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Weaning off the nipple shield? Help please

jCamsquaredjCamsquared
in Breastfeeding

The hospital started us using a shield when we first tried BFing right after he was born. It is the only complaint I have about my hospital. They said it was because I was puffy from delivery so my nipples were flat. I wish they had just let us try ourselves and work with the LC at the hospital while we were there. I'm sure we would have done fine.

Well, now I can't get him off it. He will latch without it fine at first, but then get all frantic, sucking for a few then popping off and thrashing his fists around. I always just end up putting the shield back on.

The biggest problem with this is it is beyond messy. He eats a ton (is already up almost a lb from birth at 10 days old) but still manages to leak a ton of milk. It gets all over both of us. I have to strip him down to a diaper and myself down to my bra just to feed him. There is no way I can feed him in public like this.

Any advice for getting him off the shield would be greatly appreciated. I have an LC coming tomorrow to help but will take all the help/advice I can get.

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Re: Weaning off the nipple shield? Help please

  • tvg1977tvg1977
    We used nipple shields at first too, for different reasons.  I eventually got him to wean off at about 4 weeks old.  I would latch him on with the shield, let him nurse for just 2-3 minutes, then quickly pop him off and remove the shield and pop him back on.  Eventually he didn't need them to latch on.  The weaning process only lasted a few days. 
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  • Annabelle81Annabelle81 member

    Hang in there, you are doing a great job!  I used one until my son was about 4 weeks old.  He just could not latch on without it until then despite several hours with a great LC. He'd get frustrated, I'd get frustrated and it was a mess all around. I finally got him to latch by starting with the shield so he wasn't quite so hungry and slipping it off and latching him on without it mid feeding session. 

    It also gets less messy once your supply regulates a little.  I used a cloth diaper/burp rag to try to control the spray until about 2 months when things calmed down a bit. Good luck with the LC.

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  • brigitted82brigitted82
    On top of what the other post said about taking off the shield and relatching them, the other thing to try is before even latching your baby on, use a pump to bring out your nipple.  Their suck reflex is at the back of their soft palate so that's why they need the feel of the nipple in their mouth, which the shield provides.  Hope that helps!
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  • hannibal+edhannibal+ed
    I have a flat nipple that won't stay out, no matter what, unless something is sucking on it.  We did shields for the first few months, and when I was weaning off of them I had to kind of tease the nipple to a peak - pinched and pulled lightly to get enough out to get LO to latch.  Worked after a few days, and went without the shields until she stopped taking the breast entirely.
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  • jCamsquaredjCamsquared

    Thanks for the advice ladies. I am going to have to try popping him off after a few minutes. As far as the flat nipples, I don't actually have flat nipples, I was just really puffy right after delivery so they weren't popping out well. I didn't realize this though until the LC came in later on in the day. Now they pop out fine, but he is so used to the shield that he goes nuts unless he starts with it. Sigh!

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  • the.aynesthe.aynes

    My Lo was a preemie and has to be fed with a syringe and never would latch on after that. She has been on a nipple shield ever since. I just read your advice and was able to get her to latch for the first time ever without the shields. Thanks!

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