Nipple shield recommendations

[FourForFore4]

Need help ladies, I've always struggled to breastfeed, I have very short nipples that my babies have always struggled to feel in their mouths and therefore latch on. Newest baby is a few days old and is really struggling to latch on, to the point where he actually cries when my nipple is in his mouth. We are persevering but I'm finding it hard going. He is hungry as he will drain a bottle of formula or expressed milk after refusing the breast. I want to try using a nipple shield in the hope he will take it as it's like a bottle, but I'm not sure which are best for my short nipples.
Any recommendations?

Thanks in advance

Congratulations on your new LO. I haven't got any recommendations but hopefully this will bump for you

I have quite short nipples too and all the nipple shields were too big, as in the nipple didn't fit down the sticky out bit - so think it might make things even harder for your baby. Are you able to get any breastfeeding support? Might be different positions which would help your baby latch on more deeply.

I have very flat nipples and have been breastfeeding really successfully with nipple shields! The midwives gave them to me at the hospital as he was not latching at all.
I have a few different ones and tbh they're all pretty similar. I do prefer the larger size as it's wider and therefore hopefully easier to wean him off of and onto a nipple.
I find the smaller teats he also is more likely to chew on 😬
My suggestion is to buy a few and see which you prefer.

My lactation consultant recommended Mam nipple shields. They have cut outs to maximise skin contact with baby’s nose and chin. They have dimples texture so it feels more skin like. The nipples look huge but it’s supposed to be as some of the areola is supposed to go in too when the baby starts sucking. It also helps encourage baby to take a bigger mouthful rather than just latch onto your nipple.

I used Medela shields with my last baby, but I’d getting on a lot better with the Mam shields this time.

Another vote for Mam shields here! I used both those and the Medela ones and have got on better with the Mam ones. 5 months now and nearly weaned off them - took us a while but we got there. Hopefully so can you. Good luck and well done for persevering when it hasn’t been straight forward, I know how tough it is x

I'd also recommend getting the mam shields. They have two sizes depending on nipple size. My LO couldn't latch to start (large flat nipples and she couldn't open her mouth wide enough) but we have been able to establish feeding using them. Unlike the pp I have found my nipples get drawn part way down the shield when LO feeds - the fact the shield protrudes further than my nipple gives LO something to latch on to.

Congrats on your new baby and good luck with your feeding journey- whatever you decide to do.

Ladies, thank you so much! Have ordered the mam & medela ones & am feeling much more positive after your stories.
I hope we can persevere & get over this hurdle, it feels like a mountain at the moment!
Thanks again!

How are you now @FourForFore4? Have any of the shields arrived?

Hope you are getting on ok op - I had the same problem as you. Also used medala and mam (got on better with medala in the end as used to get some pinching with mam as she got older.

Some people might tell you that shields affect your milk supply - wasn’t the case for me and we fed (with shields) until my LO decided that she didn’t want to breastfeed at nearly a year. Hopefully the shields will work out for you too.

Good luck! Xx

The shields came & he's latched on twice with them for about 5 minutes each time but he just seems to hate the breast. With and without the shields he just screams at my nipples. I know it's not the milk as he will take it expressed in a bottle, I know he's hungry because he will take a bottle straight after refusing the breast. I don't know what it is. I'm going to keep offering him the breast when I can, which isn't as often as I'd like as I have three other children, but I don't want to give up yet.