Babies are born knowing how to breastfeed. Still, some times the latch is not right the first time. Typically, it gets better with practice. Until then, use lanolin or coconut oil to soothe your nipples.
Mothers who had long labors and babies that had to be pulled out with forceps or vacuum have more latching issues than others.
I've heard time and again that many moms 'put up with pain' to breastfeed their babies. This is wrong. Breastfeeding should be a relaxing experience for mother and child. During the first few seconds of feeding, it is normal to experience some pain, but once the baby is latched correctly and starts feeding, the pain should stop. You should only feel tugging. If you are in pain, you should stop and try latching the baby again. Don't pull the nipple away; the baby will only clasp to it more, hurting your nipples. Instead, break the suction by inserting a clean finger into the corner of your baby's mouth when she's on the breast and then gently release.
The most common breastfeeding problem is that of improper latch. Try to practice as much as you can in the hospital or meet with a lactation consultant.
It is very natural to get tense when trying to feed your baby. The result is a tight clasp on your tiny baby. Hold babies gently, they can sense tension. If the baby bites and you let out a squeal she will pull her head back and cry.
Sometimes, lactation consultants suggest cranosachial massage to relax the baby and loosen the grip on the nipple so as to reduce the 'bite' reflex. Alternately, you could sit on a ball and gently rock the baby while supporting her head and neck. Gently pulling on the baby's hair might help the head become round. Stroking the head will calm the baby.
In India, babies are put in a 'thooli'-a long cloth hung from the roof where baby is gently laid, sung and swung to sleep. This fixes flat head problems, relaxes the baby, and relieves any tension in the head.
There are 'breastfeeding-friendly' bottles with huge nipples. This might be ok if the purpose is to only ensure the baby remembers to open the mouth wide as needed in breastfeeding vs opening small for a bottle. But the basic sucking actions are different between bottle and breast. So 'breastfeeding-friendly bottle' might be an oxymoron. They might be associated with speech problems later.
It is possible that babies could have their tongues-tied. This means that there is skin below their tongues that does not let them push their tongues out fully to latch on. The ped should be able to rule this out in the first few weeks.
A flat/inverted nipple could also cause poor latching. A nipple shield could be used to help with this. But this may not be a long-term solution because if the baby bites, you will feel it even through the shield.
If the baby starts sucking, a flat/inverted nipple shouldn't be a major block.
If you are in need of support, contact the local La Leche League leader and find out when their next meeting is, and what the topic of discussion is (can be 'Google'd).
You can meet with other moms-new and experienced and learn from their experiences. You can also share any success stories you have with the group.
The leader might be able to help you with proper positioning and latch. But again, just like with other lactation consultations, the baby might cooperate during the session, but you might be back in square one after coming home.
Some babies latch on well in certain holds (such as the football hold) and not so well with others. And some others latch on fine on their own when you gently lay them on your chest and guide them.
Even if you are having latching problems, try to breastfeed a few times or at least once a day so the baby doesn't totally forget. Baby's jaws widen after two months, and one fine day, they might just start breastfeeding without causing any pain.
Meanwhile, if your nipples are damaged from your baby biting, use vinegar solution in water (1 part of vinegar in 4 parts of water) to clean your nipples and pumping equipment to prevent infections.
There is no one solution to fix the latching issue. Keep trying, be creative, and pray it works!
Increasing milk supply
Milk supply issues can pop up if good pumping habits were not established early on. Milk supply is hormone driven the first few weeks and can drop after. Note that you could still have enough milk even if your breasts don't feel full. In fact, pump every few hours; don’t wait till your breasts feel heavy.
Galactagogues are used to increase milk supply in breastfeeding mothers.
Common ones are:
-Fenugreek pills (alternately, you could soak fenugreek seeds in water and swallow them, or prepare tea from a teaspoon of fenugreek seeds and have it thrice a day)
-Dil leaves-can be eaten as a salad
-Oatmeal
-Mother's milk tea (this is said to be mild). Mother's love potion is supposedly much stronger
-Garlic cloves fried in ghee or oil with salt and pepper and eaten with rice. They could also be boiled in milk and eaten. Garlic helps relieve gas but can increase body heat. Take buttermilk to cool your body down if you take garlic. Some mothers notice a few ounces increase in supply right away, but your baby might not like the taste or might spit up
-Bread, eggs and milk (yup! French toast!)
Though quinoa is suggested as a galactagogue, its effects on pregnant and breastfeeding women is not fully known. Same goes to prescription medicines for increasing lactation.
Lactation Consultations
Lactation Consultations
While at the hospital, if your baby isn't latching well, ask the lactation consultant or nurses to help you correct the latch.
You could also schedule one-on-one appointments with them later, at a price (about $150 a visit). Some even come to your house and stay for 6-8 hours and help fix the latching issue.
Read reviews/get referrals from doctors and friends before scheduling lactation consultants. There are many not-so-good ones out there and they are pretty expensive .
If you can't afford a consultation, many hospitals host breast-feeding support sessions where a board-certified lactation consultant from the hospital staff can help with latching, and any other questions you may have. And there's La Leche League, a great support network for breastfeeding moms. You could get some help there too. But time is of the essence. The sooner you get the baby from the bottle to the breast, the easier the change will be.
Manual expression is a technique of expressing milk by hand, without using a pump. If for some reason, you cannot breastfeed or if pumping doesn’t work for you, you could try this. While some mothers find it more effective than pumping, most find it difficult (hand hurts after a bit and are unable to express much). It is supposed to get better with practice. You can ask the lactation consultants or nurses in the hospital to show you how to manually express milk.
If you are renting a hospital-grade pump such as Ameda, you can contact their staff who can provide great advice and tips.
