raw around nipple and white on nipple yet told it is a good latch?

[riskit4abiskit]

Hi. Baby is 4wks and no problems feeding until recently.

Have been told by bf support worker that latch is good and have plenty milk with fastish let down.

So my problem is very painful: on both breasts the area around the outside of the nipple is like a halo of rawness also, when finished feeding the nipple is sore and white blanched, no blood supply at the end.

baby is feeding every 2.5 hours approx and nappies fine.

Any help greatly appreciated

What kind of training has the bf worker had? If you're in pain then the latch can't be that good! Has the baby been checked for tongue tie?

Thrush?

I asked after birth if the midwife would check for tongue tie and they said not.

Support worker came today and it was only one sore side at that point but has got worse with feeds during the day.

Would nipple shields help?

I was told thrush would be a stabbing pain but this is just rawness as if the baby is massaging the boob TOO much with mouth and jaw?

The nipple is probably blanched because the baby is clamping down on it - either because of a poor latch, or tongue-tie, or possibly if you have a fast letdown the baby is trying to slow the milk flow down. I'd say you need someone who really knows what they are doing to check your latch/baby's tongue and maybe help you get a deeper latch first.

Is the support worker a maternity assistant from the hospital? You might be better contacting a breastfeeding organisation like the NCT and seeing if you can see a breastfeeding counsellor. Midwives might not really know what they are looking for with tongue ties.

I'd say thrush, if you have pain INSIDE your breast while feeding and no pain on the latch, like a shooting pain, I had this, and keep checking your babies mouth as my dd got it on her tongue from my breasts.

Thanks for the advice, I guess I am going to have to phone for help tomorrow.

What does it feel like if you let dc suckle on an upturned finger or thumb. I found this helped me identify a latch problem that just wasn't visible from the outside.

Raynauds Syndrome, with the blanching?