How To Deal With Sore Nipples While Breastfeeding
Author: Gail Mattingly
How breast feeding is beneficial for your baby
Breast feeding is a great way to ensure your child gets all the nutrients and vitamins essential to healthy development. There is no substitute for the bonding that occurs when a mother breastfeeds her child.
If you are a mother that breast feeding her child, congratulations! You are providing your child the best start to their life that a mother can give.
Sore nipple while breast feeding?
If you are reading this article, you are either curious about sore nipples or you are looking for a way to ease those sore nipples. We will discuss ways to deal with this minor problem effectively.
When breastfeeding sore nipples can develop. There are several reasons this can occur. The most common reason why this happens is because positioning is not correct when the child latches. Should this occur evaluate the position you are using and the relationship of your baby’s mouth to your nipple. You can try different positions. The most common position is the cradle position where you cuddle your baby in your arms. You can try sitting and using a pillow to elevate or change your baby’s position.
breastfeeding sessions are typically around 15 minutes per breast. You should not experience discomfort during these sessions. Just as you experience discomfort your baby can also experience discomfort if the angle of latching is awkward. It is not uncommon for a new mother to start to experience soreness after 4 or 5 days of breastfeeding as she learns correct latching.
Over time this discomfort should subside as you learn the best positions and what your baby enjoys. Should you continue to experience discomfort after a couple of weeks you should see your doctor as there could be an underlying medical reason.
Latching technique while breast feeding
Latching is a natural process the baby instinctively knows. Having said that, it may take two or three tries to get a correct latching. Don’t become discouraged if it takes multiple times over a few weeks for this to happen. It is a learning experience for both mom and baby. If you get an incorrect latching simply break the latch by inserting your small finger in the corner of the baby’s mouth and remove your nipple. Eventually your baby will learn what you want for a correct latching. Never pull your baby off your nipple. Break the latch first.
breastfeeding is not a speedy process. It takes time to complete each breast session. If for some reason you get frustrated attempting latching just take a few moments off and let your baby suck on their pacifier or one of your fingers. This will not affect your baby’s appetite.
You cannot use any type of ointment on your nipples during breastfeeding. Lotions that are petroleum based should be avoided or at a minimum thoroughly cleanse the nipple prior to breastfeeding. Lotions with natural occurring Lanolin are recommend for sore cracked nipples. A product called Lansinoh contains 100% pure Lanolin with no allergens or additives. You can purchase Lansinoh from http://www.llli.org/.
If you have cracked or bleeding nipples, you need to put peroxide on your nipples with a cotton tip swab so no infection will occur. Peroxide is safe and does not need to be remove from the nipple before breast feeding.
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