Getting through a cracked nipple
When my fourth baby was born, I knew how to latch, when to unlatch, what to look for with a "good" latch, etc. But somewhere during the first three days, one of the latches must have been bad, and I must have just let her keep nursing because by day four, every feeding felt like someone was piercing my nipple with a needle when she latched on. I would suck in my breath, tense up, grip the padded arm rest of my chair and squeeze it thru almost the entire feeding, tearing up at how frustrated I felt and how defeating it was. I did all the nipple care (dab some breastmilk on it, let it air out, Earth Momma Nipple Balm, keep nipple pads dry), but that crack took at least 7-10 days to heal completely.
My peer counselor said never to give up breastfeeding on my hardest day (and trust me, I wanted to). No one wants to nurse knowing it will be painful.
But maybe you'll make it thru the first three weeks, you'll be able to get thru mastistis (again), and growth spurts and go on to breastfeed longer than you ever imagined (4 years, people- because that's how long she wanted to go *rolls eyes*) and feel so proud of how your milk grew that baby and what you were able to overcome for her.
Comments
Thanks for sharing Jennie! No matter how many children you've breastfed or how many years are under your belt, challenges can arise! Working through those challenges is so rewarding when we see the benefits for our babies and ourselves!
Please sign in to leave a comment.