Would you use a shield?

[wombatclay]

I gave birth yesterday and need some btdt input since I know very little about nipple shields.

I was tandem nursing a 4yo and a 2yo until just a few months ago and never had any significant problems other than oversupply and the now and then plugged duct. I had thrush once and mastitis once over the course of 4 years of breastfeeding.

However, several months ago I caught coxsackie virus... dd1 and dd2 also had the virus and nursed round the clock. One of the sores formed on my left nipple and turned into a crack/fissure. It made nursing on that side insanely painful. Even after the virus was gone the fissure had a tendency to reopen and bleed. I spent months trying to heal this fissure (we had coxsackie in October, dd1 weaned in December, dd2 weaned in March... the fissure continued to appear and disappear during that time) and nothing seemed to work. Then the girls stopped nursing, the nipple seemed to heal, and all was happy.

Well... my third babe arrived yesterday and although my milk has not yet come in the fissure has already re-appeared! I have a bloody, red, hairline crack on the left nipple after just a day and a half of breastfeeding. His latch is fine, everything looks good, but the pain from the pulling on the fissure is extreme.

So, is this a situation where a nipple shield would help? Or would it simply cause latch or supply issues while not addressing the reason for the pain (pressure and pulling on the fissure)? Obviously my goal is to figure out what is causing the fissure and how to heal it once and for all, but until then I don't want to be in constant pain while breastfeeding!

[fruitfulmomma]

nak... this aricle might be useful http://www.llli.org/llleaderweb/LV/LVJunJul00p39.html

i think it would be worth a try. i used one for a flat nipple before and it helped.

[sparklett]

I had to use a nipple shield when DS was born and it was nine months before he weaned off of it. I also experienced plugged ducts nearly all the time and he had major nipple confusion. When he finally stopped using the shield, it was as if my nipples had never really been "used", so I developed all sorts of nipple issues (horrible cracks and painful circulation problems) that lasted for months.

In your case, there are clearly advantages to using a shield. But they are truly a HUGE PITA and could cause a lot of other problems that go beyond the fissure.

Honestly, if I had to choose between the fissure and the shield, I'd take the fissure. If you do decide to go with the shield, definitely work closely with a LC until you are through using it. And buy several, since they always get dirty, lost, stepped on, etc.

Good luck!