At the beginning of breastfeeding, your nipples may be irritated due to the unaccustomed strain. This is normal because the skin of the nipples is very sensitive. You can test how strongly a child can suck once by holding your little finger with the fingernail down in his mouth when he is hungry.
If the discomfort goes beyond irritation, for example, if the nipples hurt or become sore, this is usually due to the child not latching on optimally. Check the following:
- Is your baby’s mouth wide open and are the lips turned outward when he or she is latched on?
- Can your baby mouth the nipple with the whole atrium?
- What is your breastfeeding posture? Are you sitting comfortably? Have you found the optimal breastfeeding position for you and your baby?
- Does your baby have an incorrect sucking technique? Talk to your midwife.
- Is your baby’s frenulum possibly too short?
What helps?
- Keep changing the sill position to distribute the load on the nipple.
- Keep your nipples clean to prevent pathogens from multiplying. After washing, you can additionally rinse your nipples with physiological saline solution (0.9%).
- To alleviate the discomfort, there are suitable wound / and healing ointments that you can apply between breastfeeding meals. Get advice on this from your midwife or at the pharmacy.
- Wear clothing that is permeable to air.
- If possible, temporarily dispense with bra and nursing pads at home.
After the first few days, your nipples should have become accustomed to the vigorous sucking of your baby. If it is still very painful for you after that, you can get so-called nursing caps in the pharmacy. They are made of ultra-thin silicone and cause less strain on the affected nipples. Nursing caps must be cleaned after each drink and should be sterilized once a day. Use nursing caps only temporarily. Keep trying them without breastfeeding in between.
