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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

DW still in agony after 2 weeks - your thoughts please

91 replies

Rollingpapa · 09/08/2006 16:09

OK, so hubby here is rather worried about DW.

Wonderful new baby (DS), v chilled, capable of 3-4 hour sleeps (mainly during the day), but --

DW literally curling her toes in agony during every feed. Most so at latch-on.

Have tried:
shields - Medela smalls, DS didn't draw so well
pump - apparently v painful for DW, but in different way
Changing position - from across to underarm. Kind of helped, but not much
Breast-feeding expert - at local hospital, who said that the latch-on was good, but that she was still getting ridge on top of nipple

My question: is it meant to hurt at the beginning?! DW really frustrated by the feeling that she is doing something "wrong" and that the pain is all her "fault"

She's currently with her mum, and I'm in the office, so this is by way of gathering experienced thoughts on the subject...

Thank you anyone who can chip in!

OP posts:

bundle · 09/08/2006 16:13

it's not meant to hurt, no

I had problems like those you describe for 3 mths with my first child (and mastitis 3 times, not nice!) and for 3 weeks with my 2nd child. she needs a lot of input from a bf counsellor (la leche can help either face to face or over the phone - there are many others too)

in the meantime I would practise putting the baby to the breast with his mouth very wide open so the nipple is drawn right to the back of his mouth when feeding. make sure he's tummy-to-tummy with her, not twisting his neck to reach. also gently press between his shoulder blades to tilt his head back a little (this will bring his chin higher up and help with positioning)

i hope some others can offer advice and that she can continue bf..I did and carried on feeding for years, literally

alicemama · 09/08/2006 16:14

What a considerate hubby you are!
Not a bf guru I'm afraid but there's plenty on here, sure they'll be along in a min

JessaFreedomFighter · 09/08/2006 16:19

no advice from me either - i ended up mixed feeding using expressed and formula...but LOTS of sympathy for your wife...I too was curling toes/stamping on floor/biting cushions each and every time ds fed...and kept being told my latch was okay...but obviously it wasn't because it was hurting so much...there are some really great bf experts here though and they will have some advice I'm sure.

JennyLee · 09/08/2006 16:22

Do a search for la leche league and kellymom.com they have lots of good advice. It hurt me for the first few weeks too then stopped when i got more experienced weith latching him on with help from breatfeeding advisor at health centre

JennyLee · 09/08/2006 16:23

kellymom.com/

MrsFogi · 09/08/2006 16:23

get in touch with la leche league (they have a website) they have all the answers re bfing - good luck to you and your dw

JennyLee · 09/08/2006 16:23

www.laleche.org.uk/

zookeeper · 09/08/2006 16:24

ouch! Pass on my sympathies - I've breastfed three And I can remember with the middle one literally yelping in agony (not too strong a word - it's really painful) when he fed. In my case I had cracked nipples and some cream from the chemist sorted it out within a couple of days each time.
The standard advice from other mums I have talked to and the midwife seems to be that it will pass as with time the nipples "toughen up". "with time" is not much consolation, though!

two weeks seems a long time - maybe try a different position? I found putting mine so that the face was at my boob and the body yucked under my arm and around my side helped .

Good luck - it does pass but it is horrible whilst it lasts.

Pamina3 · 09/08/2006 16:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MrsApron · 09/08/2006 16:24

Is it sore all through the feed - for a few weeks I had toe curling for about 10secs then it would stop.

Does she have any cracks sore bits on her nipples? Lanisoh is divine cream for BF mums allows moist wound healing and doesn't need wiped off can be bought at boots pick some up on your way home!

I would contact the ABM association of Breastfeeding mothers or la leche to get a consellour to come out and give her a hand.

BF is a learning curve very few mums and babies get it right straightaway some people have a breeze with one baby and really struggle the next time so it is no way your wife's fault.

The one my hospital used was tummy to tummy so babe was horizontal with head straight facing into mum, nose to nipple this encourages baby to open wide so isn't nipple feeding, a serious mouthful of surrounding breast is required. Cushions can be very helpful for supporting baby up to the right height and also under mums arms to help support weight. It also helps if mum sits up straight backed with both feet on the ground - no idea why it just does.

She could also try feeding lying down.

Hope this helps a bit

bossykate · 09/08/2006 16:25

has your dw got any tissue loss? i.e. cracks, bleeding etc? if so it is likely to be some small thing to do with the latch, and i recommend perseverance with a specialist b/f counsellor.

if not, is there a lightening of the tissue in the areola? if so it could be thrush.

have a look at Breastfeeding Network - also has other information as to what the pain could be.

good luck to you all

zookeeper · 09/08/2006 16:27

... so sorry - I see that as usual I have just leapt in feet first without reading the whole thread or indeed your post fully! - I will bow out now!

beckybrastraps · 09/08/2006 16:30

I too found it agony for about 10 seconds, and after that it was fine. It went on for about three weeks. Second time round, no pain at all. Hope it passes soon!

NotQuiteCockney · 09/08/2006 16:30

Hmm, any chance this is letdown pain? Does she get the pain on both sides at the same time? Or sometimes when not feeding (followed by gush of milk?) Or is this pain on latch only?

I had painful letdown, and it sucks, but isn't actually a problem per se. (Although, thinking about it, it generally starts later on?)

With DS2, I had lots of pain on latch, but his latch was good, and he was getting loads of milk. He just sucked really hard to get the letdown happening. I had a BFC friend check it out, and all was well, so I left it be. The pain was very bad, I was always worried DS1 would learn new four-letter words from me, whenever I stuck DS2 on!

Maybe relaxing to encourage letdown would help, if this is the problem? (Tricky to do, though, when you're in pain.)

CarolinaMao · 09/08/2006 16:34

the NCT helpline is 0870 444 8708 (8am-10pm 7 days a week)

and the Breastfeeding Network is 0870 900 8787.

it does sound like there's something not right with the latch. Even the tiniest changes can make a huge difference so it's definitely worth getting trained help.

(btw what do you mean by "ridge on top of nipple"?)

lazycow · 09/08/2006 16:36

This happened to me

I was told the problem was that ds had probably latched on incorrectly for his first few feeds and caused damage to my nipples. Then when the latch had been corrected a couple of days later (after I saw a breastfeeding counsellor) my nipples were damaged and would take time to heal. Difficult to do when they were being used every 2-3 hours without a break

Breast shields helped me a bit but tbh even with them the feeds were toe-curling for the whole time and latch on was excrutiating for quite a few weeks. I used the shields for about 5 weeks then gradually weaned off them until I could bear ds latching directly onto my nipple. The pain was a lot better after the first 3 weeks though.

Assuming your DW and ds have the latch right it may be that your DW has some nipple trauma from early feeds where ds was incorrectly latched on.

In the end though I believe that the problems for my ds and I were because ds is tongue tied. I have subsequently found out that this can sometimes cause problems with a latch, though at the time I was told by various midwives and two breastfeeding counsellors that it should be no problem and that the latch looked fine.

I assume your ds is not tongue tied (any hv can probably check this) if this is so, I would try another breastfeeding counsellor (say from La Leche league) and get them to help your DW again with the latch. If after that you are told the latch is still fine but it still hurts your DW I'm not sure what to suggest.

I would say this though - for me it got better with time, though I have to be honest and say that though I am still feeding ds at 20 months old, it still hurts me quite a bit to do so - nowhere near as much as it did obviously, otherwise I wouldn't still do it.

Please remember though that since my ds is tongue tied I am certain that is what is causing the problem, for most people with sore nipples at the beginning, it does get better and eventually stops hurting completely.

bundle · 09/08/2006 16:38

good idea re: tongue tie, it's often not picked up these days.

throckenholt · 09/08/2006 16:38

I found the latch on very painful for the first few weeks - then it eased and was fine after that.

The under the arm (rugby) hold helped I think.

I think it is something that eases as the baby gets bigger and more adept at latching on.

But I agree it is worth getting the latch checked by a breastfeeding counsellor.

And it is not her fault.

tiktok · 09/08/2006 16:39

rolling, 2 weeks of pain is not normal and any of the four bf support organisations and the websites listed here will help.

But (and I have said this before!) it may not be possible for any of the vol. orgs to send someone out to see her. It is August, many of them are on holiday, and in any case there are huge swathes of the country where there is no one or only one or two...please do not call expecting them to see you.

Less than perfect positionng and attachment is no one's fault and your wife should not blame herself...but she does need help from someone who knows what they are looking for, and in the absence of that, then some of the info on the web with video clips and text may well help.

Commonest problem is the baby not taking enough breast in the mouth. Nipple needs to get into the mouth and over the tongue so it can go to the far back of the mouth. Centrally-placed nipples will not do this, as they hit the tongue instead and get cmpressed against the hard palate - the ridge on top of the nipple shows that this is what is most likely to be happening.

Good luck.

Waswondering · 09/08/2006 16:40

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

throckenholt · 09/08/2006 16:40

by the way - i never had cracked or bleeding nipples.

KristinaM · 09/08/2006 16:40

what kind of birth did she have? How did the baby feed at first? I am wondering if this is clampdown bite reflex?

lazycow · 09/08/2006 16:42

nb- the shelds I used were medela large because ds had such a large gape that he had trouble latching onto the samll ones. The bfeeding counsellor who rwecommended them did say it was unusual to need the large ones though and that most babies are happier with the small ones.

Ds had a FEROCIOUS suck which didn't help matters- dh called him the barracuda at the time

Jeepers · 09/08/2006 16:45

Just a thought, perhaps check for thrush on your babys tongue or around nipple area. It can be very painful.....

lazycow · 09/08/2006 16:47

Where do you live?.

I saw a private breastfeeding counsellor who was based in Putney in London. We went to se her when ds was 6 days old (we went the day after I came out of hospital). It was difficult to make the visit and quite expensive but I was desperate and for me the best Value for Money we ever spent in terms of ensuring I continued to breastfeed. If Putyney/London is useful to you let me know and I can email you her contact details.

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