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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

Can you have the 'wrong sort' of nipples for breastfeeding?

20 replies

TooFlatToFeed · 22/06/2008 23:08

God that sounds daft, but in the bath today I realised my nipples are really quite flat.

Ive only ever seen 3 other womens nipples in real life and all of them had sort of 'pencil top rubber' ones! lol

Mine are nothing like that, not inverted or completely flat but not protruding at all.

Couldn't get the hang of breastfeeding both times previously and am thinking maybe this is the reason?.

OP posts:

uberalice · 22/06/2008 23:12

Mine used to be very flat (not inverted) and I didn't manage to bf my first ds. I did express at first and found that my nipples would happily extrude themselves when using the pump, and i was told my a very helpful bf counsellor, after the fact, that if a breast pump could do that, so could a baby. Sure enough, the second time round I did manage to bf and my nipples are no longer flat.

madmarriedNika · 22/06/2008 23:14

Mine are just like how you describe! I did manage to BF both my DCs BUT with the assistance of nipple shields for the first few months, as neither could seem to latch and stay on otherwise. It was only when they were much bigger could they find and 'pull out' my nipple to get a good latch. I was lucky in that a nurse realised my quite flat nipples were probably the cause of the probs with getting DS latched and feeding and advised nipple shields (which is quite contentious) but it worked wonders for me. Apparently you can now buy nipple extruders which act like a vacuum and gradually make your nips protrude more- you can wear these in the last couple of months of pregnancy in anticipation of feeding to make latching easier, but you can also wear them anytime after birth. I think if I have another child I might try them, even though nipple shields never caused us any hassle (still feeding DD who turns 1 this week!).

HTH xx

thornrose · 22/06/2008 23:16

Flat nipples here and I had a terrible time breast feeding. Shortly after dd was born the midwife was squeezing my nipples really roughly before putting baby on and tutting about how flat they were, I swear it bloody put me off!

Original poster

TooFlatToFeed · 22/06/2008 23:20

Thing is, it was never mentioned with my other 2 babies,

but i definatly had a hard time!

OP posts:

Divastrop · 22/06/2008 23:22

i was told by one MW that i was having problems getting ds1 to latch as my 'equipment'(wtf?)wasnt upto scratch,meaning my boobs were too large and my nipples too flat.

i think it was bull crap myself,as i found the breast pump had the same effect as mentioned earlier.it was more to do with the fact ds had been given a bottle while i was asleep after giving birth,and the fact he was asleep constantly for 5 days due to all the drugs i had in labour.

sorry for ranting there

thornrose · 22/06/2008 23:24

I felt a rant coming on too at the memory of my midwife, she was so rough I had what looked like lovebites round my nipples!!

charchargabor · 22/06/2008 23:45

I have one flat nipple and one inverted nipple. Had a hard time establishing bfing as dd struggled to latch and it was quite painful, but we did manage. I should say had a flat and inverted nipple, as dd's sucking has now made the flat one sort of like a pencil top rubber, and the inverted one like some strange deformed sticky-outy thing! I think it does affect bfing in the initial stages.

PortAndLemon · 23/06/2008 00:12

It is more tricky with flat nipples, but with proper advice and support it's normally possible to breastfeed no matter how flat your nipples are. With advice and support like that from a midwife who told someone on my antenatal thread that her nipples were flat so she wouldn't be able to breastfeed (at this point she was in hospital in early labour, hadn't even had the baby yet) you wouldn't stand much chance.

sheepgomeep · 23/06/2008 11:08

I've got flat nipples too and I had trouble bf all mine. Lasted 3 weeks with ds and a lot less with both dd's

They just couldn't get the hang of latching on at all. Even the midwives were at a loss as even with a breastpump they were still flat

JamInMyWellies · 23/06/2008 11:12

I have flat sort of inverted nips and my DS had no trouble sucking them out. Give it a go as long as you have positioning and latch correct it shouldnt be a prob, if you do have probs try using a pump to coax them out and then pop your LO on.

minster · 23/06/2008 18:15

Mine were completely flat until I started bfing my daughter, I didn't have any problems.

LivingLaVidaLurker2 · 23/06/2008 18:24

When my dd was born, she was screaming in the middle of the night as I desperately tried to bf. The midwife came along and said, "What's wrong with your daughter? Oh well, look at your strange nipples - she's probably scared". I was too, too tired to do anything but cry.

I wish I had known about mumsnet when I was unsuccessfully trying to bf my children. I would have looked for help and hopefully been alot more successful.

EyeballsintheSky · 23/06/2008 18:33

Mine are very flat too and I have huge norks at the best of times so my nips are sort of hanging downwards (can't believe I'm writing this!). DD never latched on at all and no one I asked seemed to know what to do with me. Not planning second till next year but wonder what I can do to prepare in as far as speaking to experts when pg rather than when I'm a wreck with a screaming hungry newborn.

PrettyCandles · 23/06/2008 18:44

Do they ever pop out? When you're aroused, perhaps, or cold.

Before having children, mine were somewhere between flat and slightly inverted, depending on how warm the room was when I took my bra off. The consultant expressed some concern re bfing, but when I told her that they do pop up at times, she said that they shouldn't then be a problem.

I did struggle to bf, ended up mixed-feeding ds1. But then I struggled to establish bfing all 3 of my children, so I don't know whether flat/inverted nipples had anything to do with it. They certainly weren't flat any more after even a few months mixed-feeding! I successfully bfed dd and ds2.

The best thing, IMO, is to get face-to-face bfing support from a trained BFC, whether in a bf group or as an individual consultation with a counsellor. There are many factors to bfing, nipple-shape is just one of them - and not the most significant.

HTH

baltimore97 · 23/06/2008 19:47

I have flat nipples and large boobs and have had trouble getting both DDs latched on. DD2 has a stronger suck, and DD1 drew out the nipples a bit, so things are a little better this time around.

I managed to bf DD1 for 12mths, and am now stumbling at 8 weeks with DD2 - to get the babies to stay on the boob I have to assume a very uncomfortable position so they are clamped in place. If I let go, they just slip off. Visits to bfeeding councillors have resulted in no improvements.

I honestly believe that my anatomy has made bfeeding a real challenge, and I have never found it easy or convenient.

thumbwitch · 23/06/2008 19:58

i had one flatter than the other and DS did have some trouble latching on but expressing can help "pull it out" and then DS found it easier. It hasn't permanently changed, been bf'ing 6 1/2 months now, and he still has a little bother if boob is v.full and swollen but he is experienced enough now to persevere until it goes into his mouth.

madmarriedNika · 23/06/2008 20:51

baltimore- i know this is v contentious but have you considered using nipple shields? Might help the latch and once your DD2's bigger she should be better able to latch and draw out the nipple, so you shouldn't need to use them for long... You can buy good silicone nipple shields by Avent or Medela from any chemist or large supermarket.

The other possibility is to try using "nipple formers" which you wear inside your bra a few hrs each day and they help draw out the nipple- see: www.expressyourselfmums.co.uk/details1.asp/ProductID/263/sid/20/medela-nipple-formers.htm
(Eyeballs this might be useful if you go onto have another DC as you can use these in the last month of pregnancy to help prepare the nips)

Also have you tried using a wee electric breastpump for a minute before you feed her to help draw out the nipple? Hard I know to juggle pump, hungry baby etc. (says she who resorted to nipple shields!)

Good luck xx

RUMPEL · 23/06/2008 20:58

I had flat nips too and had an awful time bf DD. I ended up with mastitis and had to ff her at 3.5 weeks as she lost too much weight. The MW could always get her to latch but I never could. I bf and ff until she was 6 months though and got her first tooth (ouch). I ended up just feeding her form my left 1 though as the right one was just too difficult for her to latch on to properly.

I have noticed my nips are more 'outy' now though and am hoping to bf this one okay 9due in July). I have bought nipple shields this time to try also.

RUMPEL · 23/06/2008 20:59

Wanted to mention it is not unusual - I have seen and massaged loads of breasts and lots of people have flat ones. I never knew I was unusual either until the MW assitant kindly pointed out that I had very flat nipples!

IAteRosemaryConleyForBreakfast · 23/06/2008 20:59

I have had very flat nipples. Now I have pencil top rubber ones - thanks DS!

It only really seemed to be a problem when I was very engorged and DS was really sleepy and it got to a stage where my whole boob was so huge the nipple was stretched completely flat and he had nothing to latch onto. I have disturbing memories of DP and I, at around 3 in the morning, each pinching a side of a nipple to try and make it into a baby-friendly shape for poor, hungry DS.

I have to say, with the help of a midwife and a really good booklet (the Scottish Off to a Good Start book) I managed to sort my positioning out and get over that stage within a few days, and it was definitely easier when I reminded myself that it's breastfeeding, not nipplefeeding.

Sorting out positioning in general seems to solve a multitude of problems with getting them latched on.

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