Thanks so much for your support guys, it really means a lot to me. I will try all of your tips and see what helps. I have an appt with the LC consultant tomorrow so hopefully she can help a bit too. It's frustrating as I know what I am supposed to be doing but just can't seem to actually do it. It helps to know you guys have been there and made it through ok.
I was having a similar problem when DD was quite young, cracked nipples at the base, painful feeding. The LC said - as the others have pointed out - that my DD was only getting the nipple in her mouth and not enough breast. The LC gave me a really good technique for getting her to get more breast in her mouth, I will try to describe it but it is a bit hard to convey it clearly in writing.
Basically my LC said that the nipple really needs to be hitting the roof of the babies mouth so that it is drawn right in to the back of the throat when she starts sucking. To get this to happen, as DD was opening her mouth to attach, I put one finger on the breast on the 'outside' of the nipple (so a few centimeters towards my elbow or ribs) and applied enough pressure to make the nipple point out (towards the armpit or ribs). This meant the nipple was going into her mouth pointing towards the roof of her mouth instead of pointing directly into her mouth/down her throat. I am not sure how you would replicate this position/angle using Baby Led Attachment, but this technique REALLY helped me out, I hope I have worded it so it makes some sense!
That fixed our attachment so it didn't get any worse or create any new cracks, but it didn't help to heal the crack that was already there. The best thing I found for this was a bit of breast milk put onto the nipple and left to air dry. I also used a nipple shield for maybe 2 feeds. This didn't actually stop it from hurting during the feed, but it did give my nipples a few hours break from that direct contact and gave them time to heal a bit.
TS, you are doing really well - trying all the right things. I hope the LC is able to help you There could be something else going on like tongue-tie or high palate, which can make it hard for a baby to attach properly. A good LC should be able to pick these up. All the best hun.
Thanks for all the kind words and tips, and Sagre - that did make sense thanks
So we saw the LC today. She said I was doing really well and liked my hold and technique, she just had a few slight adjustments for me. She positioned Paige a bit more forward accross my chest, moved my hand a bit lower on her body (I was holding her head instead of her neck and shoulders), and she got me to pull her to the breast a bit more forcefully to get more breast in her mouth. She also said I to let go of my breast once in her mouth as her suck is hard enough to hold her on and by holding it I was likely pointing the nipple to the roof of her mouth instead of the back of her throat which could be causing some rubbing. We've tried a few times at home now and I think there is some improvement so I'll keep it up and see how the nipples heal. She said to go see her again tomorrow if still struggling.
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There could be something else going on like tongue-tie or high palate, which can make it hard for a baby to attach properly. A good LC should be able to pick these up. All the best hun.
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