BFing....is this a sign of bad latch?

[LauraMoser]

I never really had any issues BFing DDs. DS is proving to be a little different. I don't have trouble per se, but it hurts like a MFer. For about the first 10-30 seconds, it is toe-curling pain. I actually have to focus really hard to get through the seconds of pain.

He opens his mouth pretty good, but I think maybe not quite wide enough. I try to get a good amount of breast tissue in there like they tell you to, but I've got big boobs, so I don't know whether I have enough in there for him or if I should try to shove more in. I've tried to get more in, but he seems to readjust when I do so and ends up pushing some of it back out.

I know that BFing tends to be painful in the beginning, but I can't remember if it was ever this painful with either DD or not. I did have a scab on my one nipple that was there for a few days, but did finally completely heal. I've been worried that the pain may be a sign of thrush, but have checked DS and I repeatedly today and I don't see any signs of thrush, thankfully.

I also get pain/itchiness sometimes after BFing. Not every time, but sometimes its quite painful and/or intensely itchy in my whole breast for a few minutes after BFing. I don't remember that happening with DDs at all.

I'm thinking of messaging my L&D nurse friend to see what she might recommend. I'm also considering going to see the LC at my OB's office. I do have a nipple shield here though. Do you think its worth giving that a try first? Or would you just go ahead and message friend or call the LC?

Any advice? And why the heck do I feel so new to all of this this time around? Its my third kid! I should know this stuff already! lol

[Brie]

My LCs all said that in the beginning, the "three-suck toe curl" is normal. Basically, it is normal for the initial latch and first few sucks to hurt, but it should go away.

I had that for about the first month, but then it went away. I think it is partially because their mouths are so small in the beginning--as they get a little bigger, they can get more in and it doesn't hurt anymore.

I would call the LC. It can't hurt!

[zeewifeandmama]

Lol I felt like that with my second...geeze am I new?! Anyway, when my son was 8 days old and we were having some minor issues I just went ahead and went to see a LC. It was THE best decision. She not only helped my bf'ing issues but she really helped me gain back my confidence and remind me that I DO know what I'm doing. GL

[celiacmom]

I'd call a LC. It cannot hurt to get their opinion. Not to scare you but I had thrush when my son was tiny and he never got it so checking you LO might not be indicative. Were you strep b positive and get antibiotics during labor? If so it is highly likely that it could be thrush.
I'm sorry bf is hurting. Hang in there! Congrats on your new little one.

[sewpinkgal]

I had that with my son and by the week mark, it was getting to the point where either I was going to fix it or I was going to have to stop BFing altogether. It was that bad. I saw an LC a couple days later and she was so SO helpful in getting us back on the right track. Good luck!

[LauraMoser]

Dec 5, 2012 0:34:44 GMT -5 celiacmom said:

I'd call a LC. It cannot hurt to get their opinion. Not to scare you but I had thrush when my son was tiny and he never got it so checking you LO might not be indicative. Were you strep b positive and get antibiotics during labor? If so it is highly likely that it could be thrush.
I'm sorry bf is hurting. Hang in there! Congrats on your new little one.

No, didn't have Strep B or antibiotics during labor. When you had thrush, did you have any of the white stuff on your nipples like babies get in their mouth? DD2 had thrush once but we treated it before I got it, so I admittedly don't know what it'd look like on me, if it would even have any visible signs.

I keep thinking about giving him a bottle when it comes time to feed him, but then feel kind of bad about wanting to do so, so I end up BFing. The pain is rough!

[karinothing]

IF you think his latch is shallow you can try pulling down his bottom lip when he latches on. That helped a lot with DS in the beginning. Eventually he figured out how to do it on his own. I just pulled down on the skin at his chin if that makes sense.

[londoncalling]

What hold are you using? You may have to switch to something like the cross cradle or football hold that allows you to keep constant pressure on the back of his head so he doesn't slide down the nipple after latch.

[knitty]

I'd get his latch checked out.

I did gentian violet for a spectacular case of thrush when my baby was tiny, and it was awesome - because they didn't drool yet it wasn't at all messy!

[holly116]

Dec 5, 2012 6:29:23 GMT -5 londoncalling said:

What hold are you using? You may have to switch to something like the cross cradle or football hold that allows you to keep constant pressure on the back of his head so he doesn't slide down the nipple after latch.

I agree with this. I also successfully nursed my DD without issue and then it all fell apart with my son. He had a shallow latch, I think my body was like "hey, breastfeeding again!" And completely over produced and was choking my newborn. I never used any other hold with my DD but my son needed his head controlled and my milk slowed down so the football hold while leaning back a bit worked well. Also, the breast friend pillow is much better in the beginning. Now I'm back to the easy boppy, but I needed that horribly named pillow in the beginning.

Another thing to check for is a tongue tie - my DS had one and even though I had it clipped the day he was born, the little guy didn't know how to use his tongue and he really, really beat me up.

The number one piece of advice, go see a LC. Seriously, I waited till DS was 6 weeks, just getting through one death pain feeding at a time. I thought I had thrush because I had white blotches after feeding - it was nipple blanching with vasospasms. My body was literally cutting off the blood flow and I had waves of pain radiating on the entire front of my body. It hurt like hell. Much worse than any of my c-section recovery and I think it contributed to some PPD since I was in constant pain for close to 2 months.

We have a center for breastfeeding medicine at the children's hospital here and the doctor I saw was a Godsend. I had to back off on nursing - pump and immediately feed, only letting DS nurse at the breast once a day. Then I slowly added back feedings till we were all healed about a month later. My key sign for too much nursing was if my nipples started to feel sunburnt, then I needed to pump more.

I HTHs! Good news, after all the initial pain, we're now going strong at almost 10 months. Good luck!

[londoncalling]

Oh, if you are having vasospasms with blanching, try getting warmth on your nipples immediately after a feeding. It will help return the blood flow with less pain.

[Ashley&Scott]

What do his lips look like when he's latched? They should be puckered out like a fish. (not sucked in covering his gums) This made a huge difference in my comfort. If his lips are sucked in you can gently pull them out while he's still latched. Make sure you check the top & bottom lip.

I would also recommend seeing a LC. If you have any BF support groups in your area they are usually free & usually have a lactation consultant there to help.

[Ashley&Scott]

Also, breastmilk & air will help your nipples heal.

Earth Mama Angel Baby Nipple Butter is awesome too & worked so much better for me than lanolin. It lasts forever, I've been using the same jar for 10 mo.

[celiacmom]

Dec 5, 2012 0:42:17 GMT -5 LauraMoser said:

Dec 5, 2012 0:34:44 GMT -5 celiacmom said:

I'd call a LC. It cannot hurt to get their opinion. Not to scare you but I had thrush when my son was tiny and he never got it so checking you LO might not be indicative. Were you strep b positive and get antibiotics during labor? If so it is highly likely that it could be thrush.
I'm sorry bf is hurting. Hang in there! Congrats on your new little one.

No, didn't have Strep B or antibiotics during labor. When you had thrush, did you have any of the white stuff on your nipples like babies get in their mouth? DD2 had thrush once but we treated it before I got it, so I admittedly don't know what it'd look like on me, if it would even have any visible signs.

I keep thinking about giving him a bottle when it comes time to feed him, but then feel kind of bad about wanting to do so, so I end up BFing. The pain is rough!

I did not have white patches, but my nipples were more red then normal. I couldn't stand anything touching them. I'm sorry you are going through this. Hang in there!

[Deleted]

I had crazy pain for the first 10-30 seconds in the early weeks with DD and she was an awesome breastfeeder. Never any other problems and her latch was fine. It just was. It went away after the first 2-3 weeks (if I remember correctly... which I might not).

I would still call a LC if you are concerned. It can't hurt.

[jenny1223]

I had a lot of pain (screaming and crying pain) while breastfeeding DS in the first couple months and it turned out he was tongue tied. Getting that treated helped a lot. Can his tongue extend out over his lip?

[LauraMoser]

Dec 5, 2012 12:18:49 GMT -5 jenny1223 said:

I had a lot of pain (screaming and crying pain) while breastfeeding DS in the first couple months and it turned out he was tongue tied. Getting that treated helped a lot. Can his tongue extend out over his lip?

I tried to see if I could tell by having him suck on my finger. When I have my finger in there, it feels like his tongue doesn't come out past his gum. Is there another way to tell?

His lips are flanged out like they should be so I don't think its that.

[jenny1223]

Dec 5, 2012 13:43:38 GMT -5 LauraMoser said:

Dec 5, 2012 12:18:49 GMT -5 jenny1223 said:

I had a lot of pain (screaming and crying pain) while breastfeeding DS in the first couple months and it turned out he was tongue tied. Getting that treated helped a lot. Can his tongue extend out over his lip?

I tried to see if I could tell by having him suck on my finger. When I have my finger in there, it feels like his tongue doesn't come out past his gum. Is there another way to tell?

His lips are flanged out like they should be so I don't think its that.

There are different things they check for. If the frenulum under his tongue extends all the way to the tip of the tongue or if it seems really tight, it might be restricting his ability to suck. Also if the tongue makes a heart shape when crying/moving the tongue.

Kelly Mom has a page with some links: kellymom.com/health/baby-health/bfhelp-tonguetie/

[Deleted]

Dec 5, 2012 11:46:08 GMT -5 @carmensandiego said:

I had crazy pain for the first 10-30 seconds in the early weeks with DD and she was an awesome breastfeeder. Never any other problems and her latch was fine. It just was. It went away after the first 2-3 weeks (if I remember correctly... which I might not).

I would still call a LC if you are concerned. It can't hurt.

Ditto all of this. Those first two weeks were hell. I cried almost every time he nursed. Then all of a sudden, after 2 weeks, it just stopped hurting.

I did see a LC in the hospital though and so I knew his latch was good. had the pain not gone away I would have called another LC after those first few weeks.

[LauraMoser]

Dec 5, 2012 14:25:25 GMT -5 @mrsbecky07 said:

Dec 5, 2012 11:46:08 GMT -5 @carmensandiego said:

I had crazy pain for the first 10-30 seconds in the early weeks with DD and she was an awesome breastfeeder. Never any other problems and her latch was fine. It just was. It went away after the first 2-3 weeks (if I remember correctly... which I might not).

I would still call a LC if you are concerned. It can't hurt.

Ditto all of this. Those first two weeks were hell. I cried almost every time he nursed. Then all of a sudden, after 2 weeks, it just stopped hurting.

I did see a LC in the hospital though and so I knew his latch was good. had the pain not gone away I would have called another LC after those first few weeks.

DS was 2 weeks old on Monday. I keep hoping that it'll just stop, as I remember the pain just suddenly vanishing with DDs, but it hasn't yet.

I've been working at it today, trying to make sure he has a good latch. So far, the pain is still there. I pumped for the last feeding and gave it to him by bottle because I just needed a break. I am going to give the nipple shield a try next feeding, as I read that that can help if they don't have a good latch.

I want to BF, and I'm determined to make it work without so much pain!

[holly116]

Dec 5, 2012 14:39:01 GMT -5 LauraMoser said:

Dec 5, 2012 14:25:25 GMT -5 @mrsbecky07 said:

Ditto all of this. Those first two weeks were hell. I cried almost every time he nursed. Then all of a sudden, after 2 weeks, it just stopped hurting.

I did see a LC in the hospital though and so I knew his latch was good. had the pain not gone away I would have called another LC after those first few weeks.

DS was 2 weeks old on Monday. I keep hoping that it'll just stop, as I remember the pain just suddenly vanishing with DDs, but it hasn't yet.

I've been working at it today, trying to make sure he has a good latch. So far, the pain is still there. I pumped for the last feeding and gave it to him by bottle because I just needed a break. I am going to give the nipple shield a try next feeding, as I read that that can help if they don't have a good latch.

I want to BF, and I'm determined to make it work without so much pain!

What kept me going through all the pain was the fact that it wasn't my first baby. So I knew that if I could get through it, it would be SO much easier than messing with formula and bottles in the long run.

As far as the tongue tie goes, take him to the pediatrician and have them check if you aren't sure. I was in so much pain that when I was on the phone with a LC they had me convinced that they didn't clip it all in my DS's case. So off to the pediatrician I went that very day (he was fine..). There are several ways it could be tied and not all are obvious.

There's nothing wrong with pumping to give yourself a break. I never had to pump with DD and it really made me feel like shit to not be able to just feed my son like normal. I only took 6 months off between the two kids! How could I not be doing it right? It was a dark place.

You have to be easy on yourself. Pump if you need to, try the nipple shield if you think that'll help, go see your pedi and a LC as soon as you can.

[UnderProtest]

Definitely see a LC. I saw one in the hospital (who was awful) and then one at the pediatricians office when they were over a week old. The second LC was surprised the kids were able to eat at all because of their tongue ties. The pediatricians didn't even notice it. It was so bad that the LC got one of the doctors to clip them immediately. It was so much less painful, although they could scream so much louder. Can't hurt to see a LC even if it isn't that. They should be able to diagnose the problem.