badly cracked nipple - nipple shields or express?

[trixymalixy]

Have a really badly cracked nipple, have been managing to keep going so far, but don't think I can keep going it is too painful.

The MW and HV have both said there is nothing wrong with the latch, the damage was caused early on, but just hasn't been allowed to heal. It heals over a bit in bteween feeds, but as soon as he latches on as my nipple stretches the wound is pulled open again.

I just feel that it would be best to give my nipple a break and allow it to heal properly.

My question is whether i would be best to try nipple shields or expressing. Ds is 2 weeks and 2 days old. Which is less likely to cause nipple confusion?

Nipple shields did make it a bit better for me but I was useless at expressing so you might get someone more useful along. The shields certainly didn't cause any confusion in my case.

HM, Lansinoh just before a feed will help It is very possible that your latch is just fine, but many m/w's and Hv's aren't exactly experts on the field of bf, so, maybe see if you could enroll teh help of a Breastfeeding councellor (sp?)....will dig out those helpnumbers for the different organisations in a mo.
Meanwhile, I have heard that since Nipple shields have really evolved, tehy are not really seen as such an evil anymore, so, probably worth a try!
However, it also mihgt be worth learning how to handexpress, maybe....if you do want express in a sore state, then pumps can be quite painful, too.

Trixy, have you seen a bfc to check your latch? IME MW and HVs don't have the knowledge or experience to know whether a latch is ok. My ds is 6 weeks and his latch seemed ok, I wasn't in any pain, didn't have any cracks, etc but the bfc I saw knew it wasn't quite right and changed it ever so slightly. It made a real difference immediately to the way he was feeding. A bfc would also know the best way to help the crack heal.

BF helplines are:

LLL: 0845 120 2918
BFN: 0870 900 8787
NCT: 0870 444 8708
ABM: 0870 401 7711

NCT are open until 10, that's who I rang, they gave me the number of a local counsellor who came the following morning. They were great.

Association of Breastfeeding Mothers
www.abm.me.uk
Helpline: 0870 401 7711
Offers voluntary mother-to-mother support, counselling and information for breastfeeding women. Helpline open from 9.30am to 10.30pm

NCT Breastfeeding helpline
Breastfeeding Line: 0870 444 8708
The National Childbirth Trust has trained breastfeeding counsellors who can offer individual advice and support

La Leche League
www.laleche.org.uk
24hr Helpline: 020 7242 1278
Helpline offering advice and information on breastfeeding, plus local group meetings.

Breastfeeding Network
www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk
Helpline: 0870 9008787
Offers free, confidential telephone information on breastfeeding and one-to-one local support.

2 HVs and 5-6 MWs told me the latch was fine and I kept posting here about pain and being told to check the latch. The umpteenth MW I came accross actually sat with me while I did a full feed and we identified what was going wrong - the latch was fine to start with but as feeds progressed it deteriorated - it really helped to have her do that with me.

I know some people on here swear by some little gold cups you can place on your nipples, keep the thread up top and one of them might be able to say where to get them from.

btw - my downfall BF DS2 was too much expressing - try and avoid it if you can. It doesn't stimulate you as much so your supply drops and you also get a super fast let down which can hinder good feeding.

Good luck - you're doing great so far!

I definitely recommend using Laninsoh for cracked nipples - it doesn't need to be wiped off before you feed.

I used nipple shields when my nips were at the worst. I also used breast shields - put them on my breasts about 10 mins before I was going to feed - this helped to get my nips in the 'right' mould IYSWIM - I had a real problem with flat nipples and this helped no end.

Try to use niple shields as an emergency measure - it's best to try to use bare skin - I know it hurts.

I also got a La Leche leader to sit with me and help me with my latch - was brill.

A babies mouth is far more efficient than any expressing will be.

HTH

trixy do get more advice re latch - it is so worth double checking. californifrau has said pretty much everything (i have a missing bit too yikes).

the main thing is not to let it dry out, here is more info i found jelonet unpleasant, it stuck to bra and smelt a bit petrolly, although it is easy to find. i had to order the hydrogel things from boots (got them on prescriptoin too). nipple shields did not help, baby couldnt get much milk and it still hurt.

i really sympathise, it is excruciating!
i found lying down to bf really helped, i guess it was because it totally changed position/latch. might be worth a try.

squirt some breast milk on the sore area too - very healing.
lansinoh is great. keep it topped up...

I would try thesse for Quick, Natural Healing..Silverette I was completely healed within 2 days and never sore again. Think a few mums on here have tried them.. Absolutely NO RISK of Nipple Confusion with these

Glad you came along Determination - it was you I was thinking of when I mentioned gold cups but I remember now they were silver!

thanks everyone,

i have tried bf in a different position, squirting a bit of milk on the sore bit, breast shells, been liberal with the lansinoh, but nothing seems to help.

Do you know if the helplines that have been given operate in Scotland?

Breastfeeding Network
www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk
Helpline: 0870 9008787
Offers free, confidential telephone information on breastfeeding and one-to-one local support. They are fantastic for giving impartial advice.

Have you actually had someone sit a monitor the WHOLE feed? If so and confirmed that the latch is good.. then the Silverette is the answer as they will quickly heal you and you will never look back... !

see your doctor in case it's nipple thrush. a bit of antifungal may sort it out. the other thing is a bit of hydrocortisone will sort out the pain quicker. baby wont ingest anything if you are careful
good luck

I completely sympathise - I put the pain down to the very first feed which lasted an hour and I swore my little boy had been born with teeth. Of course, not knowing what comfortable was meant to mean I didn't think there was anbything wrong with the latch and the damage was done. After two weeks and a painful bout of mastitis, I started to use the LANSINOH cream and it began to help but the pain continued without completely disappearing - in the end I tried cold cabbage leaves to soothe (sooooooo nice!), then in between feeds lay on my bed with nipples exposed and bathing them in breastmilk to keep them moist (and without the Lansinoh cream) and with a couple of days of TLC my pain really subsided for the first time in about 8 weeks and I felt it was my turning point in the permanent healing process and from then on I gradually began to enjoy the breastfeeding experience. I think the overuse of Lansinoh cream didn't give the skin a chance to heal since the skin was soft and moist and the wound would re-open at every feed. To give a bit more healing time I tried to feed from one breast instead of both per feed for a couple of days to double the length of time in between feeds for the painful nipple. Hope this helps. I am now 6 months pregnant again and although the impending birth doesn't worry me, the breastfeeding experience does - I still feel slightly scarred (mentally) from the last time! That said I successfully fed til 8 months and was sorry to give it up when it happened. Just try EVERYTHING and ALL SUGGESTIONS - it's worth it!

mum18722, I think the damage to my nipple was done during one of DS' first feeds. I didn't realise how much damage a bad latch could do and just let him continue. lesson learned the hard way!!

The HV watched a whole feed with DS and thought everything looked fine. I shall get in touch with a breastfeeding counsellor thought to get an expert opinion.

will most pharmacies have jelonet or is it something that will need to be ordered in?

Determination, I have seen a few of your posts recommending silverettes. They are a bit expensive though, so was just wondering if anyone else had tried them before splashing out?

yes even my useless pharmacy has it. (sorry califrau did not mean to dis - i just didn't like it that much it certainly does the job)

oh and i am in london - when i rang nct got someone in west scotland, tried bfnetwork and counsellor was half a mile away.

oh yes, now it's mentioned....thrush can put you into the most excrutinating pain , latch can be fine, etc...!
Does your Baby have white spots in their mouth, side of cheeks, tongue, that can't be rubbed off easily enough...i yes, your baby could have thrush too!
Thing is, thrush is often only treated if the baby also has symptoms, but can be a problem well before!
I am sure my ms had so many bouts of thrush because when he was born I had vaginal thrush

Would nipple thrush not affect both sides?

Have phoned bfnetwork and the counsellor has given me loads of advice so I'm feeling a bit more positive. She has suggested hand expressing and feeding from a cup if I feel I really need a break on that side.

A bfc will ring tomorrow to come and check that DS is latched on OK and I'll also send DH out for some jelonet.

Thanks everyone for your help.

hm, I always had it both sides, yeah....!
Glad you weer able to get into contact with a BFC and that they are gonna come out today!
All the best

Well, the bf network was a bit useless. the counsellor couldn't get anyone in my area to come out and check everything.

Have resorted to nipple shields on the cracked side, but feeding as normal on the other side so hopefully DS shouldn't get nipple confusion, fingers crossed.

Califrau, do you clean the nipple after having the jelonet on before feeding again?