seriously painful!

[shmuf]

im currently using nipple shields to feed dc2...for the first couple of days i tried feeding without, but ended up so sore and crying with pain every time he latched on! now a week later,whenever ds latches on im in toe curling agony, which passes quickly on the left side but lasts the entire feed on right side. im this close to giving up bf... with dc1 i had major issues getting latch right etc, and didnt manage to feed comfortably until she was around 8 weeks old. not sure iv got the patience to wait it out that long again! so my question is really, why do you think im in so much pain on the right side?is it due to bad latch (is there such a thing when using shields?)?maybe something like thrush?because they were sore before i started with the shields?please help!(and any encouragment to help me get through this would be greatly appreciated!)

Hi, I am sure someone will be along with suggestions for you.

Just offering some sympathy for your discomfort. If your baby is still very young call your midwife they should be able to help. Someone should watch you feed to help you problem solve it. If baby is a little older do you have a breastfeeding helpline number to call. Someone needs to check your latch as soon as possible for both your sakes. I had a bit of bother getting latch sorted second time round. People assumed that as I had done it before all would be well. It was a long time ago.

You have been in discomfort from the start but do check for thrush also check baby's mouth for this.

I hope all settles quickly for you whatever you choose to do.

I had so much pain from Breastfeeding. It felt like DD was latched on but my god it was so painful. The only thing I could do was express or use shields. I never got it just right but I found my easy way out.

Have you got much bf support in your area?

Confession time. I am very old recently retired health visitor...... You still there? Areas I worked in were quite low for breastfeeding but when anyone was breastfeeding they had loads of support from our team. I am in Scotland I can go and find you a helpline number if you are north of the border too.

Thanks for ur replies everyone.I'm not in the uk so system here works a little differently..after a thorough inspection tonight I saw I have a bleeding cut on right nipple-i assume that's the cause of the pain!is there such a thing as bad latch whilst using shields?

I'm not sure. I think the shields make it really easy for the baby. I know some babies have tongue tie etc that means they struggle even with a bottle. So yes, I think there is such a thing

Try a different position so that neither top or bottom of babys gums are on the cut.

In cradle hold babys gums are on the sides of your nipple so if that's where the cut is you could use the underarm hold. Which would put babys gums top and bottom. Or vice versa.

It will get better. It needs time to heal but is constantly being irritated and opened. I've read of washing daily with salt water to aid healing.

My cracks refused to heal after 3 weeks, I started expressing as I couldn't take anymore. Turns out we had thrush, a symptom of thrush is cuts/grazes do not heal so if your pain doesn't get any better after a couple weeks there may be something else going on.

Oh and I realised one of my nipples was worse off than the other, I was just more comfortable holding DS on one side, the other side felt awkward. Just incase that sounds similar to yourself.

I put DS back on the breast after 4 weeks of exclusively expressing and feeding expressed milk and we're still bf at nearly 9m. Do want you can to get through, it is so much easier after the first few weeks!

I swear by lansinoh nipple cream if you can get hold of some.

Have you had the baby checked for tongue tie?

DS3 was fecking agony to feed- turns out he had tongue tie so ask someone to check your baby just to rule that out.

Similar to NiM I was going to suggest there may be trauma to your right nipple from the early days. Could you express from that side to keep your supply up, apply lots if Lansinoh, rest it a bit, and try a different hold on that side? Rugby hold and biological nurturing will put the pressure in a different spot.

It's normal for feeding to hurt at latching for a few weeks so I wouldn't panic about the left side.

La Leche League have helplines internationally I believe - could you try speak to them?