breast feeding advice pleassse I don't want to give up!

lunavix · 2006-08-26T17:15:08+00:00

I'm bfing dd now 2 days old, but it really hurts. And I meant really sore. Is it meant to? Apparently she's latching on fine, but she's really made a mess of my nipples too lol they're all bloody and bruised! Will this pass?

moondog · 26/08/2006 18:20

Luny,lots of us have had this and it will pass.
Are you leaving your clothes off so that your boobsdry between feeds {soggy breastpads can make it a lot worse}?

Try dabbing some of yuor mil on your nipplesas they dry.

Lansinoh cream is also supposed to be very good.

Have you asupportive midwife?

It might be work asking if there isab/feeding clinic/drop in place near you?

It canbe tricky to begin with,but if you perservere with lots of loving support from those around you,and a determined attitude,it should all fall into place.

Keep posting.

belgo · 26/08/2006 18:20

Bf hurt for me too, for the first few days, even though the latch was good. Do you have a nipple cream/salve you can use? The trick is just to use a very small amount, warmed up between your fingers; Try and keep your breasts exposed and dry if possible!

belgo · 26/08/2006 18:21

Well done for getting this far, just try and remember the first few days are the hardest, then things do get easier

beansprout · 26/08/2006 18:25

Another vote for lanisoh. My toes used to curl when ds latched on but it all settled down pretty quickly. Best of luck

clairemow · 26/08/2006 18:38

Poor you. You could also try cabbage leaves in your bra between feeds (after they've dried off) - has a really good calming effect. Good luck!

bumbleweed · 26/08/2006 19:29

ouch ouch ouch - I remember very well the pain of the early days lunavix

it gets better, I promise you it does - your nipples toughen up within a few weeks

might be worth getting a bf expert of check your latch and positioning, my midwife said latch was okay and I later found out it could have been alot better

Spidermama · 26/08/2006 19:31

My mws always told me if the latch was right it shouldn't be sore and yet it was. Always. Only at first though. It settled down, or my nipples toughened up each time and it's so worth it when the pain becomes a distant memory.

Good luck. Remember the Breastfeeding Network can put you in touch with a counsellor near you and often they're better than the HVs and MWs.

Spidermama · 26/08/2006 19:32

Just a thought - check you don't have thrush. (If you do your baby may have a white film on tongue which doesn't go when rubbed, or white spots.) This is excrutiating and needs to be treated as quickly as poss.

samnbabes · 26/08/2006 19:41

I had easy easy time with ds1, & couldn't understand why people whinged... then agony with dd2 - nipples a right cacky mess (sorry if tmi!!)- thought I knew what I was doing!! So, yeah, it can hurt, but it does get easier. My mw said you only need to have one slightly dodgy latch, then it can take a while to heal up (took me a week to stop my toes curling every time I fed, and in 10 days pretty pain free)

& Well done you if you're getting the latch right after 2 days first time!!

Lanisol all over the shot, and it WILL WILL WILL get easier (try & believe it!!) - but sorry to tell you, probably not overnight! And DO make use of local resources - m/w, h/v, try your local NCT branch for a b/f counciller(check on 08704448707), or try the NCT b/f line - 08704448708 (you can call them 24/7, and dont have to be a member) ... it can really easy to feel isolated/hopeless when its hurting at 3am, and it is their job to try & help you - even if it's just helping you to take a deep breath & keep going.

Of course if you decide you want to ditch it, your choice, but you sound like all you need is a bit of cuddling through it to me!!

Tatties · 26/08/2006 19:45

You can get Lansinoh on prescription, my midwife got one for me. You should see an inprovement very quickly if you put it on after every feed. If it is still sore (feels like sandpaper rubbing on your nipples in between feeds) then I agree with Spidermama and get checked out for thrush. The only sign of it in my ds was persistent nappy rash which cleared as soon as we were treated.

belgo · 26/08/2006 20:39

Just remembered what worked for me; I rubbed some of my own milk onto my sore nipples and let it dry. Thie healed them within 24 hours.

Scoobydooooo · 26/08/2006 20:42

Lansinoh nipple cream was a god send for me when i was struggling with bf dd because it just hurt so much where my nipples were ruined....just put some on before each feed & i also used to put some on after a bath & with a new set of breast pads, it works wonders & does it in no time.

sallyrosie · 26/08/2006 20:55

Ouch, poor you! Definitely normal - my boobs were v sore for the first week but then suddenly better and she had a brilliant latch and fed well.
Definitely check no thrush (white spots in babys mouth) as easily treated with cream and medicine for baby.
Make sure not just sucking for comfort or falling asleep on your boob and still sucking away - my baby wouldn't take a dummy but my sister found it really helpful to use in between feeds. I've got one ready to try this time as my dd definitely used to like to suckle herself off to sleep and this didn't help.
Lansinoh v good, can buy in chemists, don't know why they sell it in such a big tube cos you'll never use it all!
Also, sleeping with no bra on so they can dry out properly (although I used to wake up soaked in milk for the first few weeks) and using good breast pads (johnsons and johnsons definitely the best for me) can help.
Good luck hon - it is sooo worth it when you can just feed in the night without even turning on the light or just feed in a cafe with no hassle about warming the bottle.

sallyrosie · 26/08/2006 20:59

Also, not sure about advice from hv. Personally mine was less than useless, turned out she had never actually breastfed, just 'done the course'. The NCT and La Leche League much more helpful as don't just give you the 'textbook' version of how things should be and they're much more experienced.

suzi2 · 26/08/2006 21:00

If the bloody and bruised thing is damage from the first few feeds, then fine. It should heal with a bit of time and lansinoh. But if it's continuing, then I would suggest that the latch could be improved. A bf counsellor would be the best person to asssess this. BFN have always been very friendly when I've called them. I wouldn't necessarily trust mw's to know what a correct latch is! IMO, there is some discomfort and things do need to toughen up. But bloody and bruised should pass fairly quick and shouldn't get worse.

ellanatal · 26/08/2006 21:05

Lunavix - we were on the antenatal thread - we were both being induced on weds - congrats on your dd! i had a ds on thurs too! Think we're having matching experiences - my nipples are so sore too!i got loads of advice from the M/W on the ward who said he was latching on properly and i used lanisoh after feeds but they've just been too painful today to feed him - i know i'm a bit of a woose but i've bottlefed him all day - i tried once this eve and it as agony and tried with some nipple shields but he was just getting frustrated. dont know whether to just give up cause he's so contented when he has a bottle. will make a decision this eve i think.

Hope things settle down for you lunavix - there are loads of great mums on here with great advice about b/f! hope they can be of some help!

sallyrosie · 26/08/2006 21:16

one thing I found helpful to check the latch on was whether her top and bottom lip were folded back (hard to describe, but imagine a fish mouth...) If it wasn't then just lifting the lip back by running my finger underneath improved her latch - they need to be able to have the nipple inside their mouth not be chewing on it, they should be 'sucking' on the areola instead. It makes more sense if you think about how they hold a dummy in their mouth - they don't suck on the sides of the teat at the top.

sorrell · 26/08/2006 21:28

Have you got a breastfeeding clinic at your hospital? Or anywhere else? Please, please go and get some help. A very small tweak in positioning can totally change your breastfeeding experience. Like night and day. I don't know who says she is latching on fine, but if your nipples are bloody and bruised, she isn't. Latching on pain is normal, bloody and bruised means the latch isn't right (which isn't your 'fault' - your baby has no experience in this at all!)You can take paracetemol, but more than that you need a real expert to watch you feed. It doesn't have to be like this.

sorrell · 26/08/2006 21:30

Midwives don't know anythign about breastfeeding!! Go on to www.kellymom.com - loads of great advice and film and pictures of an effective latch. You really don't have to give up. It doesn't have to hurt.

hewlettsdaughter · 27/08/2006 08:09

lunaviv - congrats on the birth of keira! sorry the bf is hurting. i had problems when dd was born - it really helps to see a bf expert if you can (kellymom.com is good too).

hewlettsdaughter · 27/08/2006 08:10

lunavix, sorry

purpleluce · 27/08/2006 08:39

Hi there
Breast feeding was the hardest thing I think I have ever done - cracked nips are more painful than giving birth in my opinion and then mastitis! I only kept going cos I was going to Oz and wanted to feed on plane.
I was told that once damage is done the bruising needs to heal and my baby was "sucky" so it was to an extent a case of putting up while you heal. You can take some painkillers - I took paracetamol and ibuprofen when it was really bad and I used a medella pump which didn't hurt as much and I had some soft silicon breast shields when feeding directly. A combination of those for 24 hours meant I could limit the damage and then get back on with it directly. Dont get too hung up about nipple confusion... babies can learn to feed successfully from bottles, you and shields. You need to keep pumping to get your milk established at this stage so best not to go over to formula get as you wont establish your own milk (or if you have to, then pump too). But I did get through it and after about a month it was far easier than bottle although she did get a bottle a day in the evening to give me a break and fed till 6 months. Look into homeopathic remedies if you do get mastitis which could be more likely if you have cracked nips that don't heal.

Best of luck, you can get through this

Original poster

lunavix · 28/08/2006 09:15

Thanks everyone.

My milk came in last night, and norks which were already fairly large now poked dh in the eye across the bed!

It hurts even more than ever though - I remember the pain from the swollen boobs last time but not the feeding pain and coupled it's awful. I cried when she latched on

I have a midwife coming today who I'll get to have (another) look and failing that will contact local hospital about breastfeeding drop ins. I was loving it amidst the pain but now it hurts so much I just couldn't enjoy it. I'm a big wuss, I know.

OP posts:

chocolatekimmy · 28/08/2006 09:47

Well done - I would say keep up the good work. I took about 7 weeks with my first to become settled/establish and completely comfortable and my second took about 11 weeks but I continued for 13 and 8 months in total.

I am just about getting there now with my third who is 7 weeks, knowing it will get better and how lovely it is when it does keeps me going.
I had sore cracked, bleeding nipples in the first week with all 3, I have also had thrush on the nipple with all (probably to do with the cracked nipples) and mastitis twice, this time like nothing else you can imagine! Despite all this, my husband was very positive when he said to me "at least your nipples haven't gone black this time!"

I think it is normal to have problems but it isn't published and I don't think enough info is given to new mums about potential pitfalls. Its no wonder people are upset and give up if they go through difficulties.

All I would say is stick with it - I firmly believe in doing whats best for baby and not whats best for me - thats what I am here for. But saying that, if it is too much for you emotionally or physically - don't hesitate to change to bottle, baby has had the first few days and you should be proud you have tried.

juuule · 28/08/2006 10:05

I used breast shells to keep nipples exposed to the air and it stopped bra etc sticking to them. Just pop inside the bra cup.