Encouragement please!

Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having a
rough time. I must have been latching her on wrong when I was in the hospital
because I got blisters on the tips of my nipples. The blisters have popped and
I have crescent shaped scabs on the tops of both nipples. It is excruciatingly
painful when the baby latches on. It doesn't seem like they are healing at
all.

Baby is eating constantly, which I expected. What I didn't expect was this
pain. I could deal with the lack of sleep separately, but the combination of
these two things is taking a toll on me. My right nipple is significantly
worse and I cry in pain every time she latches on to that one. Baby also won't
sleep anywhere but on my chest. This is ok, but kind of scary for me. I tried
a bassinet, a snuggle nest and I just bought a co-sleeper. I wait until she is
limp and floppy asleep and put her down. I keep my hands on her because I am
hoping she thinks she is still on me. But after a minute or so her eyes pop
open and she starts making hungry faces and/or crying.

Despite this, I do enjoy breastfeeding and I want to do it exclusively. Last
night I was contemplating giving her a pacifier and just now my mom (I live
with my parents) suggested that I give her formula. She suggested it because
baby kept pushing herself away so she only had the tip and I had to keep
relatching her. Baby was frustrated and I was in pain so we were both crying.
I told my mom there was no way.

I have a pump in style because I have to go back to work fairly soon. I think
that pumping would be less painful than baby but I am very hesitant to give her
a bottle of pumped milk because she already has troubles latching on (likes to
just suck the tip.) That is also the reason I didn't give her a pacifier. I
don't want to mess things up worse. I don't think she uses me as comfort or a
pacifier, when she is eating I hear lots of swallows. When she starts to just
halfheartedly mouth, I take her off and she is content.

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a moment of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.

Nichole
mom to Salome, born Dec. 9th

Hi Nichole!

Congratulations on your new baby! I'm sorry, I don't
have much advice on helping your pain, but I had a
little latch problem before with Pillbug and I would
just keep relatching him. I would do it constantly,
just pop him off, put him back on, until it was correct.
Also, check to make sure your arm is well-supported,
so that you don't slip gradually so that baby slips
to a bad position. I would put a pillow under my
upper arm while I was in the glider.

Will your baby sleep next to you? I used to keep
Pillbug snuggled in my arm next to me. That kept
him happy until he started squirming too much!

You're doing great... Keep up your spirit. It gets
wearying, we've all been there. But, it really does
get easier later.

-- Anita --

nichole wrote:
Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having a
rough time. [...]

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nichole wrote:

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a moment of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.

You're really doing well...most would have resorted to bottles by this
point. Good job!!!!

I don't know about healing (others here will comment tho). I'm sure you
will!

Follow your instinct. You are already listening well to it, so keep it
up.

Latch, unlatch, relatch. That's the only way both of you will learn.
Do it now, rather than later, cause later the problems will be worse.

Keep it up!!!!!!!!
--
It's Tis Herself

do you have an overactive letdown?

"nichole" wrote in message
...
Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having
a
rough time. I must have been latching her on wrong when I was in the
hospital
because I got blisters on the tips of my nipples. The blisters have
popped and
I have crescent shaped scabs on the tops of both nipples. It is
excruciatingly
painful when the baby latches on. It doesn't seem like they are healing
at
all.

Baby is eating constantly, which I expected. What I didn't expect was
this
pain. I could deal with the lack of sleep separately, but the combination
of
these two things is taking a toll on me. My right nipple is significantly
worse and I cry in pain every time she latches on to that one. Baby also
won't
sleep anywhere but on my chest. This is ok, but kind of scary for me. I
tried
a bassinet, a snuggle nest and I just bought a co-sleeper. I wait until
she is
limp and floppy asleep and put her down. I keep my hands on her because I
am
hoping she thinks she is still on me. But after a minute or so her eyes
pop
open and she starts making hungry faces and/or crying.

Despite this, I do enjoy breastfeeding and I want to do it exclusively.
Last
night I was contemplating giving her a pacifier and just now my mom (I
live
with my parents) suggested that I give her formula. She suggested it
because
baby kept pushing herself away so she only had the tip and I had to keep
relatching her. Baby was frustrated and I was in pain so we were both
crying.
I told my mom there was no way.

I have a pump in style because I have to go back to work fairly soon. I
think
that pumping would be less painful than baby but I am very hesitant to
give her
a bottle of pumped milk because she already has troubles latching on
(likes to
just suck the tip.) That is also the reason I didn't give her a pacifier.
I
don't want to mess things up worse. I don't think she uses me as comfort
or a
pacifier, when she is eating I hear lots of swallows. When she starts to
just
halfheartedly mouth, I take her off and she is content.

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really
don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a
moment of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.

Nichole
mom to Salome, born Dec. 9th

(((Nichole))) You are doing a great job, not giving in to formula when you are
in pain.

Do you have Lansinoh to put on your nioples? Some neosporin might help, too.
And you can take ibuprofen for the pain as well.

Do you have access to a Lactation Consultant to help you with the latch issues?


Otherwise, just keep doing what you are doing. And keep posting here for
encouragement. You WILL heal. It WILL get easier. And you will NEVER regret
it if you just hang in there!

Leslie

"nichole" wrote in message
...
Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having
a
rough time. I must have been latching her on wrong when I was in the
hospital
because I got blisters on the tips of my nipples. The blisters have
popped and
I have crescent shaped scabs on the tops of both nipples. It is
excruciatingly
painful when the baby latches on. It doesn't seem like they are healing
at
all.


I had a blister and received the suggestion to latch her on from a different
angle than usual (usual was cradle hold, different would be like football)
so that my nipple was hitting a different part of her mouth while it healed.
I did try this but the cradle hold was so much easier for me I mostly just
sucked it up and winced. Mine was NOT as bad as you describe.

I would not necessarily blame your early latch. Blisters happen. Although
sometimes we are so tired in the early days that we allow a bad latch to go
on rather than go through the hassle of popping off and relatching.

Baby is eating constantly, which I expected. What I didn't expect was
this
pain. I could deal with the lack of sleep separately, but the combination
of
these two things is taking a toll on me. My right nipple is significantly
worse and I cry in pain every time she latches on to that one. Baby also
won't
sleep anywhere but on my chest. This is ok, but kind of scary for me. I
tried
a bassinet, a snuggle nest and I just bought a co-sleeper. I wait until
she is
limp and floppy asleep and put her down. I keep my hands on her because I
am
hoping she thinks she is still on me. But after a minute or so her eyes
pop
open and she starts making hungry faces and/or crying.


It will be less scary to sleep with her as she gets older and less fragile
looking. We sleep on our sides with her at the breast sometimes and on our
sides with her head on my upper arm, and my legs brought up so she's
surrounded.

Despite this, I do enjoy breastfeeding and I want to do it exclusively.
Last
night I was contemplating giving her a pacifier and just now my mom (I
live
with my parents) suggested that I give her formula. She suggested it
because
baby kept pushing herself away so she only had the tip and I had to keep
relatching her. Baby was frustrated and I was in pain so we were both
crying.
I told my mom there was no way.

Our moms didn't know the benefits of exclusive bfing -- it's a common
experience.

I have a pump in style because I have to go back to work fairly soon. I
think
that pumping would be less painful than baby but I am very hesitant to
give her
a bottle of pumped milk because she already has troubles latching on
(likes to
just suck the tip.) That is also the reason I didn't give her a pacifier.
I
don't want to mess things up worse. I don't think she uses me as comfort
or a
pacifier, when she is eating I hear lots of swallows. When she starts to
just
halfheartedly mouth, I take her off and she is content.


Oh, you're doing so good!

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really
don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a
moment of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.


No, you won't give her formula -- you can do it.

nichole wrote:
Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having a
rough time. I must have been latching her on wrong when I was in the hospital
because I got blisters on the tips of my nipples. The blisters have popped and
I have crescent shaped scabs on the tops of both nipples. It is excruciatingly
painful when the baby latches on. It doesn't seem like they are healing at
all.


REALLY quick post.
I think Jenrose in the past has posted saying to make sure you aim for
the back of gthe baby's mouth, instead of the top of the mouth. It
sound like a compression injury to me (your nipple getting
squashed)...think of pointing your nipple so that it sucks right into
her throat instead of up against the top of her mouth.

Otherwise it sounds like you're doing fine.

6 weeks is a magic mark for a lot of babies and nursing moms, so aim for
that, for now....it sounds like you're really determined to exclusively
nurse, so I'm sure you will do what you need to to make it work for you.

Dawn

nichole wrote:

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really
don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a moment
of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.

A pacifier could teach her bad sucking habits at this point, but you could try
letting her suck on your little finger (clean, of course, nail toward the
tongue). The finger hits the roof of the mouth in the right way and does not
teach improper latching.

--Helen

nichole wrote:

I got blisters on the tips of my nipples.

Ow. I had that too (but a few days earlier), and
Caterpillar nursed the scabs off at every feeding, which
felt a lot like having scabs ripped off your nipples. I
used a lot of Lansinoh, and they healed up within about a
week. A very, very long week, during which no healing was
apparent, until one day they were OK again.

My right nipple is significantly
worse and I cry in pain every time she latches on to that one.

I managed to get a huge crack on my right side, and latching
was much more painful on that side. As a result,
Caterpillar very quickly had a perfect latch on that side -
because I couldn't tolerate the pain of a less than perfect
latch. If you can tell a perfect latch (or one that hurts
the least) by feel, unlatch and relatch every single time,
even if it takes 20 times to get it right.

Baby also won't
sleep anywhere but on my chest.

Fortunately for me, Caterpillar wouldn't sleep anywhere but
on Allyson's chest. Mine was way too sore (between
engorgement and damaged nipples) to tolerate a squirmy baby.
If it doesn't bother you, it's safe to sleep that way. If
it does bother you, maybe DH will sleep with her on his chest?

my mom (I live
with my parents) suggested that I give her formula.

Formula isn't going to solve your problems.

baby kept pushing herself away so she only had the tip and I had to keep
relatching her. Baby was frustrated and I was in pain so we were both crying.

We had similar problems latching at 12 days. Good for you
for keeping relatching her. It will get better, probably
very quickly.

I think
that pumping would be less painful than baby

I pump at work, and let me tell you, pumping is a PITA.
Short-term, it probably (but not definitely) would be less
painful than baby. But at 11 days, with no practice
pumping, you're likely to not get as much milk as the baby
would.

but I am very hesitant to give her
a bottle of pumped milk because she already has troubles latching on

I think that's an excellent reason to not give a bottle.
The going recommendation for a baby with no latch issues is
waiting until 4-8 weeks to introduce bottles.

That is also the reason I didn't give her a pacifier.

A clean pinky finger, nail down (towards her tongue) will
let her suck and give you a break if you need one. I also
found that it helped Caterpillar calm down and remember how
to nurse when she was having latch problems. I'd give her a
finger to suck, then sneak it out, and put the nipple in
when she opened her mouth again.

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me.

It sounds like you're doing everything right. Good for you!
Don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise.

Will I ever heal?

You will. Most people see a big improvement by 6 weeks at
the latest. I saw a big improvement around 2.5 weeks.

Phoebe
--
yahoo address is unread - substitute mailbolt

Hello Nicole, glad to hear you posting about this. You are doing really
well! I know how frustrating it is though, it can be maddening at
times. I had a similar situation: my nipples were both blistered and
made me cry every time he latched on. I wanted so badly to just give
him formula and be done with it, I couldn't imagine and actually feared
the next nursing session. That lasted for about two weeks or so. I
found that keeping my nipples moist with lanolin helped a little bit,
also, I expressed a bit of milk and covered my nipples each time baby
came off a feed. I don't know how much it helped, but it couldn't hurt.
Let them air dry.
Stick to your guns and resist giving formula, especially at such a
tender young age. Your baby needs all you can give him, and I know how
hard it is to reach inside and find that strength sometimes. As for the
pacifier, I would also hold off on that for two reasons, firstly, you
are right that it could lead to nipple confusion. Also, it can affect
your supply, and that hasn't leveled off yet. Offer a fingertip
perhaps? That only worked for our Little Bit until he was about a week
and a half old, but it may work for you.
I had a c-section, so the first week was living hell for me, but I can
tell you that when I was able to side lie with my baby it helped a lot.
I sleep my with baby now, he won't sleep on his own. And he won't sleep
without suckling first. I don't mind because I don't have to work. But
it's made for some frustrating times.
All I can say is that you are on the right track. Take a deep breath,
be kind to yourself and know that you can do it.
All the best, Alicia

nichole wrote:
Hi. Been lurking here awhile. I have an 11 day old baby and I am having a
rough time. I must have been latching her on wrong when I was in the hospital
because I got blisters on the tips of my nipples. The blisters have popped and
I have crescent shaped scabs on the tops of both nipples. It is excruciatingly
painful when the baby latches on. It doesn't seem like they are healing at
all.

Baby is eating constantly, which I expected. What I didn't expect was this
pain. I could deal with the lack of sleep separately, but the combination of
these two things is taking a toll on me. My right nipple is significantly
worse and I cry in pain every time she latches on to that one. Baby also won't
sleep anywhere but on my chest. This is ok, but kind of scary for me. I tried
a bassinet, a snuggle nest and I just bought a co-sleeper. I wait until she is
limp and floppy asleep and put her down. I keep my hands on her because I am
hoping she thinks she is still on me. But after a minute or so her eyes pop
open and she starts making hungry faces and/or crying.

Despite this, I do enjoy breastfeeding and I want to do it exclusively. Last
night I was contemplating giving her a pacifier and just now my mom (I live
with my parents) suggested that I give her formula. She suggested it because
baby kept pushing herself away so she only had the tip and I had to keep
relatching her. Baby was frustrated and I was in pain so we were both crying.
I told my mom there was no way.

I have a pump in style because I have to go back to work fairly soon. I think
that pumping would be less painful than baby but I am very hesitant to give her
a bottle of pumped milk because she already has troubles latching on (likes to
just suck the tip.) That is also the reason I didn't give her a pacifier. I
don't want to mess things up worse. I don't think she uses me as comfort or a
pacifier, when she is eating I hear lots of swallows. When she starts to just
halfheartedly mouth, I take her off and she is content.

I think I just need some strength and encouragement behind me. I really don't
think I would give her formula, but can see giving the pacifier in a moment of
weakness. Will I ever heal? Thanks in advance.

Nichole
mom to Salome, born Dec. 9th