longer between feeds. So maybe if you're finding it unbearable, you could offer a feed more often? My DD is a snacky eater anyway, but at night she can go up to 6 hours without feeding, and although there are huge benefits to this, the con is the teeth-grinding pain of the letdown!

petisa my letdown was painful but not as bad as yours, just enough to make me bite my lip. I also didn't mind so much as I had a preemie and the pain reassured me everything was working. It started to ease off at around 8 weeks and had reduced to a strong tingle by 12. So hang in there, it does get better. :)

Mumofemily - sorry, I'd love to say it's all better 2nd time, but I had it both. In fact, I remember several times almost spitting through my gritted teeth that I'd forgotten how painful it could be! But hey, that's only a sample of 1, maybe you'll get lucky :)

It will get better! Well done for getting this far and keep going! You are doing so well!