Talk to me about initial breastfeeding pain - Page 2

[Fynns Mommy]

I also had excruciating pain for a long time. I cried through many feedings, too. My son had troube latching in the beginning and I used a nipple sheild to help that for a bit. With and without the sheild I had pain for at least a month, maybe longer, I cant remember. I remember the good things about nursing much more clearly . Just stick it out, use ice if needed (I did after every feeding for a while). The pain is worth it.

[teraze]

I, too am in the initial pain camp.  For about two and a half weeks I experienced terrible nipple pain for the first ten or so seconds after my son's initial latch.  I would scrunch up my face and wince while my husband looked on with total concern.  And then, like so many others here, the pain just went away.  Seven and half months later and we're still going strong!

Hang in there!  :)  (And sorry the going's been so tough.)

[1love4ever]

The first 2 weeks of BFing, my nipples hurt very badly, they cracked and peeled but never bled.  Then after 2 weeks it just stopped.  Then came back for a few days at 1 month, then gone for good.  I exclusively BF for 6 months, and now DD is 16 months and we are just starting to wean.

Those first 2 weeks, I had to pull DDs bottom lip down every time she would latch on.  It felt a little better that way, and eventually that became her normal latch.  The bottom lip should be pointed down, and you should be able to see the whole bottom lip at the bottom of your nipple.  Lactation consultants and Drs said to me that everything looked fine and when I told them it hurt, they said that was NOT normal and something MUST be wrong.  BFing should NEVER hurt they said.  That is BS!!!  It hurts in the beginning til your nipples get used to it!  Dont let anyone discourage you.  I was even told that maybe I just shouldnt BF and just switch to formula if it hurt to BF.  That was the dumbest advice I ever got, especially since it went away after 2 weeks.  Just think if I would have listened!  All the beautiful and wonderful bonding I had with my DD I would have missed.

Anyway, Dont give up, it will get better. 

BTW, I switched off between Motherlove nipple cream and Lansinoh every other feeding, and I have always only fed off of one breast at a time.  That gives one nipple the chance to rest at each feeding.  I was always told to feed from both boobs at each feeding but for 16 and a half months I never have.  I think that allows the baby to get the complete amount of hindmilk(the nutrient rich stuff), instead of mostly formilk(the watery stuff that comes out first when nursing from each breast)

Good luck!

[1love4ever]

The first 2 weeks of BFing, my nipples hurt very badly, they cracked and peeled but never bled.  Then after 2 weeks it just stopped.  Then came back for a few days at 1 month, then gone for good.  I exclusively BF for 6 months, and now DD is 16 months and we are just starting to wean.

Those first 2 weeks, I had to pull DDs bottom lip down every time she would latch on.  It felt a little better that way, and eventually that became her normal latch.  The bottom lip should be pointed down, and you should be able to see the whole bottom lip at the bottom of your nipple.  Lactation consultants and Drs said to me that everything looked fine and when I told them it hurt, they said that was NOT normal and something MUST be wrong.  BFing should NEVER hurt they said.  That is BS!!!  It hurts in the beginning til your nipples get used to it!  Dont let anyone discourage you.  I was even told that maybe I just shouldnt BF and just switch to formula if it hurt to BF.  That was the dumbest advice I ever got, especially since it went away after 2 weeks.  Just think if I would have listened!  All the beautiful and wonderful bonding I had with my DD I would have missed.

Anyway, Dont give up, it will get better. 

BTW, I switched off between Motherlove nipple cream and Lansinoh every other feeding, and I have always only fed off of one breast at a time.  That gives one nipple the chance to rest at each feeding.  I was always told to feed from both boobs at each feeding but for 16 and a half months I never have.  I think that allows the baby to get the complete amount of hindmilk(the nutrient rich stuff), instead of mostly formilk(the watery stuff that comes out first when nursing from each breast)

Good luck!

[Milagro685]

I just had my first baby, and he is now one month old. We have had pain since the beginning, but as time goes on it has hurt less and less. It could be that this is just the way it is for some of us, especially since you have had everything checked out. I still do sometimes feel the sharp pain when he latches that goes away as he continues to suck, but in the beginning, I was also crying through feedings. After checking that he was latching correctly with others, I just concluded that it can take some times for the nipple to adjust! I hope your pain is slowly (or quickly) going away as mine is! Good luck!

[clutterbug]

Count me in as another mom with unexplained lingering nipple pain.  It isn't excruciating anymore, but I expect it to stick around for another few weeks (DD is almost 7 weeks now) based on what happened with the previous two.  We did have small mouth and latch issues (misshapen nipples) from her (and her brothers before her) not opening up enough, but now that's taken care of and I'm still sore.  I know how frustrating it is to feel pain and have everyone saying "well, it looks fine".

My midwife this time said to me "You know what?  I think it's just going to hurt for you for a while, no matter what you do."  We turned over every stone and there's no answer, so I think she's right.  Thankfully, it's not unbearable and most feedings are enjoyable after the initial letdown.  But the painful feedings lasted a lot longer with my first.

Hang in there.  In my experience, the extra pains at the beginning make the eventual lovely, pain-free nursing sessions all the more wonderful.  I hope that pain-free day comes for you very, very soon *hug*

Oh and Jack Newman's nipple ointment has a wee bit of painkiller in it, it can be very soothing.  You need a prescription for it, and you could ask the doc to include the ibuprofen component (although I find it soothing without, too - there is a bit of steriod in it to help healing) http://www.nbci.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12:candida-protocol&catid=5:information&Itemid=17

[LeslieintheKeys]

First, I feel your pain, mama!  You have my sympathy.

When my son was born 3 1/2 yrs ago, I went through 9 week (NINE WEEKS!) of pain.  It hurt more than labor and delivery.  He threw up blood (from my cracked and bleeding nipples) which freaked me out as a first-time mom.  I tried everything I could think of too - lactation consultants, breast shields, different creams, pumping, etc.  In the end, it just took time for him (and his little mouth) to get bigger.  I swore that if I could get through it, I would breastfeed him until college.  Ha!  I did breastfeed him until he was 2 1/2 and I was pregnant with his sister.  One of my reasons for wanting to continue breastfeeding was that I thought I could avoid the whole pain situation the second time around if I was still breastfeeding him.  Pop him off and pop on his little sister.  It didn't work because I had to stop breastfeeding because it hurt too bad.

When my daughter was born 7 months ago, I was super anxious about breastfeeding.  Luckily, she latched on much better than her brother.  However, the pain started ALL over again.  Only this time, it lasted for 2 weeks, not 9.  Again, I tried everything including nipple shields that hurt like hell.  I found a great breast cream online - Maternacare.  LOVED it.  Put that on, along with the Medela breast shells (different from nipple shields), which gave my nipples a chance to air dry and have cream on it without anything touching it.  I think Maternacare really helped.  In my opinion, lansinoh is horrible.

My lactation consultant thinks both of my children have bubble palettes (high arches in their mouths) which resulted in my nipples getting crushed more than normal.  As the weeks passed, their mouths got bigger and so it got better.  

I so wish someone had warned me that breastfeeding was not the idyllic picture I had in my mind.  Instead, I wish I had rubbed sand paper on my nipples during my pregnancy to prepare me for nursing.  

Take some hot showers.  Don't beat yourself up for cringing when you get ready to breastfeed your child.  Know that many other women are right there with you with this issue.  This too shall pass, even though it doesn't feel like it right  now.

[Partaria]

Thank you for all the lovely feedback. I am so so relieved to hear I am not alone.

I too, thought BFing would be this magical soft-focus experience, and it totally hasn't been. Plus, we had a long labour (right around 70 hours) before I had to have a homebirth transfer and a c-section. I wasn't prepared for a long labour, I wasn't prepared to recover from a major surgery, and I wasn't prepared to be in pain for all this time.

I guess for some of us, it's just a harder road. I identify with what a previous poster said about expectation. Nothing about this birth and babe went the way I envisioned or planned. And it's been really hard to regroup.

Love that someone on these boards called their babe their "little hoover." DS is exactly that. Every LC we've seen comments on what a strong suck he has!

I'll continue to hang in there. I'm kind of approaching this like I did quitting smoking years ago. It is too much to think of goals that are six months or a year out. So instead, I tell myself, make it through this day. And tomorrow, if you want to throw in the towel, you can. Then tomorrow arrives, and I end up saying the same thing to myself. Just finish today, then tomorrow, you can give it up. Helps me get through it all one day at a time.

I'm hoping by six weeks (he's four weeks and change now), his mouth will get bigger and we can finally be comfortable. He's nearly 12 lbs now...youd think he'd finally be big enough, but I guess not yet.

Anyway, I know I'll keep coming back to this thread for encouragement. Thank you for sharing your experiences, mamas!

[Baby Blast]

Pumping for a few minutes intially  has always helped me get my nipples opened up and stretched out so it wasn't so difficult for my babies to latch on...plus it helped get my milk flowing a little and just loosened things up, especially with my first child...One of my nipples seemed to be harder to latch on the other so I occasionally had to pump that side for a minute to get it in the groove and make it easier to latch on! Lots of pain and almost gave up several times! ouch...hurts just talking about it:( good luck!

[sunshinemum]

I too had excruciating pain with my 2nd and 3rd babies. Time was really the only cure, as so many others have said. Hang in there, you're doing great!

[babylego]

I had pain for about 6 weeks just like you are describing. I actually bled and now have scared nipples, but I didn't give up because I new I would never use formula. I'm glad I didn't and the pain eventually went away and I was able to nurse for 3 1/2 yrs. Now my daughter is almost 5 and we are expecting a new one in Oct and worried I will go through the same thing. I'm hoping my nipples are so callused that it won't be painful this time! LOL Hope it works out, just hang in there and keep telling yourself it is all worth it!

[ElliesMomma]

Originally Posted by radicaleel 

Stick it out--it WILL get better! I had the same experience as you--excruciating pain at the beginning, that was bad enough to make me scream, cry, and tense up. The pain was worse than labor & birth. After the first 6 weeks or so it just got better and better, and eventually there was no pain at all and nursing became a sweet and pleasant thing. I know how stressful it is to be going through it right now, but it will go by so quickly and everything will get better. You're doing everything right, just keep doing it!

all this, but my pain breastfeeding baby #1 lasted for TEN WEEKS. stick it out. it will pass. one day, you will just notice, "hey, it doesn't hurt so much anymore." and then the pain is gone.

ps: i nursed through it, and went on to nurse through my next pregnancy, and then tandem nurse. for baby #2, i had NO (nipple) PAIN whatsoever. and it was super duper easy.

[lovelylisa]

You guys are making me feel better as I am in the awful pain camp. I still have called the LC to see what she says. I have weird nipples anyway so I think that has something to do with it.

Thanks :)