Toe curling nipple pain, is this normal?

[flossiegrippiter]

Baby is only 3 days old, but I'm in tears with every latch, take 5mins if feeds for the pain to ease enough for it to be bearable. I have fairly flat nipples so DS does struggles but had 2 midwife feeding checks before being discharged and both said the latch position looked good.
Do the nipples just have to toughen up and this phase will pass or is that my wishful thinking?!

Yes it totally passes it's pike a sharp shooting pain; it can be so severe, however bear with it if you can as it does pass. You're doing a great job!

Poor you. Is there a blister? I remember nipples being sore for about 2 weeks but it definitely passed. Lansinoh nipple cream really helped.

Day 4 here and it's just about bearable today. Yesterday was pure agony with each feed. Today I'm feeling slightly optimistic that the worst is over. Hope it gets better for you too.

Are you sure baby doesn't have a tongue tie? Our local hospital is notoriously bad for detecting them. Get yourself some nipple shields, boots sell them, I used them for 3 months and continued to feed for 2 years in the end.

The only time I managed to use my hypnobirthing breathing exercises was when DD was latching on! The pain was unbearable, you have my full sympathy
I can't really offer much advice as it really didn't get better for me quite a while. Except it did eventually get better and I'm glad I stuck with it.

Congratulations on your little one!

It was totally normal for me. It does pass but I remember well the horrible anticipation and the tie curling pain.

Getting a good latch by stuffing as much boob in as I could was key.

It felt like broken glass. I only kept going because a friend warned me that it would be horrendous initially. I think it took a week or so and then it suddenly eased.

breastfeeding can take some getting used to but you shouldn't be in agony.
You need to get your baby properly check for tongue tie and get it snipped if there is one. Both of mine had tongue tie and the difference I felt once they had the ties released was incredible.
You'll have people telling you not to use nipple shields as they can confuse the baby but if you're in agony, then soft shields can save your sanity and nipples. I used Medela ones.
Rub LOTS and LOTS of Lansinoh nipple cream in too to help you x

Does your nipple ever look white, blanched, like there's no blood supply?
I had Raynaud's, and it was agony, it is something to be aware of and look into.

I do think there's a degree of the nipples toughening up but please don't allow yourself to stay in pain. Your local La Leche League will be hopefully very helpful for you.

I remember that around 8-12 weeks any discomfort I had left seemed to magically disappear. Tied in with better baby head control!

Yes it BLOODY hurts for about 2 weeks!
Does pass though I promise!
Cabbage leaves down the bra are supposed to help.
And nipple cream.

When I had my last baby I made sure I took paracetamol regularly for the first week post birth. This was to ease the cramping and the painful nipples at each feed. They don't warn you that you have contractions when you breast feed and they get more painful with subsequent births.

Yes for the first 2 weeks it really hurts with each latch. The test though is if it’s extremely painful after 10 seconds or so then something might not be right. I used to curl my toes and count to 10. If the pain subsided all was well. If the pain continued with the same or worse intensity I would check the latch very carefully. Nose to nipple, chin and lower lip first then clamp the rest of the open mouth on at just the right moment

I can honestly remember sobbing in pain for at least the first week. Hang in there OP it does get better

Yep, with DC1 toe curling agony was exactly how I described it. Breathing through it helped, it lasted a few seconds and then eased, each time I latched him on. After a couple of weeks or so it did get better, until by 6 weeks it was painless. After the second week the cluster feeding reduced a lot which also helped. Rather encouragingly I had the same with DC2 but only for a few days or so, then it was fine again.

I was the same with DC1. As the mouth came closer to my nipple, I would be crying at the anticipation of the shooting pain about to surge through my body.
It did get better after about a week and I am so pleased I persevered.

I'm sat here having done another feed and it felt slightly better, I'm concentrating trying to get as much boob in his mouth, it massively helps just to hear I'm not the only one and it will hopefully pass! I have nipple shields but my milk hasn't come in yet so I think the flow isn't fast enough yet for him to get enough through them yet, I'm hoping it might come in tomo!

It's awful isn't it? I think in theory it can be helped by latch position but I kept trying and couldn't improve it. My pain went after six weeks and I'm glad I stuck at it now but it was so tough. I used nipple shields occasionally, nipple former breast shells (this helped with flat nipples), lots of nipple cream and sometimes painkillers.
Hopefully it'll pass soon!

If you use cabbage leaves, run a rolling pin over the veins to let the juice out. Helps

Hope today goes better for you

Yep I remember it well, also called it the toe curler. It does pass. Hang in there, you're doing a great job

Mine were sore for the first couple of weeks with the first baby. This was 29 years ago, but the midwife suggested using this gauze stuff that's soaked in a Vaseline like substance. I THINK it was called Gotex. I cut little squares and put it inside my breast pads to moisturise my nipples. It was magic. I also remember being advised to count to ten when baby latched on and to focus on staying relaxed. This did help!! Once through this I never looked back and was so glad I had persevered.

Someone needs to invent sticky pile sized ice packs! Fingers crossed for a better day, still no milk in yet, I've tried pumping this morning to encourage it