s/o and x post Does breastfeeding hurt at first?

[AnnieW625]

I recall only two instances with only DD2 that nursing was kind of painful, the first was after we'd been using Dr. Browns bottles for a couple of weeks (DD2 got a bottle when we were out to eat, or DH would feed her at least one feeding a day) and she had developed a long suck and so we switched to Avent bottles and the long suck went away. I also remember buying some soothies gel pads around the time she was 6 weeks old, but other than that I didn't find nursing painful at all. I remember with DD2 because she slept through the night very early on (6 weeks) that there were a few times I thought I was getting a plugged duct, but I just massaged it bit and it went away.

Both times I bought a full container of breast cream and never used more than a 1/4 of it.

[SkyrMommy]

It was very painful for me at first, DD had a great latch and I didn't have any issues with nipple shape, but I wanted to cry for about the first two weeks that I was nursing. Lots of nipple cream and patience thinking through the pain helped me manage. My breasts adjusted and I'd love to think that the tissues were tougher and nerves slightly deadened. We nursed for 11 months after that initial awfulness.

[elektra]

I had the toe curling, REALLY bad pain. It hurt so bad with both kids the first two to three weeks. Things got much better eventually.

[amldaley]

The first few weeks of nursing, I had pain for the first 10ish seconds after latch on, and also pain with letdown (that i mistakenly thought was thrush but was just typical letdown adjustments in a new mom).

I would count aloud to get through the initial discomfort and then nursing was comfortable - this subsided once the babies were a few weeks old and my nipples were used to things.

Oh...yeah...I totally forgot about the painful letdown. I went through a phase of that for a couple of weeks a couple of months in to nursing. I thought it was thrush or mastitis, too!

[indigo99]

I'm a baby about pain, and I don't remember it being really painful. I'd say uncomfortable maybe in the beginning until DS's tongue got longer and I learned to pull his lips out and around my breast (they tended to automatically get pushed in when he latched on). I did use motherlove nipple cream after every feeding from the very start and never had any major issues. Now when he started biting... that's another story.

[longtallsally05]

Nope. Not unless I have thrush (candidal infection in milk ducts or on nipples). If you have pain without obvious signs of breakdown (cracking, bleeding, peeling etc), you need to check with a lactation consultant to rule out thrush, and treat yourself & baby too if you have it. When I have had thrush, it has felt like the baby had a mouthful of glass while nursing. Once the thrush is gone, so is the pain (thanks to the makers of Diflucan)!

[eh613c]

As you can plainly see from the other posts, this really depends on the person!

It depends on your sensitivity to pain, the shape of your nipples and breasts (as relative to baby's ability to get a good latch in a particular position) and whether baby is a good nurser or not.

If it is toe curling painful, as one pp said, for more than the first few days/weeks, you may need to try a different position, adjust baby's latch or use a nipple shield.

But let's face it, when your sensitivie flesh gets sucked on and mawed, it can be uncomfortable until you desensitize and/or until you and baby get a good latch and position that works well for both of you.

The thing is...in the end...most women who are able to nurse successfully and who stick with it, find it is worth it.