Changing Latch at 3 Months?

[WeasleyMum]

My DS is 3.5 months old, EBF. I thought we'd finally gotten pretty good at this breastfeeding thing after a REALLY rough start, but now, for some reason, he isn't latching right on one side. He's always had a decent latch, but in the past few days on the left side, instead of latching wide-open, he is sort of pursing his lips and making a much smaller mouth. On the right side, he's still latching normally. At the next left-feeing, I'm going to try a football hold to see if that makes a difference-- keep him in the position he'd be on the right side. (We're cradle-hold-only! nursers, sadly.)

Any ideas what can be causing this, and what I can do about it? It's making my left nipple pretty sore. He has been showing early signs of teething (drooling, fussiness, chomping on everything and anything) but I didn't know that could cause this.

Thanks in advance for any answers!

[Llyra]

I might blame the teething. It's natural that baby's gums will be tender, and that baby will be latching in the way that minimizes the soreness. Another thing to think about: could he be uncomfortable lying on that one side? Ear infection comes to mind.

Once you've ruled that out, though, I think a little patient practice can help. As soon as his latch is no longer comfortable, you can immediately unlatch and relatch. Keep trying until he's doing it right. It's a real pain in the neck, especially if you're out somewhere, or baby is fussy, but if you're consistent about insisting on a good latch, baby will get the idea in a day or two.