Nipples still sore after 10 weeks......

[jenloafer77]

Hi everyone,
I don't what the problem is...I think my DS has a good latch, but my nipples are constantly sore.....they get blisters on or around the nipple, bleed and seem to be constantly cracked.  He does pull away from time to time, but not nearly as often as he did.....he does something weird with his mouth when he is still nursing.  I don't know what to do.....I don't think I can handle the pain much longer....it is one of the worst pains, besides contractions  that I have ever gone through......sometimes the thought of putting him back on is terrible.....

[Mortish]

Sounds to me like you need to see a lactation consultant and get them to have a look at how he is latching on etc.  Does the hospital where you had your baby have a breastfeeding clinic.  I went to one with my dd because I had really sore nipples...unbeknown to me...what i thought was a bad latch was actually a case of thrush...however, I certainly didn't have blisters or anything so I would definitely go and see one of the professionals...they will sit with you whilst you are breastfeeding and check out what is going on.

[jenloafer77]

The hospital where I delivered does have lactation consultants and I have seen a LC twice already for an overproduction problem....Last time I went and saw her about 3 weeks ago, I had a blister.  She said that he is latching fine, but because of the overproduction and fast letdown, there were problems with him pulling away and all should be well soon.  It was okay for a couple of weeks, and now we are back to the sore nipples.  I will give her a call however and schedule another appointment as I had some concerns about a lack of supply now......Thanks for the advice...I didn't think to call the lc this time around!!   

[Mortish]

Hey one other thing...I swear by this cream.....LANISOH.  You can buy it the world over from what I understand...generally at your pharmacy/chemist..whatever you call them in America:)

After every feed put it on your nipples...you don't have to wash it off when you go for the next feed...but this stuff really does help when you are experiencing sore nipples.  Trust me, it is worth its weight in gold!!!

I am not the breastfeeding specialist on this forum...and they might have some other ideas...but you know how you were saying that you had blisters...are they white??  Like a milk plug ie the milk isn't coming out of the duct, it is blocked...cause if they are white what you can do is when you are in the shower get your nail and scrape the white plug so that it unblocks ...then what you do is while the warm water is running over your breast you actually milk your breast a bit so that is clears the blockage, you want to see milk coming out of that milk plug..that means you are clearing it.  So everytime that you noticed that white blister coming back...when you are in the shower you can start unblocking it by following those procedures...after a while it will go away...and you wont have that incredible pain when they latch on.  Obviously, if you have got a clear sort of blister then don't do what I have said...because that is totally different.  A clear blister is on the surface of the breast thereby affecting the external part of the nipple...a white blister is a blocked milk duct effectively and you can give yourself quite a bit of relief by doing what I suggested.

HTH and you can continue on to some pain free breastfeeding.

[jenloafer77]

I love lansinoh......I use the lanolin a lot, but sometimes forget to.  It does work wonders. 
The blister I had a couple of weeks ago was right on top of the nipple, but was clear.  Very excruciating.  I hjaven't noticed any of the white plugged blisters, but if I do, I will definately do what you said!  Thanks again....I am calling my lc right now!!   

[Mortish]

Best of luck and let us know how you get on.

[Samuel's mum]

I definitely agree this sounds like time for an LC face-to-face intervention again.

Is the pain worse towards the end of a feed? Or is it pretty much all throughout? Can you describe where on the nipple appears to be the most damaged? That can indicate what it going on. i.e if there is a crack that can mean the nipple is literally being pulled in a certain direction.

Sore nipples sometimes start again at this age when a new mum is using a position where she takes the weight of the baby on her arms and hands. Now the baby is heavier the baby very gradually slips during the feed and slips out of position as the mother tires. You might not be aware you are doing it. An indication this is the cause is when a right-handed mother using a cradle hold has a sorer left nipple (as that's her weaker side for holding).
Also getting someone else to watch you feed and see if baby is touching the nursing pillow or whether there is a space and you are taking weight on your arm.

[jenloafer77]

I made an appointment with my LC for Monday.  The pain is actually worse when he first latches on.  He tends to get sleepy, almost falls asleep, sometimes lets the nipple slip and then sucks it right back in before I can stop him, and that hurts.  I am right handed and my left nipple hurts a lot worse and has more cracks in it.  That makes a lot of sense.  My right side has what looks like little sores around the base of the nipple.  It's pretty strange!  I'll just wait and see what the lc has to say!  Thanks for the info, Samuel's Mum....you have been very helpful since I have been on this forum and I appreciate it!!

[Samuel's mum]

That slipping off/ sucking back in thing suggests positioning to me. Latch often gets all the attention but positioning can mean lingering nipple soreness.
Can you describe the position you currently use?

[jenloafer77]

I use the clutch or football hold where the baby is on the side of the body.  It has worked the best for me...any other hold and he damages my nipples more!

[Samuel's mum]

Just make sure his head is very firmly supported and resting on something that can't move. Sometimes with that hold mums are really lifting their LO's head with their hands. If you have your arm/hand under his upper body you need a firm surface under that. Some squashy pillows will sink in the feed as well. You want a hold that won't go anyway so that he can't move off the nipple slowly as the feed progresses. Think about where gravity will be pulling.