if i've been breastfeeding...?

Question

is it normal for my nipples to still be sore even though i've been breastfeedin for about 3 months?

Answer 1

yes, the baby can bite down hard enough to cause the soreness even without teeth yet.

Answer 2

I was sore for the first mth or so before discovering Lansinoh, a lanolin creme for breastfeeding mothers, and I was never sore after using that. I know someone who was sore the entire year of nursing her girl, and she had to wear the silicone nipple shields or else it was too painful. I'm not sure if it all hinges on 'a good latch' - I went to numerous lactation experts/nurses and everyone told me it looked great. Still hurt though, until I found that creme and after a week the pain was gone. Could have been coincidence I suppose, but I know many women who swear by it. Good luck.

Answer 3

Whoever said that breastfeeding was a natural thing that every woman should be able to do never had problems breastfeeding. I have four children and they were all breastfed for different lengths of time because of the difficulties.

Yes, your nipples may end up being sore the entire time. Try some Lanolin creme. It will help immensely yet will not hurt the baby. Your positioning could be off, perhaps you need to try a different hold on the baby.

Also, you could pump for a while if you are really sore or bleeding, though for me that was worse. Just know that no matter what happens that you gave your baby the best nutrition you could for those first three months and then move on. So many women beat themselves up for not breastfeeding and it's just insane. The two that I breastfed the longest are my sickest and have the most allergies. The two that were bottlefed after only 4 months are never sick, they're both at a healthier weight and neither of them have allergies or asthma, so go figure.

Answer 4

If the areola (the dark circular area of the nipple) is light in color then yes your nipples can still be sore still. For some reason darker areolas tend to have less soreness. Also if the baby is having a growth spurt (which happens at around 3 months old) and nursing more often this can cause soreness.

see the breast and nipple pain section here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breast_feeding

you may find some useful information.

Answer 5

No, that is a sign that baby is not latching on correctly. Go online to La Leche League and they can give you in depth instructions on how to check if baby is latching on correctly and if not how to fix the situation. Nipples may get raw sometimes, but the two best ways of preventing this are to squeeze out a few drops of breastmilk after feeding has ended and rub into nipples to rehydrate or to go to the store and in the baby aisle by bottles and such you can buy lanolin cream for nipples. Lanolin is derived from sheeps skin. It is the oil of sheep's skin. Sheep have the closest skin oils to our own therefore Lanolin works great. However it is very very thick and sticky and you usually have to wait until it is dry to put your bra back on or else your nipples get stuck to your bra or shirt or whatever your wearing, not fun I'll tell you. Also, if you have ever been to a W.I.C. office (Women Infants and Children; they provide free milk, formula and selected foods to low income families) they can sit down with you, in a private room and watch your nursing techniques and guide you through if you need help at all. Also, you might want to ask the babie's doctor at his/her next check-up for advice on this.

Answer 6

I don't think it's normal. I found breastfeeding to be a bit painful in the first few weeks, especially in the first few seconds each time my baby latched on. However, after that it was not painful. Some causes of nipple pain could be:
- A cracked nipple that is taking a long time to heal
- Your baby is not latched on quite right
- An infection such as thrush can cause pain

I would call a lactation consultant or your local La Leche League leader so that someone who really knows about breastfeeding can see you in person and watch how the baby is latching on.
You can find your closest La Leche League leader and also get online support on the LLL website:
http://www.llli.org/resources/assistance.html?m=0,0

The kellymom website is also a great place to look for breastfeeding information. You might want to do a search on nipple pain, latch, and thrush.
http://www.kellymom.com/

Answer 7

YES!!! It can go on as long as you are breastfeeding, or it can disappear tomorrow. Your baby has either a bad latch, the roof of her mouth is too high, she's not getting enough milk, or you are just too sensitive. I hired a lactation consultant, and basically got the same result as Dolly. But if you feel like you want to give it up becuase there's too much pain, contact lalecheleague.com. Get in contact with a leader, and she can give you loads of information, tips, and encouragement. She can even get you in contact with other breastfeeding mothers, or a local lactation consultant. If you've made it this far, you've proven you're one tough cookie. There's no pain like sore nipples. I wish you the best of luck. Don't even think twice about feeling guilty if you switch to bottles. No shame, baby needs to eat. Try to stick it out until you can substitute some feedings with solids. It will give you more time in between feedings to recover. GOOD LUCK

Answer 8

Have you had the baby's latch checked? If his lower lip is flared out and he has a lot of the areola in his mouth than you may want to check for thrush. Thrush will often appear as white specks in the baby's mouth that won't come off witha soft wipe.

Could your baby be tongue tied? This can effect the latch and make it painful too. If his tongue becomes "heart shaped" or forked at the end when he tries to stick it out he may need his frenulum released. My children both had this and i never realized that was why my daughter latched with her teeth (which she got at 4 months :-( ) My son had a bad latch and after a quick little snip under the tongue from our naturaopath he immediately nursed like a champ!

Answer 9

Ive been breastfeeding for almost 3 months now, but never get sore..

You can use a cream for a sore or crack nipples..Try to do pumping for a while until it heals. because the baby will probably get the things in your nipples whatever it is.

Go see a doctor.

Answer 10

Yes it is unfortunately. I have been nursing for four and a half months now and am still sore. I've seen a few doctors and a lactation consultant about it and they've all basically told me to suck it up, that the pain comes with nursing and some people are more sensitive than others. I think it's bull**** but that's just my opinion.

Answer 11

No.
You should see a Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or a La Leche League Leader for help.
Can you describe your discomfort? Soreness, itching, burning? Pain all the time or only at latch on?
Any chance you could have thrush? Have you been on any antibiotics?