breastfeeding a 2 year old, nipple just started cracking, WT actual F??? help!

[whatinthewhatnow]

Hello, I hope someone can help? I have been breastfeeding with no problems (bar the first few weeks of agony, obv) for the last 4 years (ds till 2 when dd was born, she's now 2). suddenly my nipple felt really sore and then when I checked it had a little crack which was ooing a bit of blood. Now this morning it's dry all over the top (not the end) and sore and cracked. Nothing has changed that I can think of - dd has all her teeth and the first lot came through at 3 months so teeth can't be an issue. she hasn't bitten me. I'm not pregnant. I haven't done anything different that I can think of. dd is fine, nothing seems to be going on in her mouth ie thrush or similar. Anyone got any idea what might be going on? it hurts!

Ouch! Sorry. whationthewhatnow I don't have the answer but bumping as
I was about to post something very similar! DS is 11 months and again has been feeding with no probs up till now (I also fed DD for 3 years with no significant probs). Now suddenly it is hurting to feed and one nipple has developed a crack/hole which isn't bleeding but is very red and raw. The other one has a sort of blister/red, sore spot but no crack. The one with the crack is extremely painful to feed from, especially when he latches on. He doesn't have all his teeth yet, but those he does have been through for a while and we haven't had much in the way of teething issues. He has a stinking cold, which isn't helping, but don't think it is the cause as it started before this.

I went to our local infant feeding team at the maternity hospital and they seemed a bit stumped - it doesn't look like thrush either as DS has no probs in his mouth. They said it might be a bacterial infection if DS had bitten or grazed me and ordinary bacteria had got in - they have taken swabs to culture and will let me know on Tues, but I'm not convinced anything will come back. They said latch is not usually such an issue at this stage - as you know they will feed at any angle and squirming around and it isn't usually a problem!

What I want to know is how to let it heal - will it heal on its own with just lansinoh if I keep on feeding him? I could express and give him milk in a cup in the day but I co-sleep and still feed him a lot (to sleep) at night so it would be tough to do that then. I don't want to wean him now.

All the resources I can find suggest talking to a 'lactation consultant' - I'm not quite sure who this magical person is! Does the infant feeding team count? They are specialists but seem focus on little babies (for obvious reasons). I could call the NCT helpline but they wouldn't be able to see the problem.

Anyone been through this and out the other side that can help us?

I would suggest an omega 3 supplement.

lily, a lactation consultant is an extra qualified breastfeeding supporter. I think they are super knowledgable but they cost about £100 per hour where I live!

whatinthewhatnow
It does sound like thrush to me - you can have it and the child/baby may get it later. Have you seen the BfN's leaflet?
lilysma
I have no idea what your problem is but the best way to heal a crack is to put some antibacterial ointment on (something like Fucidin) and after feeding use breast shells - not breast shields but these are things which keep clothing etc away from your nipple and allow the air to get in there.

Hope you both get it sorted, as feeding pain is so awful!

Latch can be a problem at any age- they get bigger, the size and shape of their jaw changes, they get teething pain, they don't sit still etc etc. A feeding position that may have worked when they were tiny might become uncomfortable with a larger child.

If you don't have any signs of thrush then it might be worth ruling out latching problems.

There are some tips here for healing sore nipples.

lilysma- You could chat to a breastfeeding counsellor from one of the vol organisations (NCT, LLL, ABM, BFN etc), they are trained to support breastfeeding mums and it's free! There are local groups and national helplines.

Thanks everyone for the advice and links - and sorry if I hi-jacked the thread. I just spoke to someone from La Leche league who was very helpful - after talking it through I think I will try to 'rest' the really sore one for a day or so to let the crack heal (she reckons lactation is established enough for that to be okay - the supply will decrease but I can increase it again later) and pump if that doesn't hurt too much. It doesn't really hurt that much after feeding (but is very sore during) so not sure whether I need the shells - is air needed to heal it?

Dollydowser, why an omega 3 supplement? or was that a suggestion to the OP?

you didn't hijack at all, i was pleased I'm not alone!

I don't know but my nipples have been really sore this week from feeding 2 year old - I think she bites down when I'm asleep and I don't notice! Could that be it??

yes maybe. we do cosleep and i'm sure she spends half the night with my nip hanging out the side of her mouth while I sleep. i'll give it a few days and see. There's someone at my work who's training to be a lactation consultant but I'm not hugely keen to show her my nipple, much as I'm sure she wouldn't mind. If it gets worse I might though.

Countess I have come to the conclusion that it's something like that with us - and now almost any feeding is making it worse . Let's hope the plan to give one boob a rest will work.

Good luck whatinethewhatnow - hope it just gets better - I'll keep you posted with progress here. Have you got a local infant feeding team? I'd recommend the LLL helpline too - the woman I spoke to was very helpful.

well, I've been latching her on like a newborn - nipple to nose, waiting for a big mouth etc, which has been almost funny because she's 2 and is just looking at me like 'what on earth are you doing mummy?'. I've also found a tub of epaderm which my son had for dry skin and it looked and felt a bit like lansinoh even though I know it's not so I have been blobbing a load of that on, and it does seem a bit better today, although there's a tiny new crack but not as bad as the others. It wasn't as painful overnight. I think it's a dry skin thing rather than anything else, although I can't for the life of me think why. lily definitely rest it, and lansinoh and what about cling film on it in between feeds to keep it moist and help healing? Just don't forget to express from that side at least for your comfort - I always found hand expressing better with sore nipples (in the early days). good luck.