Cracked nipples

[BumpLoading]

Hi,

I'm a first time mum and baby is 2 weeks old but had a tongue tie we now have had cut. However breastfeeding and a poor latch has resulted in very painful cracked nipples! We're much better at his latch now he can use his tongue and it only really hurts for the initial suck until my milk starts flowing but I was wondering if anyone else had the same problem and if so how long did it take / how did they heal their nipples? (Apart from Lansinoh fel which I use plenty of)

I used nipple guards. I was in agony.

Thanks for the suggestion Thornhill58 I'll have to try them! How long until the pain got better? I need to know theres light at the end of the tunnel!

With my first LO my milk let down was quite slow, so I found it less painful to gently express a little bit first to get my flow going, then attach baby. For each of my babies I remember the speed my nipples recovered once we got our latch right was surprisingly quick - went from really painful to totally fine within a week, at around the 3 week point. Good luck!

Hey OP. I gave up breastfeeding at day 10 as was in tears with my poor nipples. They were cracked and blistered.

They healed very quickly by:

Expressing some breast milk on the nipple, rubbing it in and letting it air dry

Heat packs rested on top on my boobs

Don't wear a bra for a few hours (chuck on an old t shirt,)

Heat pack before feeding and massage your breasts.

I am now combined feeding after having to relactate. (Baby is 18 days old)) Just ensure latch is good.

All the best to you x

Nipple guards are a last resort and if not fitted properly can cause more damage.

The lansinoh could be promoting bacteria growth or you could be having a dermatitis reaction to it, Id stop using it. Bit of air, and let some milk dry on them, or even try some coconut oil

GP could do some swabs and rule out infection... staph can cause terrible pain and slow healing. And if your iron is low that can make it longer to heal too

If infection is ruled out some s can do blue light laser treatment which speeds up healing. I’m in Aus so I don’t know of providers for it in the UK or if they offer it there though

I hope they get better soon

*physios

Thanks for all your suggestions! I'm assuming coconut oil would need to be removed before feeding?

I would avoid putting cream or oil on as it is an entry route for infection. Air them as much as possible. Change breast pads regularly. Work in getting a really good latch. The rugby hold is good for tongue tie babies.

Ahh my midwife did show me the rugby hold, I'll have to try and practice that a bit more as keep just resorting to cradle hold

Yes. Just a very small amount after a feed and clean off before the next one

It will get better with time, although that isn't much comfort when you are in pain!

I found hydrogel discs really helpful with healing. They are patches that you wear between feeds which promote healing. You can get them on amazon, not sure if any physical stores sell them in the uk.

Keep a watch out for any signs of mastitis as having cracked nipples can make an infection more likely.

I was in the exact same place as you but tongue wasn't cut until 7 weeks! I still had pain about 3 weeks after that but it improved massively each week. When it was really sore I gave expressed milk in a bottle. Can you try that?

I expected to be pain free straight away and was a bit down when it wasn't but now my baby is 4 months old I have no pain at all. Keep going, it's worth it. You're doing amazingly.

Yes I was expecting pain free straight away but suppose it'll hurt till my nipples heal, poor you Russell19 having to wait for it to be cut at 7 weeks!
I have got a pump and bottles but am scared to cause nipple confusion while hes still learning to latch with me but guess if I get desperate i could use it!