2 day old baby and already on nipper shields :( please help

[MYA2016]

Had my first baby on Thursday morning via emergency c-sec. He latched perfectly In recovery and all was well. By Friday morning the anesthetic was wearing off and feeding was becoming increasingly painful. We're still in hospital and they kept telling me his latch is fine . However I woke up this morning in agony. Both nipples are cracked and bleeding. the hospital recommended using nipple shields which so far he's taken to fine but it's still painful.
Any advice? How long before the pain should ease so I can stop wearing them?
I am struggling to cope with the section pain and now this. And all the staff here at the hospital are giving me conflicting info :((

Congratulations on your baby!!

I used nipple shields until about 6 weeks or so with DS2 - his latch was fine too but I think his mouth was just too small at first and I was in such a lot of pain. They really helped. I periodically tried feeding without and it gradually became easier until we dropped them completely. But I do know people who fed with them for longer.

congratulations on your new baby! I had similar with cracked and bleeding nipples at the beginning. Keep taking whatever painkillers you're allowed. Breastfeeding was really difficult for the first couple weeks but has improved a lot. Ask the hospital about the breastfeeding support resources available to you when you get home--I found the most helpful people were at breastfeeding clinics or maternity support workers (one came to see us in the first week and was a saviour), not hospital staff. If someone can come to you ASAP once you're home, and they should while you're recovering from the c section, that's probably easiest.

Lots of luck

I used nipple shields for a few weeks with each of my pregnancies. Every midwife said our latch was perfect, however it felt like razor blades when I fed. Nipple shields were my saving grace.

I also used them for a few weeks, latch was fine but I have really sensitive nipped and it felt as through barbed wire was been pulled through them. Tried feeding one day without the shield and it just didn't hurt anymore, ds didn't even notice.

Gah! Nipples*

Have you got any nipple cream? I've bf 2 babies, never used nipple shields but I couldn't have done it without Lansinoh cream! Purple tube, about a tenner, big supermarkets and most chemists should sell.

Use before and after every feed, sort of numbs them and then helps to heal them. With my first it was months before the pain went😧, with my second it was weeks and I think it's cause I religiously used lansinoh.

Good luck and congrats!

I used them for ds until one night I was too lazy to fetch them. Has the latch been checked by a bf counsellor. Sometimes a small adjustment can make all the difference and varying the position so you are always pressing on the same part.

This was for me the worst time. I used chamilosan - not sure of spelling and found once the milk came in things became better as ds would feed and unlatch. The first three days he was constantly wanting to be latched on.

Make sure you are getting pain relief for the section pain I found managing this pain helped me cope better with the sharp as needles pain of those early breastfeeding days.

Congratulations

If you can rub some of the colostrum or milk on there. Will help them heal quicker. Easier said than done till your milk comes in though.