Good latch but still painful

[JackJack84]

I gave birth on Friday & started BF within the first hour but since Saturday my nipples have been so painful. I was in hospital until last night & had the latch checked by 4 or 5 midwives who all said it was really good so I just can't understand why it hurts so much.

My right nipple is sore, bruised & has scabbed over so I can't use that side at all. DS only feeds from the left but it hurts from start to finish & my nipple comes out very pointy & pale so I'm sure something is wrong. I've followed all of the advice for positioning etc but the pain is now getting too much to bear. I'm so close to
giving up, can anyone help?

Hey - you’re doing amazingly. Well done bf is hard. Learning to fed is hard and every woman’s experience is totally different.

First of all, call your community midwife tomorrow and ask to be given the details of your health visiting team - they will have the contacts of the infant feeding team. These are professionals that solely deal in infant feeding and they are the experts.

To deal with the discomfort right now - apply nipple cream after every feed. Don’t let the skin dry out. Breast pads are your friend - they’re softer than any other material against such traumatised skin. Try warm/cool compress if you can tolerate it. Take paracetamol- it is pain after all.

I would ask for second opinion re: latch - - you’re right - the nipple should come out pretty much the same way it went in. Also ask about tongue tie if not already assessed. Also mention if your baby makes clicking noises and does he/she slip off the breast? (If so try wiping nipple cream off very gently prior to feed).

You are not alone and many of us have really tough times feeding our babies. It just looks from the outside that it’s easy. IT IS BLOODY NOT.

For context I’m sat now breastfeeding my second. My first was a similar story to yours - but I had help and managed to feed for a while. This one is totally different again. Experience isn’t that helpful in feeding I feel.

Ask for the help - it is out there and after tomorrow and you’ve seeked out all the help you can don’t consider any action as ‘giving up’ it’s taking a new approach.

Feel free to message me back privately if you’d like to. I’ve only ever posted on one other post but I can’t just pass by - I’ve been here and sat in your position crying while trying to feed by baby. It does get better. You are doing amazingly.

Hi JackJack84,

Congratulations on your new baby! Has he/she been checked for tongue-tie? Sometimes it can look like they’re latching really well but they’re actually not using their tongue in quite the right way, causing pain and a compressed / white nipple.

Also, in my experience, even with a good latch, breastfeeding can be quite painful at first. I know all the literature says it should be “painless and enjoyable” but it seems that that isn’t always the case in the real world! I’m up feeding my 7 week old at the moment and I’ve had moments over the past few weeks where I thought I couldn’t take the pain and would need to give up, but I’ve pushed through and it’s getting so much better now!

I hope that helps even a little bit.

@Bumble1993 I can't thank you enough for your reply, I'm sat here crying in a good way as you've made me feel so much better!

My community midwife is coming to see me today so I'll definitely get the infant feeding team's details. I've been using nipple cream but I think I need to be more liberal with it for sure & I've got stacks of breast pads but never thought of using them! My supply still hasn't come in fully but I'm getting plenty of colostrum so that's good.

I was so ready to chuck in the towel but you've made me feel confident to keep trying. Thank you so much x

Thank you so much @roseofthenorth for your reply, it has really helped knowing I'm not alone!

I know they did some checks on DS at the hospital but tongue tie was never mentioned at all so I'll ask my midwife to check today. I was wondering whether my nipples were just toughening up with not having fed before & this pain was normal. But when I'm feeding it's literally excruciating from start to finish so I definitely need some extra help. Good to know it does get easier over time! x

Ouch, it sounds really sore! The first few days were really painful for me too with both my babies but it should get a lot easier. Definitely follow the great advice given by PP. I just wanted to add that once your milk comes fully in you might find it gets better as baby probably won’t be sucking as hard for as long. Be prepared for the possibility that let down will be quite sore to start with, particularly if your breasts have got quite full, but this improves quite quickly and isn’t as bad as the agony of the first few days of nipple pain. I thought about giving up, getting nipple guards, treating for thrush, all sorts with my first. But after a couple of weeks it was miles better and after a month or so it was totally lovely (aside from all the leaking). All that said, if nothing suggested here helps and it really doesn’t get better it is totally ok to stop. Look after yourself as well as baby and best of luck.

You’re very welcome- I could have written your post 4 years ago. Things seem so
much worse at night and you feel so lonely (despite having a partner there). I remember feeling like I was the only woman ever to struggle- but in truth most of us do at some stage with feeding.

I hope you get the support you need today and don’t be afraid to ask all your questions.

Keep on with the cream and keep hydrated both to make milk and help your body repair that very sore skin.

One way or another you’ll sort (and survive!) this and it might be that you work out why things have been getting so sore or that you’re a mum who decides to pump and bottle feed or a mum that decides a positive bond with her babe is the most important thing and maybe formula would support that bonding. Only you know the right approach and whatever you choose is completely right for the both of you.

You got this brave lady

Thank you @Roseandgeranium for your reply. I actually woke up at 9 this morning & omg my supply has come in! My boobs felt like 2 massive bowling balls, they were already 38G to begin with. I literally had to carry them as the soft bra I had on was not up to the task.

I've got a more supportive bra on now & have been massaging & using nipple cream all day. My midwife thinks I could be getting mastitis on my right side so I've got to keep an eye on that.

I had to get DP to go for some formula at 6 this morning, DS just wouldn't settle & I couldn't bear to feed him. It was so hard but actually such a relief to see him feeding then sleeping well. Think combi feeding will be the way at least temporarily. He has fed from me again today & I'm feeling determined to make this work!

Thanks again to everyone for your support x

This sounds identical to what I experienced 3 weeks ago. My nipples got to the point where they were bleeding a few days after leaving hospital. Everyone who saw us feed said the latch looked great. It took another 2 weeks before a breastfeeding support worker identified a posterior tongue tie. These are notoriously difficult to diagnose as everything looks great from the outside but inside DD's mouth her tongue was no coming over her bottom gum and she couldn't create a vacuum to keep my nipple in the right place. We had the tongue tie division on Wednesday and I'm still using nipple shields but I have less pain when feeding. Initially I blamed myself for the poor latch so it was a relief to discover it was due to tongue tie. So currently combi feeding as breastfeeding has been a real struggle. Good luck.

Hiya I hope things are a bit better now but if not one thing i found super helpful was using a pump in to create a milk stash for when the pain got really bad. Pumping doesn't hurt as much but still builds your supply so its great for when your breats need a break!

I would really push for someone to assess for tongue tie as it sounds exactly like my experience with my first. I remember the excruciating pain when he latched and I was so, so close to throwing in the towel.

All three of my kids had tongue tie, and once they all had it snipped, I went on to exclusively breastfeed for 12 months.

Best of luck. Maybe try nipple shields for a few days so your nipples have chance to heal a little? It sounds like you are doing really well, so don’t give up, it will get better once whatever the issue is gets resolved.

Thank you @PrimeraVez @kagerou @CordyD the midwife is here tomorrow so I'm going to ask her about tongue tie. I got some nipple shields & they really help but I'd prefer to only use them short term if possible. DS sometimes refuses to feed from them.

Do you have any recommendations for a breast pump? I've got a Hakka but I don't get much in it. Not sure if an electric would be better?

As well as all the good advice about keeping contact with midwife and seek support and advice about tongue tie, id only add that I (and many others I spoke to irl at the time) found it incredibly painful to start with. With each child (I have had three) the pain was worse to start with. I was ready to give up within a couple of weeks with each, dreading each feed etc. But with each baby, the pain subsided after around 4 weeks by itself and I went on to breast feed for months and months pain free.

I use a Medela Swing which I’m pretty happy with. Silly question though but with the Haaka are you putting it on properly? It took me a while to suss it out. I fold back the entire rim, then squeeze the bottom and position it over my nipple before letting go, that way the suction is really tight and strong.

@newstart1234

As well as all the good advice about keeping contact with midwife and seek support and advice about tongue tie, id only add that I (and many others I spoke to irl at the time) found it incredibly painful to start with. With each child (I have had three) the pain was worse to start with. I was ready to give up within a couple of weeks with each, dreading each feed etc. But with each baby, the pain subsided after around 4 weeks by itself and I went on to breast feed for months and months pain free.

Thank you, this is reassuring!

@PrimeraVez

I use a Medela Swing which I’m pretty happy with. Silly question though but with the Haaka are you putting it on properly? It took me a while to suss it out. I fold back the entire rim, then squeeze the bottom and position it over my nipple before letting go, that way the suction is really tight and strong.

I've been folding back the rim but not squeezing the bottom so maybe that's why. When I start I get quite a lot but then it stops. I'm gonna have a bath & try expressing tonight.

@JackJack84

Thank you *@PrimeraVez* *@kagerou* *@CordyD* the midwife is here tomorrow so I'm going to ask her about tongue tie. I got some nipple shields & they really help but I'd prefer to only use them short term if possible. DS sometimes refuses to feed from them.

Do you have any recommendations for a breast pump? I've got a Hakka but I don't get much in it. Not sure if an electric would be better?

Because I BF more than pump I went for the cheaper option of a phillips manual pump. It takes a bit longer but gets loads out especially first thing in the morning when my milk flow seems to be stronger

I had this for a while when DD was born. She has mild tongue tie though and was only discovered on her 10 day check up.

I had the pointy nipple thing after feeding and my nipples were starting to crack and scab like you've described.

It was only really painful when she first latched on and then it became somewhat bearable. But it was really painful and I did just have to grin and bear it.

She managed to work it out though and one day something just clicked and she fed without squishing my nipple so maybe it just takes them some time how to figure it out? I'm not talking months btw. The issue resolved within a few weeks.

As for pumps I had a Hakka but then got a medela swing - this works well for me and I'm able to get a decent amount of milk in about 10-15 mins.

The other life saver for painful bruised cracked nipples is breast shells - stops anything touching them between feeds and allows to circulate. Get some lansinoh on after every feed and pit the breast shells. In your bra. It can take a couple of weeks of bad pain for your nipples to get used to it even when the latch is good. But you should definitely get more advice in case there is a latch issue.
Here's a link for the breast shells shop.medela.co.uk/products/breast-care/breast-shells/

Thank you @mswales & @Tee20x I've ordered some breast shells. I like that they collect the milk too, seems like such a waste it all going on the breast pads.

I feel like I'm getting there slowly but surely with BF. DS has breast about 80% of the time. I've been religious with the Lansinoh & the skin has improved loads. My right side is still sore so I'm using a shields but I can feed from the left with minimal discomfort now, progress! 😁

@JackJack84 yayyy happy to hear if!!

I had the exact same thing with my DD but sadly gave up BF as it was excruciating and my mental health was really taking a beating. Having a section on Monday with DS and aiming to try BF again. Can someone link nipple sheilds please and is it a one size fits all or not? Any other tips are much appreciated, I've also got a madela pump. Glad its getting easier for you @JackJack84 well done on keeping going!

@Needingsupportplease I've got these ones MAM Nipple Shields Size 2 (Pack of 2), Breast Shields with Sterilisable Travel Case, Breast Protectors to Support and Enhance Breastfeeding https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000R9PFPE/ref=cmswwrcppapiglttfabc9BZZ0BAR8SQR9ES4PWFA??encoding=UTF8&psc=1

My boobs are huge so I got large & they're great! We also got some Medela ones in a yellow case but they don't stay on as well as the Mam ones. Good luck to you! x

Thankyou! My boobs are quite small but this could change when my milk comes in, no idea what size my nipples are though?! 😂 think I'd have to get small and then just buy more if needed. I'm going to order them and give them a go, will try the MAM ones because we've got all MAM bottles and dummies (if I start expressing) x

@Needingsupportplease the large are really big, probably slightly too big for me so I'd definitely say to go for the small.

Thankyou x