3 month old has forgotten nursing skills

[Partaria]

DS and I had a hard start to nursing. Bad latches all over the place, and even when we got that right, he just has a very hard suck. But at around 8 weeks or so I thought- this is getting better.

Now, here we are at nearly 3 months and suddenly it's like he's forgotten how to nurse all over again!

I've got pinched nipples, and I've got a baby who's slurping noisily at the breast. He also sucks my nipple in and out of his mouth like spaghetti.

I'm going crazy. I thought we were out of the woods and now all the pain and irritation is back. Anyone else encountered this? I don't know what to do.

[HappyMonkey]

My daughter went through phases where she got more aware of breastfeeding and started to experiment. I don't remember what I did (she's 20 months now and still BFing). I think I did unlatch and relatch fairly regularly.. but that might just have been when she was biting!

[sosurreal09]

hmm can I recommend laid back nursing? http://www.biologicalnurturing.com/video/bn3clip.html at the least it would take the edge off.

If he gets a bad latch just slip him off with your finger and let him at it again. He will learn to open wide to latch right. Good luck and have strength!

[foreverinbluejeans]

Not all babies have perfect latches and sucks even if there is nothing wrong with them or you. If there is a way for you to get his mouth examined to make sure there aren't any problems that may be helpful. I had a son with a problem with the roof of his mouth  and he could never suck well. Pediatric dentists thought he would have to have surgery before his permanent teeth came in. He nursed over 4 years and all that nursing fixed his mouth enough he didn't need surgery. Of course bottles, pacifiers, and thumb or finger sucking can cause problems.

I like the suggestion of laid back nursing. Some problems can be overcome by letting the baby position themselves. Some babies don't like their head touched while they are nursing. Babies that have sensory integration problems can have nursing issues.

As your baby gets older you can encourage proper nursing behavior and discourage (without trauma) unwanted behavior.

[Mummoth]

Have a look around inside his mouth. DS and I hit a rough patch around 4 or 5 months and he had an infected saliva gland under his tongue (it was a white dot) so he was trying to find a way to eat without hurting.