my life as a nudist

nattlynn6

Oh yes, that's right. Since I started EBF my breast feel like im nursing a piranha, excuse the TMI but my nipples are raw, red & in places cracked & bleeding. I read some where that getting air to your breast helps. So I figured Id go topless for a night. well it really did the trick & now iv been walking around my house for the day topless. Sad I know but its the only way to help my breasts in between feedings. Yesterday morning I literally cried latching her on, today its more of a teeth grind silent scream. progress!! although I have my fingers crossed my neighbors are on vacation every time I run past the kitchen window & duck into the fridge. I can only imagine what I look like vacuuming, cooking up some dinner topless. oh breastfeeding I LOVE YOU!

punkrockabye

I feel you completely! Mine are also huge... DDD before pregnancy, and now engorged. LO's latch has become... wrong... and it's awful. She also refused to take my boob almost all day; a lactation consultant we know was able to come help, thank god, because she didn't eat from about 10 this morning until 7 at night. Well, she got a few sucks in, and gave us a hugely poopy diaper, but we were still terrified.

I've been given a nipple shield and it worked okay; not ideal and still painful, but it worked. I've been told that if I need to pump to avoid the pain then I can spoon feed her rather than give a bottle--there's a way to let them lap the milk off of a spoon. It'll be difficult but she needs to eat and I really want to avoid bottles.

But yes, I am topless. Even with MIL who has stepped in to help a couple days when DH is at work, unplanned, because of some health scares I've had. She's in town from 5 hours away and wasn't going to be at our place because she's allergic to our cat. I'm glad she's not fazed by boobs hanging everywhere because ever since pushing a baby out of my vagina, I've cared not about modesty.

Although, I will say, I do see how and why so many moms give up on BF. This is MISERABLE right now. It would be so much easier to have DH give her formula while I sleep instead of me needing to painfully feed her every 2 hours, but she's worth it. I just know that this will pass if I just power through it.

sdlaura

Yep, me too.  When BF as often as most of us are these days, it's way easier to run around the house with your shirt off!  Modesty has gone out the window.  Though we have two weeks straight of parents staying with us starting Wednesday, so I will have to get used to covering up!

AprilAngie

Squirt BM on nipples to heal and get lansinon it works where cracks are

DemoDoll

You can buy nipple covers that go around your nipples and don't let anything touch them. My LC gave me a set to help heal my nipples. You can wear a bra or just a nursing tank with them and they stay in place and the clothing doesn't rub on them. My LC had me putting bacitracin and lanolin on my nipples, then wearing the nipple cover over it. I would first express milk onto my nipple and let it air dry a few minutes, then apply the creams/covers.

Here are the ones I have:

https://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=158326&catid=182624&aid=338077&aparam=medela_therashells_breas&CAID=5bec5833-dc5a-44c7-b2ad-b8c3dc61aba6

And here are a pair that I'm going to buy. They protect the nipple and also helps save milk that has expressed while nursing:

https://www.amazon.com/Philips-Comfort-Breast-Shells-2-Pack/dp/B000058DQJ/ref=pd_sbs_ba_2