3rd Trimester
For those who have BF & had challenges...some questions
I asked this before in a different discussion, but I think it got lost in the daily posts. I have some questions for those that had difficulties (since I have no clue here):
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived?
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help?
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend?
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF?
p.s. thx to Jen1231 for replying before. 
This discussion has been closed.
Re: For those who have BF & had challenges...some questions
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived? No. Colostrum in the hospital, and probably the first day home, 2nd day home milk came in. Took about 5ish days. DD was a c/s baby though... I know that can slow the process down.
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help? Yes, I did and they did help a little, but not a whole lot. My best friend used the shield though, and swears by it.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams. I used a cream that I was given, and unfortunately can't remember what it was called =( It was in a purple tube. It did help though.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend? To just keep trying... try different positions, holds... let her take a break, and try again in a few minutes... etc.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF? No.
I am going to try again with DD2 but with DD1 it didn't last long and she was losing too much weight, and not sleeping, it was a terrible experience the first time around. =/ I know every baby is different though, so we shall see.
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived? nope, you may have some colostrum before LO but it typically takes a few days for your milk to come in. I didn't have anything until LO was born
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help? They did help but not enough. I have a high pain tolerance and I literally couldn't let DS latch anymore. That being said, every baby is different and so is every Mom. There may have been other reasons BF hurt so much. I gave it a break for 3-4 days (I pumped in the meantime) and it did get better.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams. I liked Lansinoh (sp?) the best
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend? nothing
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF? Yes, kinda. I ought a breastfeeding DVD
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived? No not for maybe 4-5 days after she came did it finally come in. I had the colustrum (yellow stuff) but no milk till later
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help? I had lots of pain but didn't use a shield although I probably should have considering my nipples were inverted.... but are no longer haha
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams. I used what the hospital supplied and to be honest I don't remember what it was. It was a cream.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend? The consultant recommended a different position. To be honest I didn't like the Lactation lady she was so rude to me and we ended up figuring it out on my own.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF? I did take a class and it was informative but didn't really prepare me for what I went through
I had some issues with DS and everything worked out in the end and I BF him for 17 months.
1. I had flat nipples when he was born so he had trouble latching. The lactation consultant in the hospital gave me nipple shields to use to bring out my nipple but I guess in the long run they hurt his latch and my supply.
2. I was getting conflicting information from the 2 lactation consultants I saw in the hospital, all of the nurses etc. When I got home I called a private lactation consultant that did home visits and she was great but for the first week he wasn't getting enough to eat and everyone was recommending supplementing formula. I would recommend picking one person you trust to listen to about breast feeding because everyone has a different opinion and it can be confusing.
3. I used lansinoh cream and it was great.
4. The private lactation consultant showed me different holds that could help with his latching and soon he was latching like a champ. She just had me practice it over and over again.
I didn't take a breast feeding class-it was covered a bit in my childbirth class. Good luck.
Your milk will not come in before the baby is born unless you take great pains to make it happen. Biologically the hormones that cause your body to know to make milk happen when the placenta detaches from your body after baby is born.
No shields. DS didn't have a bad latch, but there was still pain the first couple of weeks and just as my nipples were starting to do better from the regular wear and tear of BFing DS managed to split my right nipple in a place that he re-split it everytime he fed on that side. I just kept BFing as normal. About a week and a half after he split my nipple I bought a breastpump (the Medela Single Electric pump) and pumping did not hurt quite as bad as BFing, so I pumped on my right side for about two days until I was all the way healed.
I used the Lansinoh lanolin cream, but in all honesty the best thing for my nipples was to hand express a little milk when I was done feeding and rub it around my nipples and let them air dry for a while. Free, easy, and the best way to make painful nipples feel better!
Making a "breast burger" by squishing the breast to force more of the nipple into babies mouth. Remembering to bring baby to the breast and not vice-versa. Making sure baby's mouth was WIDE open. But the biggest help for me, because I have super large breasts, was for me to remember to support my breast with my hand in a "c" position while baby fed. I didn't have to support my breast forever, but for a few months it made all the difference in the world.
Nope. I did some reading and I had information for my local LLL on hand, but I didn't take a class. I did know there was an LC at my hospital and I knew I would be meeting with her.
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help? No...just stuck it out and cringed a lot.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams. Medela has an ointment. The LC gave me a few free samples.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend? Nothing. Just rub the tip of your nipple on the area between her upper lip and nose until she opened her mouth then stuff as much in her mouth as possible.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF? No
1. No. I did have some colostrum, but my milk came in on day 4. Anywhere from 4-7 days is normal, so expect that....your milk won't come in before you deliver although you may leak colostrum.
2.No shields. My LC did not want me to use them as they create issues on their own with supply and having to wean from them. They do help a lot of people, but I wouldn't use them for just 'pain'...you just have to get through it.
3. Lansinoh lanolin and soothies gel pads are great.
4.They had me make a boob sandwich, you make a sort of 'c' with your hand to compress the boob and make it easier to latch.
5. YES and it was great.
Don't stress yourself out. Not everyone has issues, and most issues are fixable with help. But that is key, GET HELP EARLY and OFTEN if you have any issues.
1. no, my milk didn't come in until at least 3 days after delivery. i had a c-sect, and that can impact when your milk will arrive.
2. i didn't use shields, and it will hurt the first week or so. but after your nipples acclimate, bfing shouldn't hurt. if it does, you could have an incorrect latch, or some sort of infection.
3. lansinoh is the greatest stuff invented ever!!!!
4. Trying different positions, and just keep trying. it took us about a week to get latching consistent each time.
5. i did not take bfing classes beforehand. i don't know if they would have helped. i think my expectations for bfing did not jive with reality and that is why i had trouble. until you go through it, you have no idea what to expect. but remember, it's completely normal to feel like all you do is nurse. get some good movies, or tv series on dvd. a long book if you can nurse comfortably while holding a book. i read through gone with the wind.
bfing is probably one of the more difficult things i've ever done. it does get easier as time goes on, but getting over the first 4 weeks is the hardest. just hang in there, and what ever you do, don't beat yourself up if it's not working, or if you have to supplement. it's not worth the guilt.
1. No, in the middle of the night my second night at home from the hospital, so 4 days PP. It was super painful and I was suddenly engorged and thought something was wrong and spent like 2 hours reading in my books and online. When DD finally nursed in the morning everything was fine.
2. No shields. I think it would be hard to get rid of them and who wants to be stuck using and washing shields?
3. I used the lansinoh cream, but usually I just tried to let milk air dry on my nipples.
4. Usually just trying to get DD's mouth really open, and to get the whole areola in her mouth. it just took some learning on both our parts. Using the boppy and extra pillows to bring her up to my chest instead of my chest to her helped.
5. I took a two hour BF class at the hospital that was an additional option the the hospital childbirthing class. It was helpful and inspiring.
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived? No, it took about 4 days.
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help? I used sheilds in the beginning because DD couldn't get a latch on, and the LC at the hospital suggested it. We used them for about 3 weeks, until she could latch on her own.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams. I pretty much just used the Lansinoh cream, and was pretty happy with it. Also, my SIL gave me different pads to use for each stage, which was a godsend. (weeks 1-3- Avent pads, weeks 4-6- Lansinoh Ultra soft, and 6+- Lansinoh disposables)
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend? I used a shield and have no regrets. It got us through the rough patch to BF for 10 months.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF? No
I didn't have challenges (til the biting started) but I'll answer anyway...
1. No. My milk came in just as I was leaving the hospital, which was about day 4 after birth. Until then I had the coppery looking gooey colostrum.
2. The pain I had was the typical pain caused by the bleeding blisters on the nipples about a week after G's birth. I left my shirt open at home whenever possible, and the pain lessened in about two days.
3. I used Lansinoh lanolin. G HATED the lanolin and I had to wipe it off before nursing or he would refuse to nurse. I also used the Medela gel pads which I tucked into the fridge - they are heavenly. My hospital provided them.
4. No latching issues.
5. Yes, I took a class. It wasn't more helpful than the book I read - "So that's what they're for!"
Good luck! It'll go just fine. Plenty of people breastfeed with no issues whatsoever.
Big brother and sister are excited to meet the new baby! It's a GIRL!
~ G ~ 10/2008
~ E ~ 7/2010
1. No my milk came in a day or 2 after DS was born. It was just colostrum until then.
2. I did try shields, but by the time I tried them (a couple of days after DS was born), my nipples were so scabbed and split, they really didn't help at all.
3. I used to Lanolin ointment and honestly, it really did nothing. I think until my nipples had a good couple of weeks to heal where I pumped instead of BF'd, they didn't heal at all.
4. The consultant just recommended to keep trying and to try different positions. I don't know if she was just not a good consultant or what, but I really didn't find her helpful. "Keep trying" wasn't exactly the profound advice or help that I desperately needed.
5. I didn't take a class but I did watch a video. I read a lot of info on it and I really don't know how much a class can help, if you have never done it before. It helps with knowing what to expect, but its quite different when youa actually have to do it.
Good luck with everything!
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived?
No. In my case Baby came early (I had PROM at 36w5d, FTP despite induction meds, then CS). The early arrival & extensive edema I got from the IV meds may have been the reason why my milk came in later than usual - 5 days after birth.
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help?
DS was a vigorous sucker and I was wicked raw & bleeding by the time milk came in. Our Ped recommended shields & though the lactation consultant didn't want me to use them I did about 1 week after beginning BFing - there was no way I could have continued BFing without them. They helped with pain but were a little difficult to use and DS didn't like them.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams.
I'm allergic to wool so I bought Earth Mama Angel Baby nipple butter - I think its cocoa butter based. My original lactation consultant pushed me to try lanolin because she wasn't familiar w my choice. To placate her I put lanolin on once and DS was furious, wouldn't nurse until I removed all traces of it. The nipple butter worked great & we will be using it again.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend?
We didn't have latch issues, our main issues were pain/ rawness & supply. I was eventually able to BF w/o pain but was unable to build up my supply enough despite extensive efforts on my part. Ultimately I made peace w/ supplementing w formula. I BF'd & topped off w formula for the 1st 6 months & then DS weaned himself from boobie (started refusing because it took too long for letdown) & did bottle only for another 6 months.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF?
No, I thought it would be no big deal. Apparently the common-ness of BFing issues are one of those well kept secrets because no one ever mentioned having difficulties until I began to talk about it then it seemed like everyone had some. I don't know if I could have avoided all of the problems we had but had I known more about how to avoid getting raw it would have saved me a lot of pain & heartache.
1. No, and my breasts didn't grow in size. An iota. I had milk in before I left the hospital, because I had a c/s and was there for a few days.
2. N/A
3. N/A
4. Different positions/holds mostly.
5. No, I read through "So That's What They're For" pretty thoroughly, and took the BF class in the hospital.
... What sucked pretty hard (no pun intended) was that the LC in the hospital was off for the weekend. Sooo I delivered Friday morning, and she wasn't in til Monday. Uhh. Thanks.
These answers are so helpful!
I've started to leak what must be colostrum and it's very interesting. Most of my friends didn't BF for long and aren't a good help in terms of sharing the challenges and successes. It's nice to hear that after the first few weeks it can get better.
I definitely want to BF and being realistic is important. I've heard it is hard but your answers help me to understand why. Thank you to everyone.
Lurking from the 2nd Tri board to respond...
1. Did your milk start to come in before LO arrived?
Thankfully, no.
2. For those that had pain, did you attempt to use shields in the beginning? Or did they not help?
Never used shields.
3. What lotions/salves did you use? I've heard the lanolin oil is gentler on the skin than the lotions/creams.
Bella B Nipple Nurture Butter was a lifesaver. It does not have lanolin oil. My DD would not latch if I used anything with lanolin since it tasted pretty bad. Fortunately for me, I figured out the issue on my own before giving up.
4. When the baby had issues with latching on, what did the consultants recommend?
Changing holds which really didn't make a difference. For me, the difference was discontinuing lanolin and using a Boppy pillow.
5. Did you take a BF class in advance of attempting to BF?
No. I really don't think it would have helped.