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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

painful breastfeeding.. Suggestions needed please.

8 replies

rmyerspharmacy · 27/01/2014 07:22

After some suggestions please

My lo is 11 weeks and we have been exclusively breastfeeding ,she is gaining weight well and produces lots of wet nappies- however breastfeding is always painful. It varies from mild to severe pain with seemingly no difference on my part- and nipples end up misshapen after virtually every feed

We've tried changing positions (cradle, cross cradle, laid back, lying down, rugby ball) and break her off and relatch her almost every feed to try to relieve pain.
I'm fairly certain her latch position is correct (big wide mouth, nose to nipple, tummy to tummy and line up ear,shoulder and hip, chin first onto boob, aim nipple to top back of mouth, bring baby to boob etc..) but it's still mighty painful

I'm after any other suggestions now that I can try to make breastfeeding less painful-
Could it be a tongue tie?if so how can I tell and if it is is it now too late to fix?
Are there any other things that I could try? A friend suggested nipple shields- is it worth a try?

Determined to continue with breast feeding just wish it wasn't so painful.

OP posts:
gillybeandramaqueen · 27/01/2014 07:34

What is the pain specifically... is it directly on your nipples? Is it on both sides? Do you have any sores?

Superworm · 27/01/2014 09:40

I would get her checked for TT and get it snipped if she has one. Not too late at all.

rmyerspharmacy · 27/01/2014 09:50

Do get blisters on the top of the nipple and rawness, and pain seems to be more on the top ofthe nipples, but also pain on the sides on the nipples I think from being compressed. Bit difficult to tell after a half hour feed cos everything seems to hurt then

OP posts:
Joskar · 27/01/2014 23:27

Sounds like bad latch. That will probably be very frustrating for you to hear but it doesn't matter a jot what it looks like. If it feels bad it is bad. Def get checked for tongue tie just in case. Otherwise do loads of skin to skin and give biological nurturing a shot. If you Google it you'll find a video. I found it brilliant with a bit of practice.

Nipple shields can help but might be more hassle than they're worth. Apparently they can muck up supply but I never found that it was more that they came off and got in the way and so on.

Don't stint the lansinoh. Slather it on after every feed.

Good luck!

browneyesblue · 27/01/2014 23:46

I second getting checked for tongue tie, as soon as possible. Also, painkillers! I used the ones I was discharged with from hospital, and got a repeat prescription for them from my GP.

Nipple shields may help in the short term, especially to allow healing, but also try lanisoh.

You should get your latch checked, just in case, but please do find someone experienced with tongue tie to check your baby, as misshapen nipples, nipple trauma etc are all symptoms.

DS1 was tongue-tied, and still gained weight beautifully (his tie was snipped at 11 weeks) It's a myth that tongue-tied babies struggle to gain weight. The pain, however, was awful. When DS2 was born, it was the first thing I wanted him checked for.

When you look at your baby's tongue, can you see a tie? Is her tongue notched at the end when she sticks it out? Can she stick her tongue out past her lips (try doing it yourself, and seeing if she will copy). Even if you little girl doesn't have any of these visible signs, it doesn't mean that she definitely doesn't have a tongue tie. DS1 and DS2 both had posterior tongue ties, which could only be diagnosed by touch (and by my own symptoms).

If your little girl is tongue tied, positions that use gravity to help her tongue fall forward may help a little. I also ended up expressing 1 feed a day to give myself chance to heal. Once DS1 had his tie snipped, I went back to feeding him myself.

If you post the area of the country that you are in, someone may be able to suggest a person exerienced in tongue ties to help you. Alternatively, you could look for a lactation consultant with experience in the area.

There is also La Leche League, who have a helpline and can also give advice by email. I found them helpful.

Please don't just struggle on - there is help out there. It really is fantastic that your little girl is thriving, but your pain is important too.

mumofthreeboysS · 28/01/2014 04:10

My ds is 1month and had his tongue tie snippe at 2 weeks - it was an obvious anterior tongue tie- tongue looked heart shaped at the front- I had pain- my nipples were sore/raw on the ends where he couldn't take in enough breast so the nipple was rubbing on the hard palate. He had bad latch for another week and it's only just getting better now. I found that despite latch looking good I still wasn't getting enough breast in his mouth (and still struggle a bit with that) best tip I was given is make sure you push him on- I was straining forward to get my boob in his mouth and really shove as much boob in as you can really quickly when they open their mouth!

Def get possible tongue tie checked- good luck! I'm still waiting for the pain to stop so I can enjoy bf more!

mumofthreeboysS · 28/01/2014 04:11

Oh and I got details from our local bf clinic about our local hospital tongue tie clinic- maybe call the hospital where your LO was born to find out nearest clinic?

MooseBeTimeForSnow · 28/01/2014 04:22

Have you checked for thrush?

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