Is it normal to hurt - nipples - when establishing

[OnlyWantsOne]

Dd3 was born late Thursday night

I was still sort of feeding dd2 - so had some milk at least

Any way. Nipples are sore. I'm scared they will get worse. I'm bfn supporter trained etc I'm really making an Effort with the latch and it "looks" good but my nipples hurt

Is this just because milk not in? Or is there a problem? Help because I'm seriously thinking that this ISNT worth it & I should go to the shop and get bottles and formula.

I remember it hurt for a couple of weeks for me. Latch was fine. I would count to 10 at the beginning of a feed, by the time I got to 10 the pain would usually have gone off.

It helped that I'm stupidly stubborn! We're still going at 17mo.

Keep going, you're doing a great job. It will get easier!

I had this throughout my bf experience. I went to support group who confirmed latch was fine, DD gained weight well, I was doing everything 'right' but it just bloody well hurt. My let down reflex was also excruciating. I genuinely dreaded each feed! After 2 months I decided to call it a day , which was hard because I hadn't been able to bf DS for more than a few days. Im trying to think what did actually help. Nipple shells were great because they allowed air to circulate and let my nipples dry between feeds. You can wear them inside your bra. I really hope things ease up for you because it's such a special time. It could just be that her suck is very strong and your nipples need time to adjust! Congratulations on your new DD.

Oh, I see this is number 3 and you're way more knowledgeable than me!

Could it be poor newborn technique?

Hope things improve soon. x

It does hurt for a lot of people, don't beleive anyone saying it isn't normal or that something is definitely wrong For me it was painful for about 6 weeks.
Obviously you should make sure your latch is good (this can take a while! Don't despair!) And that baby doesn't have tomgue tie. But otherwise it is hard, but its worth it!
Congratulations on your DD :)
And don't let the smug ones grimd you down!

It hurt when I started BFing. I always thought it must have been because we were doing something wrong. However I now know we probably weren't doing anything wrong at all!

I know this because I've been feeding DS for over 3 years now, and after that first bit it never hurt again - till now.

I'm newly pregnant and all of a sudden it really hurts to feed again. Ouch!
It's just like when I started feeding him, it hurts at first, but stops as he continues to feed.

I had hoped it wouldn't hurt with DC2 but am now bracing myself for those first few weeks to be sore!

It's definitely worth persevering, it won't hurt forever! It really, really is worth it I promise. It won't hurt forever, and once it stops hurting BFing is so much less faff that bottles. Particularly night feeds. Getting up in the middle of the night and having to deal with bottles will make you much more sleep deprived than being able to simply attach the baby to you! Also less faff when you go out. And there are the numerous health benefits for the baby and you too. Hang in there, it gets better, honest!

Although that's not to say there might not be a reason for you. Tongue-tie and latch are worth investigating as I expect you are aware.

Try taking some paracetamol to take the edge of the pain maybe?

Oh, I missed you were on DC3 too!

Have you spoken to a BFing counsellor yourself?

It does seem unlucky if you have already bf other children without pain. If you are trained then i guess you have considered tongue tie? My main problem was that my boobs were so big and nipples a bit flat so it was hard for a newborn with a small mouth to get a good latch. Why not tell yourself you will give it 1 or 2 weeks and if there is no improvement you can rethink. Having some sort of goal to work towards really helped me.

Sorry to hijack but having a similar issue I had dd2 on Monday she was 9lb 9 so a good weight and despite bf dd1 having a really hard time with it this time. The pain is so great it makes me cry and despite loving bf dd1 I am hating just about every minute of it. Dd2 had to say in hospital for 3 days getting iv antibiotics and the midwifes there couldn't do enough to help me with latching but despite being told I have a good technique we still can't get the latch right. Also dd2 very keen to feed sucks as soon as she opens her mouth so lands on the nipple everytime. Add to that that dd2 weight loss immediately after birth is an issue, my milk hasn't come in yet despite dd2 being 5 days old and dd2 refuses to feed off right breast due to fact it's not producing anything I am sinking. I can't stop crying and can't see a way of fixing this. The thought of this going on for over the next week feels me with horror. In addition now ds2 is feeding as she's hungry all the time so she is feeding constantly somwtimes 3 times in a hour. All I want to do is quit but the guilt would kill me. I think I'm asking when is it ok to give up without feeling evil?

tickle please try contacting www.laleche.org.uk/index.htm La Leche League. I've found them to be very helpful in the past.

0845 120 2918

Thank you I will

Your a BfN trained supporter, give you're supervise a ring she'll be able to help and come see you if you need it. There are other reasons why it mite hurt ie you're tie.

I bf DD1 with no issues, no pain, nothing. So it came as a big shock to me when I hit problems with DD2. My nipples were sore, cracked and starting to bleed. I ended up doing 2 things. (1) used moist compresses.

www.evergreen.ie/multimam-nipple-care-compresses/821208pd.aspx
(you can get them in larger Boots). They are magic! They're natural compresses they you pop in your bra. I cut one pad into 2 for each side, and kept them in all day as opposed to the 5 mins they suggest. My nipples healed almost overnight! They are also really soothing if your nipples are burning after a feed.

And (2) I went to my local bf clinic where they taught me how to feed in a diff position called 'biological nuturing'. biological nurturing'. Essentially, instead of holding baby across your body, you hold them vertically and let them latch themselves onto your nipple. It's a more natural way of attachment, and easier for them to breathe etc. They've only been actively promoting this way for 2-3 years but most folks are unaware. It was 'discovered' by a midwife called Suzanne Colson are more details are on www.biologicalnurturing.com/. I found it eased the pressure and my DD2 was able to feed easier.

Hth, and congrats btw!!

Yes hurts a lot at first. After a few weeks (or months) you will notice it doesn't, but you won't know when it stopped!

I should have added that mine hurt for about 10 days tops with the worst being 2-3 days. My Dd2 is now 8 weeks old and no probs feeding at all now.

Hi, my DS (second baby) was born on Wed 15th, so a week earlier than your DD3. I'd still been bfing DD about once a day so had kept up the feeding a bit as you say. It hurt to feed DS at first, because his mouth was so small it was difficult to get a good latch. Ten days later it's a lot better, though not perfect.

I found it was helpful to have DD feed after DS had fed; her mouth is so much bigger that it felt much more comfortable and it soothed my nipples a bit, actually! It also helped with the engorgement and means that I'm not particularly worried about my supply.

DP is giving DS a bottle of formula at about 9:30 or 10 pm so that I can get a couple of good hours sleep before doing a lot of overnight feeding; that's working well for us too.