Feeling a bit shite n oochie atm! help?

[DaniMoose]

hey girls

Lo is now 10 days old and we started off ff in hospital as my milk didnt come in till day 4 and couldn't get enough colostrum out to feed her.
I knew that i'd like to express more than breastfeed as i had so many issues with my first baby...mainly nipple pain, aswell as thrush in my milk ducts (no external symptoms on nips or lo)

I've been getting ALOT of nipple pain from day one again, trying to nurse and pumping hasn't helped, along with lanolin....they're not cracked or bleeding, just barbed wire type pain when anything touches them

Lo has a stupidly hard suck too and often slips onto my nipple, which gave me blisters in hosp but have healed now. I have also tried nipple shields but that also encourages her to nipple suck as my nipples dont reach the tip, but am hoping this issue will get better as her mouth grows to get a decent enough latch.

I don't know what else to do...i've been taking acidophilus as a preventative to thrush so i've kinda ruled that out, so just moping about now feeling like the pain will never go away, but am persisting with pumping so at least lo will get bm.

Luckily my supply is increasing as the days go by, but would like to get lo on at least now and again so that my milk will adjust as she gets older.

Any suggestions?

 

[DaniMoose]

anyone?

 

[sheldonsmommy]

Aw I feel for you! The pain in the early days is almost unbearable. For about a week I was almost crying when my son latched, and that was with a good latch. I think getting a good latch is going to be your first priority. Did you get any good advice in hospital? If you tickle her upper lip with your nipple, she should open her mouth. Do this until she opens really wide then put as much boob in there as possible (almost or all of your areola). This may take a couple tries, and if it doesn't work the first time, unlatch (by gently putting a finger in her mouth to break the seal) and try again.

Continue to use Lansinoh or other nipple cream religiously!

If you are able, take a day or two and just breastfeed. Stay in bed, have everything you need on hand and just nurse. This will encourage your milk production to be what your lo needs. I get that it's not always feasible with a toddler, but do something similar so baby can feed when she wants.

As for the pain, you could try a teething gel that numbs your nipples and wipe it off before you feed? Also relaxation techniques can help you not only manage pain, but it will also help with letdown.

If you want to continue to supplement, I would suggest pumping at the time of feeding, and also in between feeds as formula will keep your lo full for longer and your boobs won't get an accurate measure of how much bm lo needs, if that makes sense.

I can't speak to nipple shields, but I'm sure someone else on here can.

I hope you can find something that works for you soon!