Breastfeeding, Raynaud's, nipple shields... got any advice?

Hello all,

I had a terrible time trying to breastfeed DS (now 3). I saw midwives, GP, ABA counsellors, private LC, the works - latch was "good", doing everything right, but at 5 months my nipples were still raw and worse than raw, practically destroyed. So I weaned him.

Fast forward to last winter and I visit the GP for a (seemingly) unrelated matter (breastfeeding the furthest thing from my mind). After talking about my new condition, we put two and two together and she suggests Raynaud's. I completely broke down in her office. I blamed myself all this time for failing to breastfeed, for seeking support and still not being able to master it. For giving up when I should have persisted. When the almost certain scenario was undiagnosed Raynaud's of the nipple, causing the tips to literally die and fall away.

So now, I'm hopefully going to have another baby soon, and I'm already thinking about what I can do to breastfeed successfully next time.

The only thing that seemed to help at all with DS was nipple shields. After some research, now I know why: when he pulled off the breast, the warm milk and residual heat in the shield would protect my nipple from the abrupt change in temperature, preventing the blood vessels from constricting. At the time, however, all I was told was that I had to get him off the shields because they would reduce my supply - so I spent so long trying to feed without the shield, which of course affected my supply anyway because of the nipple damage.

So! Does anyone here have any positive experiences breastfeeding with Raynaud's or vasospasms?

And does anyone have positive stories about long-term breastfeeding with a nipple shield?

Thank you!

There was a request for people to write in to Essence (the ABA magazine) with their nipple shield stories about 12 months ago. Lots of long term success stories there, if you can find a back copy! Best of luck!

Big hugs. I had similar issues.

I've not read about raynaud's actually causing the tips to die and fall away. People with raynaud's in their fingers and toes don't have that happen?

I think for me the damage was what caused the vasospasm. It's a bit chicken-or-egg. But looking back I think the shape of baby's mouth (palate especially) meant the latch looked fine but wasn't. I guess it makes sense that a baby essentially crushing your nipple with each feed, multiple times per day, would cause vascular problems!

Next time I plan on getting a chiro consult very early on if I have problems.

If it's true raynaud's (as in, that is the root of the problem, not damage causing vasospasm), you could look into taking nifedipine. Not without it's risks though so you'd have to weight it up with your dr.

Hope that helps!

I have suffered vasospasm with DD2 & so many times I have wanted to chuck it in because I dreaded feeding her 😞 I ended up buying some breast warmers off the internet (ABA sell them) & I wore them 48hrs straight when they first arrived, such relief! After that I tended to only wear them every couple of days & mainly on my right side.
Good luck!

I had vasospasm on the righty and it was agony. I would try and keep the nipple warm as much as possible but the pain!!!!
At 5 months it just resolved and I went on to bf DD for 13.5 months. I always felt more comfy feeding from the left as right was just not as easy.

That sounds rough! Hopefully you can get some advice.
Just wondering, was you son checked for tongue or lip tie? It often gets missed and Reynauds can certainly be exacerbated (and the vasospasm even caused) by damage to the nipple.
Good luck!

No direct experience with vasospasm, but back in my ABA days I met a few ladies who were able to manage their Reynaud's and continued to breastfeed. This is one of those situations where ABA can be a real help - not only can you get info, but also ongoing support. They have some info on their website, but I would also encourage you to chat to one of their breastfeeding counsellors as well.

Have fed DD with nipple shields for the last 5 1/2 months - great supply, no mastitis or anything nasty & she's steadily gained weight & is just a happy little soul ;-)
My sister in law fed both her kids for over 4 years in total & used shields the whole time.
Good luck on your journey!