# Sore nipples: blanching/pump issues?



## xerxes (May 15, 2003)

My dd is almost 6 weeks old and I have not had any problems with sore nipples until about 1 1/2 weeks ago. My nipples are so sore by the afternoon that I dread bf dd! I really want to bf for at least one year, but ouch!!!!

I have to go back to work in a few weeks and I began pumping about 2 weeks ago. I heard that if you pump wrong you can cause sore nipples...how do you pump wrong? I have the medela pump in style. I was experiencing some pain on pumping, so I am trying larger flanges.

I also heard of something called blanching...what is this? And how do you know if this is the problem?

Also, I notice that when dd nurses, she sucks her lower lip into her mouth...I have to pull it out. This is new for her. I also notice that it looks as if my areola is puckered (correct word?) in the corner of her mouth. She also occasionally makes clucking (?) noises with her mouth while feeding. Why would she all of a sudden nurse differently? And how do I correct this?


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## Momtwice (Nov 21, 2001)

Here is info about some of your questions:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/index.html

I feel the questions you are asking warrant a visit to a lactation consultant.

As for what can suddenly change a baby's latch...the only thing I know of is artificial nipples, if you recently started a pacifier or bottle. Is that the case?


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## tpcat (Jan 3, 2002)

Blanching is a whitening. After baby nurses or even after a shower, look at your nipples. If the tips of your nipples are white, that is blanching. This can be caused by poor latch or vasospasm.
Do you have Raynaud's disease?
Do you have extreme cold in your fingers and/or toes?
This is a symptom of Raynaud's and it can affect the nipples in bf'ing mothers.
Try this link: http://www.gp.org.au/cls/raynaud.html
Good luck,


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## xerxes (May 15, 2003)

I did just introduce one bottle on xmas eve and one this morning. I will be going back to work, so my dh is trying to feed her a few times a week with the milk that I pump in the am to get her prepared. also, I just started to use a pacifier today because my nipples are so sore and dd likes to use my breast for a pacifier. Iwould love it if I could let her use my breast for a pacifier , but between wanting to cry when she is sucking to going back to work and sucking is the only thing to console her at times... I felt the pacifier was my best bet.

I do have a call into a lactation consultant, but she is away for the holidays.


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## turquoise (Oct 30, 2002)

Let me tell you about pumping wrong







if your suction and speed are too high you can get rug burns on your nipples - eww, sorry...bad visual but you know what I mean.







Or if you don't have the horns centered properly they'll rub funny. Rubbing = bad
















Have you checked out the symptoms of thrush? Sorry, I'm on a thrush witch hunt for a friend of mine, so that might be why the clucking stands out to me. It is one of the signs of thrush. The baby's mouth hurts so there's a bad latch which makes the click sound. But then, the baby's mouth could hurt from a bad latch too (which would cause her to latch bad...circular logic aaaaaahhh!)

But there are so many things that can cause clicking and soreness here's the "clicking" page at Kellymom.com http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/...n-nursing.html My babies had the clicking from overproduction-fast letdown. My son even rejected one of my breasts because it let down harder and faster than the other. I actually had to trick him to take it (football hold and kinda twist so it seemed to him like the other side). He would cluck and gulp because I was practically drowning him.


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## tpcat (Jan 3, 2002)

another reason for clicking and sore nipples is if your baby has a high palate. Both my kids do.
Look into the baby's mouth and if the roof of the mouth is up high (it looks like the center of the roof is hollowed out a bit) then the baby has a high palate.


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## firstlovesnbaby (Dec 13, 2003)

Wow these moms have already given you lots of excellent advice.

I know alot of moms who work outside the home, And are primarily pumpin moms. And i have a women in CO who buys lots of nipple butter from me (like lansinoh only natural and completely edible. Has herbs and Olive oil. She says its the only thing that helps her.

I have only pumped milk a few times, since ds would never take the bottle. So this is just a good luck feel better post!


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## pumpkinhead (Sep 15, 2003)

dear xerxes,

what sort of bottle nipple are you using? I found that we had problems with a 'traditional' bottle nipple. Ds wouldn't really take it as there was nothing to 'latch' onto and then when he'd nurse again, I'd have to mess with him to get a proper latch. WE had much better luck with the 'dome shaped' bottle nipples. I know that the avent bottles are a no-no and so we used the style with the disposable bags (the medela ones I think?). These nipples were the only one's we had sucess with. The playtex dome ones were too soft and ds had such a strong suck that he'd collapse them. The Doctor Brown's nipples are similar. So, the point is (does this lady have one?







) that the type of nipple really did make a difference for us in terms of latch!


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## xerxes (May 15, 2003)

pumpkinhead...we are using the evenflo silicone stage 1 slow flow nipples. She takes the bottle and eats just fine. Do you think that could still be the problem?


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## pumpkinhead (Sep 15, 2003)

Dear xerxes,

These nipples are considered to be 'wide neck', yes? As I'm sure you already know, no matter how like the breast these artificial nipples purport to be, they are a very different animal, esp to a newborn. The suck is completely different and they are difficult to actually 'latch' on to. When she's drinking from the bottle, do you notice if she's just sucking on the nipple or if she's sucking on some of the base as well? It could be that in adjusting her suck to the artificial nipple, she's developing a more shallow latch, aka, taking less of the areola into her mouth. This can and will definately cause sore nipples. This is where an IBCLC will be invaluable to you as they can better assess your dd's latch.

I found that after a day of bottle use (w/ me at work), I'd have to coax ds (for a time) to deepen his latch. We had better luck with the dome shaped nipples in general, but I still had to 'flip' his lower lip out with my thumb occasionally and get him to take more of the areola.

The suggestion's to look out for the signs and symptoms of thrush are good ones as well. I sincerely hope that you don't have to deal with that racket tho








:. It totally sucks!!

It could be a combination of pumping/shallow latch or any other number of things that's causing your soreness. I hope that you get to the bottom of it. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you Mama!









P.S. Arouet, what an unusual and elegant name







! Is it prounounced 'Arou-eh' or do you pronounce the 't'?


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## xerxes (May 15, 2003)

pumpkinhead,

Thanks for the compliment on my daughters name! It is pronounced ARE ROO WAY...you do not pronounce the t. When you mentioned that you had to pull your sons lower lip out to get a deeper latch...that is exactly what I have to do after she has a bottle! Since I have been doing that my nipples do not hurt as much! So I think I can rule out thrush. I just have to pay really close attention to her latch. My right breast is back to normal, but my left breast is still sore by evening...I guess I just need to really pay close attention to the left latch.


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