Breastfeeding help 😢

Do your nipple creams contain lanolin? That stuff works so well for me x

I got blisters the first few days from breastfeeding and it was because the latch was wrong, I kept asking the midwife’s at the hospital but they didn’t really help so I asked my community midwife and she showed me how to hold my baby while she feeds. I’ve got nipple cream that I put on both sides after feeding (even if she doesn’t feed from both sides) and I’ve got some cool pads that you put on you nipples to help soothe them. We also started giving her some formula for when I get sore (my midwife said there’s not enough evidence to prove that it’ll affect the way they breast feed) Are there some breastfeeding classes you could go to? Definitely try and get some sleep, maybe try and get someone to look after you baby for a couple of hours while you sleep and if baby gets hungry ask the visitor to bottle feed them

Always number 1: Make sure you have a fed baby!!! Starting with formula and switching to breastfeeding is completely okay and more normal than you may think. Once you can cool down the sensitivity of your nipples, then you can reach your breastfeeding goals! So, I encourage you to Rest your body. Start with some ice to soothe your nipples and try pumping on the lowest setting if you can manage. Feed what you can pump from a bottle. With coconut oil, Do some breast massages and avoid touching your nipples and massage your whole breast going down as far as you can to hand express your milk. If you can, try getting a haakaa and see if that helps with pressure off your nipples. Latching: Try a new hold for baby girl; have a bottle ready and give her that nipple then after a few suckles, switch out for your nipple when you can (best if you have a partner until you can do it on your own); make sure your areola is in her mouth, not just your nipple, pointing up to the roof of the mouth as much as possible.

The more sleep you get the better it’ll be, also the more relaxed you are too! Take some time to look after yourself as well as that’ll name a huge difference! It’s not just your baby you’ve got to look after! Feel free to message me anytime!

Lastly, follow up with a lactation consultant and see what they would say too. This information is what I got from my consultant.

Hello Hun, sorry to hear of your challenges in this tender time. Have you heard of silverettes' nursing cups? I feed bub on 1 breast and keep one attached on the other, so 1 boob gets a rest. I Squeeze out some milk and rub it around the nipple before I put it on. The idea is that infections cannot start where silver is. There should only be slight pain for 10 sec when bub latches, if the pain continues put your pinky finger in the corner of his mouth release the suction and re latch. If you squirt some milk and wave it above his nose it can encourage them to open their mouth more aiming for deep latch, when latched look for the special K sign on the mouth (check online). If your breasts are sore massage them with a heat pack and when the baby is sucking massage the sore duct and hopefully bub will suck it out. Make sure bubs feet are well-supported and reach out to a Lactation consultant if you need them. Goodluck x

It can take some time for babies to start latching properly, often due to nipple size. I'm sorry that you're experiencing so much pain. It's important to keep trying until the baby gets the hang of it. You can try using a warm, damp towel or something icy to massage the breast, as it can be helpful. Additionally, gently massaging, pumping your breast every 2 hours, and applying pressure to the breast can help prevent engorgement. ❤️

Sorry to hear you’ve been having a rough go of it🥺 it’s a really hard journey. Know that you’re not alone, I’ve been in a similar situation. I think the key thing is to get in touch with your hospital by calling triage and see if they can organise for a midwife, maternity support worker, or someone from the infant feeding line to come out to you. I did that and I’ve had people coming out to help me or checking in on me most days which has been really amazing. They helped us work on our latch, and identify that my little one has a tongue tie too. You need to do this asap though whilst you’re still under the care of the midwives! Apart from that, using silver nipple shields that have been in the fridge helps enormously, a haakaa and manual pump to increase supply and top up when needed, and you could look into nipple shields xx

@Faith my baby is 2 weeks old and incorporating some formula has been a life changer for me! I breast feed every 2 hrs or so throughout the day, and then use one baby bottle of formula around midnight and baby girl will sleep around 3 hrs when she is really full and that gives my boobs a little much needed break! I felt so guilty at the beginning but there is no reason too. She is gaining weight and is super active! (We just surpassed her birth weight at 2 weeks so we are doing something right!)

I second the silver nipple cups! Saved me when I breastfed! Pop some breadtmilk in the cup and put it on under your bra. Also try and spend some time airing out 'the girls' too. Everyone says 'breastfeeding shouldn't hurt' but it does at first, but I promise it stops hurting once everything is established and your nips get used to it. Look for a breastfeeding support group as it helps to also make friends with people who are also breastfeeding xxx

https://naturalbreastfeeding.com/ I’ve watched this video and it looks amazing! I really hope you can get the help you need lovely 🥰

I visited a infant feeding team breastfeeding support class but they did say if I wasn’t able to make it to them they’d send someone from their team to my home to help with latch, I found them on the NHS website I also contacted the breastfeeding network hotline, who answered some questions for me over the phone I swore by lasinoh nipple cream and my mom recommended cabbage leaves for engorgement which helped me loads x

Have you got a pump? I find the pump less painful. Could be a way to express milk without the pain.

If you’re in Australia, call the Australian breastfeeding association. They have qualified breastfeeding counsellors that can help.

I was like this for a few days. Your nipples do toughen up and it gets so much easier. In the mean time get them out as much as possible, use lanolin nipple creams, and also try rubbing your breastmilk on them. I would also seek guidance on latching from your community midwife/ a lactation consultant as much as possible xx

I was definitely struggling first few days if not longer with my boy too but I'm sure things will get better, I personally had no idea when I started what I was doing now I have a bit more of an idea from some good advice from midwife (he was struggling with latch too, i still have to shove nipple into his mouth a bit now and he's almost 3 weeks - I didn't realise he had to take more than just the nipple for it to not be really really sore) your girl will get more used to it with time I'm sure , have you considered trying nipple shields? It helped my boy latch when he was struggling more and now I haven't used them for a while it's more of a last resort for me but it may help? Just makes it easier for them to get a good grip especially at the beginning (: good luck!! Xxx

I was exactly the same and for me it got a million times better and we’re now 4 months in and I absolutely love breastfeeding. It did take a few weeks and some painful days but if you really want to breastfeed I’d defo say persevere. Lansinoh nipple cream and silver nipple cups saved my nipples 1000%. Also, for me a nursing pillow massively helped for the first 8 weeks and please find your local breastfeeding clinic. I went every week for like a month and they were so so helpful with tips and they watch a full feed and tell you what’s going on, how to make it better etc - they were a life saver But remember that some babies/mums breastfeeding just doesn’t work out for them and that’s completely fine and normal, the most important thing is baby is getting fed and mum is happy so whatever that looks like for you - that’s fine! Hope it all works out for you, there is some great advice in this thread so I hope you see you’re not alone!

try a lactation specialist to help you with latching so you can try different positions n so they can help you how to get baby to latch better that helped me . and i pumped for a couples days after birth until my nipples weren’t really sore anymore n fed baby both what i pumped n formula until my milk came in n just gave baby breast milk afterwards

I had a horrendous first few days too! My advice would be 1 - Lanolin nipple cream - that's helped me absolutely loads! 2 - Get a pump (I only got a cheap manual one as a starting point) so that you can feed baby an expressed bottle, or alternatively if you need to give her a bottle of formula do it. If baby is getting hungry and frustrated and you are getting sore and frustrated it's only going to make it harder to crack the latching. Get baby fed, give yourself a rest and reset. 3 - my biggest breakthrough was hand expressing a small amount of milk onto the end of my finger and getting her to practice latching and sucking on that. Firstly it gives your nipples a break and it also made me realise that our problem was she wasn't getting my nipple far enough into her mouth to latch properly. I use my thumb and forefinger just above and below the nipple to gently squeeze it forward so that it sticks out more and aim it right for the roof of her mouth and that works for us now!

Postpartum day 5..i had a rough start and could tell you i have only slept 1hour the past 2days. One of my nipple is not working fir her and the other one is so sore i can't even let her touch it. I start exclusivly pumping and can safely say i provide 60% of her mk while trying to produce more. I am supllementing with formula

Just breathe. You are doing the best you can. Remember, this is a skill that your baby is trying to learn. Just keep latching your baby on the breast. There are videos to help you with proper latching. I also had to get a lactation consultant during my breast feeding journey. I understand that’s not an option for every mom because we all have financial situations that differ. Just breathe. The first three months I cried and hardly slept because my daughter was always on the breast and would sleep maybe 30 minutes to an hour most days, all day. It was extremely tough and exhausting but eventually it gets better. I did not use any nipple balms, just ice before and after feeds because my nipples too were sore and that’s the most natural relief I could find that helped me. Hang in there. *hugs*

One thing no one told me about trying to get baby to latch on again to make it comfortable is when you take them off the breast put your pinky finger in the corner of their mouth to release the suction. Don’t try to pull them away because they’ll just suck harder and try to stay on

Thank you all so much for your lovely and very helpful & resourceful responses, I really appreciate every comment and will take it all on board. Been practicing a lot today and I think it seems to be getting better/easier so hopefully in a few days time I’ll fully get the hang of it and won’t have any more sore nipples! 🫣 love to you all ❤️