Nipple Pain I need reassurance

JessAnnJ · January 2013

My daughter is six days old and breastfeeding has not gone as expected. My nipples are very sore. I cry out when she first latches and it continues to hurt during the feeding but not quite as bad. It feels like a ripping burning pain. It is terrible. I didn't expect it to feel good but this is more pain than I expected. She is already primarily on formula due to problems at the beginning and I am working to get on track but it's hard when it hurts so bad. At first I thought it was a latch problem but we went to see a lactation consultant and even with her monitoring the latch it still hurt. I guess I'm hoping someone can help reassure me that the pain will get better with time. Surprisingly we are not having problems switching between bottle and breast. She knows how to nurse and likes to nurse I am just having difficulty with the pain. Any comments or suggestions are appreciated.

FairyDuster003 · January 2013

I had to post here and ask the same thing! Those first few days are really hard! By 2 weeks, it was significantly better. I'm over 4 weeks into it and I don't even bat an eyelash when she latches. Sometimes it's sore if I let her go with a bad latch which I have only done when nursing in public mostly for fear of flashing nips over and over! But for the most part, I'm totally good now. And It only took 3 weeks so hang in there!

As far as pumping, I have a manual pump and even when I pump gently I find that it still makes my nipple more sore that it would be if I had just nursed. It could be my fault though... But my point is, I would just keep nursing because I always felt like it hurt worse if I went longer between!! I never used and shields or anything just fed her every 2 hours round the clock and used the soothies in my bra. I took ibuprofen and let my nips air dry with BM on them.

Don't give up! I cried every time I thought she was hungry because I knew what I was about to go through. But it totally gets better and keep talking to the ladies here they are very encouraging. I read a lot about benefits of breastfeeding on my phone as I nursed. That helped to keep me going. Almost everyone here absolutely understands how you feel and will tell you to keep up the good work.

Oh and lactation consultants are amazing even if you just call them for reassurance that your level of soreness is normal!

LEJB1985 · January 2013

I had a hard time at first too. I think for the first 2 or 3 weeks (all kind of a blur) my nipples burned. Showering was hell, nursing was hell. I have a forceful letdown and an oversupply and DD wanted to suck all the time so she got into the habit of clamping down and ripping her head off the nipple if she only wanted to comfort suck. I thought I wouldn't get through it - they always say that it doesn't hurt to nurse if you're doing it right. After the first couple of weeks - once she took to the paci - it got so much easier. We're at 6 months now as of tomorrow. It doesn't hurt at all and I just love nursing and I don't plan on giving it up until she self-weans.

hilsy85 · January 2013

it DOES get better!! I literally cried through every nursing session for the first 2.5 weeks, and gave bottles because I couldn't take it. My LO was tongue tied, so once we got that fixed, I still had some pain, but it got gradually better. Finally around 8.5/9 weeks, the pain was almost gone and now at almost 11 weeks, it's not painful anymore. Hang in there, it really gets better!! I didn't believe it when people told me that, but it's true. Just make sure you're using nipple cream (I liked motherlove nipple cream) and personally, I wouldn't let LO use me as a pacifier because it will exacerbate sore nipples.

HOWEVER, if it continues to hurt after another few days, and/or you have bleeding or cracked nipples, I would 100% get another opinion on her latch from a different LC. The first person we saw was from LLL (so not really an LC) and she totally missed LO's tongue tie. Breastfeeding does hurt at first, but your nipples should not be getting damaged. If they are, then there's a problem and you need to seek help.

mejane123 · January 2013

Yes! It will get better! The latch will probably always hurt a bit, but only for a second or two and not nearly as bad as that first week. For the first week or so, I was near tears every feeding, and it took me forever to get a latch on the right side that wasn't horribly painful through the whole feeding. But, I Googled my heart out and found lots of good tips on latching and getting comfy. Have you looked at www.kellymom.com? A lactation consultant recommended it to me, and it's been very helpful. Literally every question I've Googled was answered on there, so definitely check it out.

Goog luck, and try not to get too discouraged!

TJ1979 · January 2013

Google laid back nursing and watch the video. It's the only way I made it through the first couple of weeks. GL and hang in there. It sucks, but it gets better pretty quickly.

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