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

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

Infant feeding

Did nipple pain improve after tongue tie snip?

32 replies

PurpleTygrrr · 02/02/2018 09:11

Hi
I'm looking for a bit of light at the end of the tunnel really. My DD is 8 days old and we have managed to EBF despite her having a tongue tie and the agony to my poor nips when she latches on! She is managing to feed well and has plenty of wet and dirty nappies so I'm not concerned she isn't getting enough. It's more the pain for me and my nipples are getting damaged.
Did anyone find the pain went away when the tongue tie was done? I really want to carry on BF but if it's this painful everyone I know I won't be able to... it literally has me curling my toes and wincing in pain!
Thanks

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Worldsworstcook · 02/02/2018 09:15

Breastfeeding is always sore for the first couple of weeks till the nipples toughen up. If you express a little milk first and rub it into your nipples it helps! After about 2-3 weeks the pain goes and it's very relaxing. Stuck with it, you're doing brilliantly! The next hurdle is when she gets teeth and uses your nipple as a teething ring.

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Dilligaf81 · 02/02/2018 09:15

Yes. My dd wasn't snipped till 4 maths because it was a deep tie going sideways and as she was gaining steadily the health visitor didn't care about my nipple hanging off. I self referred and he couldn't believe I was still fed ding with the state of me, but dd refused bottles or to feed with nipple shields.
Dd is now 7 and has a slightly forked tongue still from it bit her speech is fine.

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Worldsworstcook · 02/02/2018 09:15

I should add i would doubt it has anything to do with Dd being tongue tied

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Dilligaf81 · 02/02/2018 09:19

Forgot to add, you're doing great but it really should be that painful imo. My mil always said to pinch your nose as they latch on to distract you from the pain, never worked for me but worth a try.
Speak to your health visitor and play up the pain as mine were crap and despite the blood pouring into DD'S mouth they said it would be fine, I hope yours are better. If they aren't get onto a local mums group and ask if anyone had their docs tongue tie snipped and who done it and phone yourself. Good luck op, honestly once you get it sorted bf is lovely and enjoy your little one.

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Ven83 · 02/02/2018 09:26

I really feel for you OP, I was in the same position. Baby gaining well, latch practiced according to all the guidelines, but I was going through horrendous pain and bleeding nipples due to tongue tie. DS had the tongue tie procedure done at 2 weeks, however it didn't immediately help as I wasn't made aware about having to do the post-surgery stretches. They are super important in helping the baby's tongue and jaw muscles to loosen up. For some lucky babies though, the improvement is instant, and yours could be one of them.

In the mean time, why not try nipple shields? They really helped me so much with the pain. I went against the professional advice and ended up using them for much, much longer than advised, with no negative effects upon the baby or my milk supply.

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Iwasjustabouttosaythat · 02/02/2018 09:27

Yep, I found breastfeeding incredibly painful at first. Your nipples will toughen up after a few weeks. It’s sooooo hard though.

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Joskar · 02/02/2018 09:32

My wee boy had his snipped at 10 weeks. It took about a week for it to improve because he had to relearn how to feed. Might be faster for you because she's still very new. I had nipple pain and bleeding with my first two children too. Especially my first. The best position I found to feed was biological nurturing. This helps you get a good deep latch. Breastfeeding is something you and the baby have to learn rather than the automatic process folk believe it will be. Look at YouTube for some breastfeeding videos and get along to feeding support group if you can.

All the best, op. I hope you get through the tough bit. It's a lovely thing once you get the hang of it.

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espoleta · 02/02/2018 09:36

Congratulations on your baby!!!

Don't listen to world, breastfeeding a TT baby is incredibly painful (and no, not the normal your nipples need to harden pain just breastfeed through it!)

I can still remember the midwife looking at the state of my one nipple and telling me to stop feeding off it as it was mostly a scab and later some of it fell off!

The difference after the snip was insane. It was like night and day.

No breastfeeding wasn't painless afterwards but the difference was noticeable immediately. Plus the whole breastfeeding experience was better for both of us. I remember I used to cringe at the idea of feeding her when she was TT and it really didn't help our relationship. As soon as it was snipped everything changed and she's the picture of health!

I would get it snipped for your sanity.

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redfragglebiker · 02/02/2018 09:39

We had a tongue tie snip at 10 days and I cannot tell you the relief I felt. We were very much like you in that lo was feeding well but I was in agony. After the snip she fed straight away and with little to no pain. She is now 8 weeks and feeds like a champion. No pain at all from my end and she's putting on weight nicely.

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thepatchworkcat · 02/02/2018 09:43

I disagree with Worldsworstcook, why wouldn’t the pain be due to the tongue tie? Mine had a tongue tie that was snipped at 7 days old. The improvement for me was instant. That first week was excruciating and I was in tears every feed. After the snip it was much more bearable (he didn’t get an awful lot better at feeding for a few weeks mind, so it was still a struggle!).

Good luck!

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UnaOfStormhold · 02/02/2018 09:43

I can still remember how much looser and better the latch felt in the first feed post snip (100% posterior tie). It wasn't pain free because I was still sore from the previous 3 weeks but I healed quickly and fed until 2y6m with no further problems. I know it's not as immediate for everyone but it made a huge difference to me.

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WhatWouldOliviaPopeDo · 02/02/2018 09:44

Oh god, yes! My DD had a severe tongue tie and by the time she was snipped my nipples were in such a state they'd actually split and when I showed them to my HV she was really shocked and said I could always have corrective plastic surgery! For about three weeks after the snip I used nipple shields because I was still healing but one day I went out and forgot to take them and had no choice but to feed her - and it was AMAZING! Totally different experience, no pain at all, and it was only then I realised how much the pain had been affecting me bonding with her. Get it done asap before you suffer any more OP.

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PurpleTygrrr · 02/02/2018 12:09

Ah thank you for your lovely replies everyone, it really helps. We're really lucky that we have been referred immediately and we will be having her tongue tie done on Tuesday when she will be 12 days old. I really hope it does the trick so I can carry on feeding her myself. She is doing so well considering, I just feel a bit guilty for putting her through the pain of the snip for my own comfort.

I'm getting lots of conflicting views, the midwife and breastfeeding support lady say it shouldn't hurt and it's all down to the latch or tongue tie and then lots of other mums I know say that their nipples did hurt until they got used to it.

Thanks again x

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Dixeychick · 02/02/2018 12:15

Really glad you've been able to get a quick appointment! If it helps, babies have no nerves in the bit of their tongue that gets snipped so it doesn't cause them any pain. We found that the snip made a massive difference and feeling was plain sailing after that, although I do have friends where it's taken longer to settle. After a while, you really do get to the point where you just bung them up your t shirt & they get on with it & it honestly becomes the easiest thing in the world so hang in there!
I also second the recommendation to try nipple shields while you wait for the snip, I found that they made a massive difference and were the reason I was able to keep going in the early days. The Medela ones are good as they're really thin and are designed so there's still some contact between baby and your skin. Good luck!

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MargaretCabbage · 02/02/2018 12:44

We had tongue tie snipped at four weeks old and it made a huge difference. Well done so far! I told myself I'd just get through one more feed after each one in the early days, and we're still going over a year later.

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PurpleTygrrr · 02/02/2018 14:27

Margaret that exactly what I'm trying to do... just focus on one feed at a time!!

Dixey- did baby find it hard to go back to nipple after using the nipple shields?

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KTCluck · 02/02/2018 15:19

My DD had a bad tongue tie snipped at 2 weeks. I'd found feeding her agonising for the first 2 weeks. It then started to only hurt as she latched on and by around week 4 there was no pain at all. We are still breastfeeding now at 9 months. I'm not sure if it was the tongue tie procedure or just time that made the difference, or a mixture of the two. It won't hurt forever. Hope it gets easier for you soon!

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IceLemonGin · 02/02/2018 15:26

I've fed a baby without TT and a baby with. The standard toughening up of nipples is a million miles from the hell that is feeding a TT baby.

My DD had a posterior tie snipped at 12 days old. There was a noticeable difference straight away. My nipples had gone from cracked, split and bleeding to normal within a few days.

Don't feel guilty about the pain. It was no worse than the immunisation tears for us but with huge benefits. A unreleased TT can cause problems with starting solids and speech.

Good luck lovely

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Dixeychick · 02/02/2018 15:40

I sort of weaned him off the nipple shields mid-way through feeds. After the first few days of using them, he'd latch using the nipple shields, have a suck for a minute or two & then I'd whip them off & he'd keep feeding. After a few days of that he'd latch without them so we didn't have any issues.

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PurpleTygrrr · 02/02/2018 18:07

Thanks Ice, it's good to know it's not just me being a wuss and that TT pain can be worse.
Dixie- thanks so much- I'll give the nipple shields a go tomorrow if I'm still struggling, I've already bought some so they're there if I need them. I've done most of my feeds lying down today as if feels a bit easier but I don't think that's going to be socially acceptable if I attempt coffee and cake out next week! That's the next big hurdle- feeding in public!

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Dixeychick · 03/02/2018 18:40

How are you getting on OP? Hope things have improved!

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PurpleTygrrr · 03/02/2018 19:00

My nipples are still sore when DD latches and have developed some nice little scabs! Sorry too much information! But, it's only hurting at the start of the feed for about a minute which is an improvement. I just need to persevere through these next 3 days until the tongue tie appointment. We had a bad night last night with her feeding constantly it felt from 12-3... however I'm feeling slightly less engorged today so it must have helped! I'm just wondering when to start expressing, and if I do get DH to give a bottle in the evening will I get really engorged? Thanks for asking.

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Dixeychick · 03/02/2018 20:33

Glad things seem to be getting better OP, that sounds like good news. I expressed from day 1, but mainly because my DS flatly refused to latch at first so it was my only way of getting my supply going - I did get issues with oversupply in the end, but not until he was about 6 weeks old. I think they advise waiting to give any bottles until baby is about 4 weeks to avoid nipple / bottle confusion - esp for TT babies who struggle to latch. Really hoping it improves soon for you! I'm due to have my second in just over a week so desperately hoping for no TT this time, but I think they tend to run in families so chances are I'll be dealing with it again!

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olympicsrock · 03/02/2018 20:36

Massively. Both mine had tongue ties. I was so bruised and sore. With ds2 I breast fed til 14 months after tongue tie division

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Naillig222 · 03/02/2018 20:44

I have to disagree with the ‘your nipples will toughen up’ comments. All the toughening up in the world won’t help if you’re dealing with a bad latch due to TT.

DD had hers snipped when she was 11 days. The pain won’t go away immediately but it will go away. Basically I needed to teach baby to latch all over again. It took a few days of really concentrating on getting her latched on correctly and it was smooth sailing from then on. 100% worth getting done.

As for the expressing, is there a reason you need to express? It’s usually not recommended until 6 weeks unless medically necessary as it can cause oversupply issues. If you’re already feeling engorged expressing will make you produce more milk, thus worsening the engorgement.

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