Breastfeeding baby Maggie - creased nipples, ouch!

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

Well, we had a crazy fast and basically textbook dream natural birth, but breastfeeding my second baby, Maggie, isn't getting off to the greatest start. I'm able to achieve a latch that looks good, at least to the hospital LC, but doesn't feel good at all. And when I unlatch, my nipple is creased across the middle (symmetrically). Ouch! It generally hurts most at the beginning, but it continues to hurt some throughout the feeding. My nipples are already traumatized, and she's one day old and my milk hasn't even come in fully!

I'm following my own advice, oft given here on the forums, to seek one-on-one help, and I have a call in to the LC that helped me with Joe even in really crazy, unusual circumstances (after a breast biopsy), this time with my banal latch problem.

I've been looking at her tongue - she doesn't stick it out far. Could she be tongue-tied? What should I look for?

But also, I just can't seem to get her to open her mouth very wide. And when she does latch on, she spits out the breast pretty much right away, and then I have to try again. She's a bit sleepy (she was slightly preterm at 38 weeks, or maybe I just got "spoiled" by Joe who was the most wide awake newborn anyone had ever seen), which isn't helping either.

I just don't want this to get off to a really bad start, with nipple trauma that will take weeks to heal and cause all kinds of other problems, like what happened with Joe.

[@llli*ohiomama]

JoMo. Being proactive from the start will help to head-off the trouble you had with Joe.

My first response is to at the LC telling you that the latch looked good- if it doesn't FEEL good, we have a problem. Are you still at the hospital? She could have a posterior tongue-tie and those can sometimes be tricky to diagnose. Around here some pediatricians will shrug them off and tell moms they aren't significant enough to cause any problems, but that simply is not true. How does her upper lip look- could it be tied?

It's okay is she latches and unlatches a few times- she is still learning too. She may even pull back and shake her head from side-to-side before latching- this can be frustrating for mama because you feel like saying, "it's *right* there!" But newborns latch by feel, not by sight, so the head shaking is normal and means she is getting herself ready to latch.

What position(s) are you using the most? Have you done much laid-back breastfeeding? That position may help her to get a good mouthful of breast.

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

JoEllen, I was so wishing you were here to help me out!! I will try the laid back breastfeeding. I've been trying to aim my nipple towards the roof of her mouth, but I can't say it's really working out at this point. She still seems to be taking in a shallow latch and it hurts!

[@llli*worknpump]

Congratulations!! Our baby girls have the same name . I'm also glad you're being proactive. Keep up the good work. I'll say that with DD my nipples were crazy-sore by the day we left the hospital (day 4) and I was just thankful for the pain meds I had from my C-section. The right nipple got better by about day 10, and the left one took a few days longer. My left nipple is bigger than the right and the left one kept either getting the "crease" like you mention, or lipstick-shaped. I just kept trying and re-positioning her and by two weeks all the pain was gone and my nipples were "normal" shaped when she was done nursing. So keep at it, keep getting advice/help from the LCs, and I'm sure things will improve.

DS was crazy-alert (like you said Joe was), but DD was crazy-sleepy! I literally woke her up by dribbling water on her head every 2 to 3 hours all day for the first few weeks. It's amazing how different siblings can be from each other.

Congrats again on your sweet girl!!!

[@llli*ohiomama]

Logan was born just over 38 weeks and had some late pre-term behaviors, including the shallow latch and sleepiness.

How does she do if you offer the breast before she is fully awake?

[@llli*joe.s.mom]

How does she do if you offer the breast before she is fully awake?

She's only a day old, so this might be an issue anyway, but when she's sleepy I spend a lot of time trying to tease her with the nipple, but she won't open her mouth. Later, when she's crying and clearly rooting, I can get her to latch, but it still hurts. At no time is she widely opening he mouth for me. I had totally forgotten what a challenge it is to latch a newborn! I got used to Joe, who knew how to latch himself on for 2 years and 5 months of his 2 years and 6 months of nursing, you know?

[@llli*browncow]

Congrats on the baby girl!!! I had the same issue with DD as far as not opening wide and the nipple coming out creased. I was told its a sign of a high palate : shrug dunno if thats true or not. Anyway DD was also upper lip and posterior tt so I would defiantly have someone check for those. I think time made the most difference and defiantly try the laid back that still about the only way I get a comfortable latch!

[@llli*mommal]

JoMo- you shy violet, you! "Oh, I had a lovely natural birth, la dee da, now on to my nipples..." You deserve some fanfare, woman! and congratulations and I can't wait for the birth story!

If you do a google image search for tongue tie, you'll see a lot of useful stuff. Basically, you're looking for a "heart shaped" top to the baby's tongue, like there's a little divot or dip in the center of the tongue. If it's a classic tongue tie, that is, and not a lip tie and not a posterior tie! For those you may need an ENT or experienced LC in order to diagnose. Another TT indicator would be is baby's tongue does not or only barely covers her lower gum line.

I am so glad you're taking your own excellent (as always!) advice and seeing the LC. Make sure she shows you the "nipple sandwich" technique- it's the only way I was ever able to cram a lot of breast into my first kid's teeny-weeny mouth. And I know you suffered with oversupply with Joe and I am sure you'll be horrified at the mere suggestion, but if you must pump in order to empty out a plug or to get milk supply going (poor latch can delay or lower milk production), just do it.

I know this sort of thing is excruciating, so I hope you know that we're all cheering you on from behind our computer screens.

[@llli*mtmama]

congrats jomo!!

[@llli*krystine]

Congrats JoMo! Wow she's here!

J was 41 weeks (plus one day) but acted premature in that she was very disorganized and sleepy. My IBCLC recommended lots of skin to skin time to help her with that. She had posterior tongue tie, too and that was clipped at 7 weeks.

I hope things smooth out soon, I gotta get off the computer now but congrats on your baby girl and your natural birth.