pacifier?

[azhie]

I'm breastfeeding my little 3-week-old daughter on demand, and I noticed that there are times when she just wants to suck on my nipple. She would suck a few times, and drift off to sleep. When I pull my nipple out, she wakes up, cries, and calms down when she gets the nipple again. This can go on for hours at a time, and without the boob she cries and and cries. As a result, my nipples are sore, even though I've taken measures using Lanolin and make sure latch is good. I do wonder if I should I just give her a pacifier for those moments when she just wants to suck? I've been putting it off, was very against the idea when she was born, but now I can totally understand why people use it!

[anjsmama]

Yeah - I was totally convinced I wasn't going to use a pacifier with this kiddo, but same issue. Ours was tough too, because I had oversupply problems. So she'd want to just suck to sleep but she'd end up with a mouthful of milk and cry, cry, cry! She was about 3 weeks when I gave her the pacifier. Now that she's older (and supply is level) she does sometimes nurse to sleep (and then pop off and stay asleep). But more often than not, she finishes nursing, pops off, and looks around for her pacifier. That's what she likes to sleep.

If it's any consolation, she doesn't use the pacifier for anything else and doesn't seem to "love" it in any fashion... she just greatly prefers to suck to sleep. I talked to my LC about it because I was totally distraught, but she said that a pacifier only interrupts a breastfeeding relationship when it is used IN PLACE OF the breast (i.e. baby is looking for breast and you offer pacifier) or if your baby has poor latch issues. I always offer DD the breast first and it has never been an issue for us.