On the topic of nipple shields...

[JonnyPocketRocket]

I've just had a read through of the two other current threads (actually one is a zombie from 2011) about people's success with nipple shields. I didn't want to derail those threads but wondered if someone can tell me how to use them?!
My boy is 10 days old and the MW recommended nipple shields as my right nipple is so damaged. I bought a Medela size large as my nipple diameter is 21mm at the base. But

1. they're so big he can only fit the shield in his mouth, no breast tissue.
2. I can't get them to stay in place so it's still just as painful - just instead of his bare mouth chafing on my nipple it's the shield. Any tips?? I spent yesterday crying through every feed on that side and really hoped these shields would be the solution! 😭

I had terrible cracked nipples with all three of my babies. Never got on with the nipple shields they suck through.

The miracle thing I discovered third time was the silver nipple guards, available for about 25£ on amazon. You wear them at all times except feeding, the silver is healing as is the puddle of breast milk that is usually there. Marked improvement within a day, all better just a few days later. Passed them around to a number of friends who all found them brilliant.

Another bit of info which no one ever told me/I never twigged until third time is that the point of lasinoh etc is to keep the nipple moist at all times, stop a scab forming. Previously I was trying to dry them out as one would with a normal cut 🤦‍♀️ Passing in this info in case relevant.

Good luck, it is agony. But once those nipples healed I happily fed my babies for over a year, so worth persevering if you can, and want to.

Like these

I'm using shields with my 13 day old baby and have with previous babies.

What I would say is to try different brands. It's a pain (literally) but they are not all the same and it's not always about size - shape and length vary too. I'm currently getting on best with Mam size one shields but my infant feeding advisor said that they get the best results with medela 16mm or Asda own brand shields. The 16mm are too small for me though.

Saying that though, my baby is small and has a tongue tie so I'm also struggling to get her to do anything other than suck the shield itself (rather than taking in breast tissue too). She is getting milk, but the transfer isn't efficient and we are also doing formula top ups because her weight had dropped a bit.

I'm hoping getting her tongue tie cut and a bit more support might mean we do better but I can't get her to latch on without the shields at all.

Hard isn't it? I don't really know what to do for the best.

Also, if they are not staying in place, they might be too big.

My baby wouldn't latch so I used them. Best thing I ever did. We fed successfully for six weeks, and by four weeks occasionally she'd latch without. My nipples never got sore. It is a faff when out and about and trying to pop one on but you get into a routine with them. I found if they were wet they'd stick on (I just put them in Milton all day and each night would put them in the steam steriliser). Baby never got breast and shield but I was using quite big ones, small ones just didn't seem to work for her. I tried the ones from boots and they were no good but this shape worked brilliantly for her

Those mam ones are what I'm using only I'm on size one. I prefer them to medela.

Just wanted to share what my HV told me. Don’t want to upset, I know you are in a lot of pain and can sympathise... I’ve been there myself! My HV advised against nipple shields at all as the baby needs to find his ‘true’ latch, unless you plan to use them indefinitely. Also they stop the nipples from ‘rubberising’ where they basically become as tough as old boots from all the gnawing! I was in complete agony with nipples like chewed toffees but used loads of lanolin and they did eventually toughen up. By one month they were totally fine and hard as nails lol! Just wanted to share, it does get better. I found nipple shields absolutely useless tbh!!

Also... random fact. My HV told me that African woman rub wire wool on their nips to tough them up before childbirth don’t know if that’s true but she swore it was!

Keep going OP you are doing a brilliant job BF your little one! It’s so bloody hard. Hope it clears up soon xx

Hope you manage to sort things out OP.

I also had damage on one side. I recommend Multi Mam compresses to help the healing. They are brilliant and worth every penny.

I never got on with nipple shields, though I did try. What worked for me was feeding from the non- damaged side and simultaneously pumping from the damaged side with an electric pump. I then latched baby onto damaged side once he was already fairly satisfied and breast was less full. It was handy to have a stash of pumped milk. He was happy with breast and bottle, and pumping kept the supply up. If you pump while feeding you get milk out more easily.

My Health visitor wasn't keen on the one side idea, but it worked well for us.

My damage was caused by (I think) baby being too small to latch onto my big nipple. Once he got to about 6 weeks he latched fine, and no more damage, I stopped pumping then, and just alternated feeds from either side.

Good luck, sending lots of moral support your way.

Unfortunately for me, I think shields might be the difference between breastfeeding and not breastfeeding. I just couldn't handle the pain without, and I've given birth three times with just gas and air, so I'm not a total wimp! But my nipples never seem to toughen up, they just bleed and every feed is agony.

Tongue tie is an issue for us, all my children have had it. My baby has quite an obvious one but is another few weeks til we are at the clinic for that and I have to battle on somehow.

It's frustrating because I don't think she will learn to latch properly ever if we keep using shields and bottle feeding because the sucking technique is totally different, but I don't know what else to do.

@mistermagpie that sounds really tough. My baby never had tongue tie so I think my situation was a bit different. That’s awful they are making you wait so long for the clinic to sort the tongue tie, it’s obviously impacting your breastfeeding relationship. I don’t want to tell you to ‘persevere against the odds’ and come across as a Lordy breastfeeder... god knows there are enough of those about! You can only try your best and fed is best!! If it’s making you miserable and you are struggling then there is no shame at all in bottle feeding!! I hope that you do what’s best for you and the baby, whichever option that is xx

I really second the silver nipple shields that you use between feeds. Turned a corner for us.
Have you check your DD for TT? Mine was and it really made breastfeeding incredibly difficult.
Also what @90schic HV said about never weaning kids off is incorrect. I successfully weaned my daughter off by end of December 100%. I used the malena ones and they worked well for us during and after the TT was cut

How are you getting on today, OP? I fed my DS1 using nipple shields for eight months since he wouldn't latch otherwise. I tried a couple of different brands and I found the Medela ones that are more rectangular shape easier to hold on while feeding than the circular ones. I didn't receive any breastfeeding support at the time but it is possible to stop using them once breastfeeding is established.

I had medela and the mam ones, the man worked better for us. It's a case of trial and error and practice. If your nipple is that damaged I'd say get checked for tongue tie, if you can afford it get a lactation consultant, they can show you how to use the shield and Check for tongue tie (my hv said he didn't have one but my destroyed nipples told a different story) the main thing is to correct the latch. I also found the silver angels amazing.

I used them for a few weeks, got his tongue tie corrected around 10 weeks and a few weeks later I lost a shield and couldn't believe how grand it was without so I dumped them.

With my first I expressed until 6 weeks and then used nipple shields until 5 months. Fed her for a further 4 months without.

With my second we used one, on one side, for 36 hours until it healed.

Both times it was the madela medium.

Definitely get a tongue tie ruled out OP. With my eldest son, it was the 5th breastfeeding advisor we saw who finally diagnosed a tongue tie. Not all are easy to spot. My youngest son was different, his was so severe that he could barely bottle feed let alone breastfeed, so he was fast tracked and had his cut at 5 days old.

My daughter has quite an obvious one but they have closed one of the clinics now and so we have to wait two-three weeks to be seen. I do believe that getting it cut might help.

It's definitely worth getting outside help, the NCT have breastfeeding advisors who can come to you and you don't need to have done their courses.

Breastfeeding has never been easy for me, my two sons were both on formula by six weeks because I couldn't handle it. I am hoping to do 'better' this time but it's not been an easy start.

Thanks for your responses, all. Sorry I didn't check back in sooner. I haven't managed to figure out the nipple shields but am hoping to go to a breastfeeding cafe tomorrow and maybe somebody there can show me. In the meantime I took a break from BFing and have been expressing and giving bottles while my nipples heal. I know there's a chance then of nipple confusion but unless I get the BFing sorted he'll have to go into bottles anyway so I figured I've nothing to lose.
I did latch him on again a few times overnight using the "flipple" technique and it feels a little better now that the nipples have healed a bit, but it's still painful. I feel like he's biting more than sucking if that makes sense.
Two MWs and a breastfeeding support worker have said he doesn't have a TT, but going off of some of your experiences that doesn't mean very much!
Everyone who looks at the latch says it looks right, but why does it hurt so much in that case??

You really need to see an expert. My DS3 was terribly painful to feed and it was because he was latching okay but then slowly started slipping down. A breastfeeding consultant spotted it straight away because she watched the whole feed, not just checking the latch at the start. She advised me to break the suction (by putting my finger in the corner of his mouth) and relatch him every time I was in pain and it only took a couple of days for him to get into a better feeding habit.

We used them for a few weeks and then transitioned back off them (long story). Get someone at the breastfeeding cafe to show you - you have to kind of turn them inside out and then flip them onto the nipple. It's tricky until you get the back, but basically they suction on and pull some breast tissue into the teat. That's how the latch works - you don't just place them on.

Good luck!

Oh, and everyone said my latch looked great - but I had so much damage. The best advice I had was to go by feel, not look. Aim to get it as comfortable as possible - people's boobs are so different that the look of it can be really deceptive.