It will get so much better. The first 6-10 days or so were the worst. I would almost cry and scream when she would latch on. Hang in there. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.....

Yes, I would say it was two weeks for me. It was so bad that my husband would rub my feet every time to take my mind off it. The magic number I remember is two weeks for me. Hang in. It will be better before you know it, and you will feel so wonderful that you made it through (as you should!!)

It should get better soon, I used that Lansinoh on my nipples and maybe it was all in my mind but it seemed to help with the tenderness. I would say mine tenderness lasted about two or three weeks. Of course anytime my DD latched on wrong they would get sore again.

Oh, yes, I know your pain all too well. I would literally wince when DD would latch on. It was about two - three weeks for me. I would say at two weeks it was the worst. My nipples looked terrible. I started using Lansinoh every time I nursed, and by week three it was starting to improve. I remember by like the 3rd month, my nipples got so de-sensitized from DD nursing, that I could hardly feel it anymore. Just to let you know that it does go full circle. ;-)

It was about 2 weeks for me as well, and trust us, it DOES get better, although I'm not sure I would've believed anyone who told me that then. My toes would literally curl to keep from screaming, it hurt so badly! I even called LLL and they told me that it shouldn't hurt! I thought I was doing something wrong until I came to the forum and everyone else went through the same thing in the beginning. Just a little while longer...it gets better!
Sara - Mommy to Megan 6/15/01

You're very close to relief it was about 2 weeks for me. You'll notice the scabs will start to fall off that is a good sign, there is tougher skin underneath and you won't feel any pain. My Dr. (a woman) said my nipples looked like a battle zone and she felt sorry for me. Good luck

One thing that really helped for me when I just couldn't stand the pain any longer, was to change the baby's position right in the middle of a feed. I would alternate the cradle and football holds so that the sucking pressure wasn't so intense in one area.

Thanks! That's so encouraging. I've been using the Lansinoh when the pain is at its worst, and that does seem to help a bit. I'll wait for the magical two-three week mark and hope for the best!

try using warm tea bags. they have to be the caffeinated ones though!
that really helped me though don't use them when there too hot.
:)

I have told people that my son didn't latch on in the first weeks, he attacked! My twins were premies who spent 20 and 31 days in the hospital, so I wasn't able to bf them at first. Then they had the usual premie latch-on problems, mostly due to having their tongues against the top of the mouth, and probably some nipple confusion from their hospital time. They weren't succeeding, and would get frantic, which made them even less successful. Meanwhile, I would get engorged and my breasts would get so hard the babies *couldn't* latch on. But I was determined I was going to bf them, so I kept trying and my nipples got sore and then really sore and then downright painful. I pumped for them while they were in the hospital, and then pumped when they got home just for relief.

That said, premie twins are an extreme case. We had obvious latch-on problems, *and* my breasts were (are) getting twice the attention that yours are getting.

My two suddenly got the hang of it at about 2 months past due date (which made it more than 3 months of age, but really only 2 months of trying). My friends who are nurses say it often takes 2 months to get bfing to really feel successful, although we weren't exactly talking about nipple pain in that conversation. I actually still have some pain on the right side because of a small cyst in the nipple--but the cure would entail excising the cyst and no nursing while the incision heals, so that isn't going to happen. To complicate matters, the right side is my "generous" side that sometimes shoots a stream of milk, and both babies bite down when that happens, trying to stem the flow. I yelp and pull back, and then the poor baby gets shot in the face and we go through what I refer to as the "duck and run" manover. Then I do some mopping up and try to get the frantic and angry baby calm enough to latch on (attack) again. This is even more complicated (and hilarious) when I am tandum nursing--both babies at the same time.

Anyway, think of this as training. When you first start training your body to do something new you get sore muscles and joints, maybe a few blisters. It takes a while to work out the kinks, but if it is important you keep going until suddenly you realize your muscles aren't sore anymore and your blisters have healed. You're almost to that point. After that, you'll just have the joy of watching your baby's face while he nurses, of him watching you, and soon he'll be grinning up at you around your nipple. Trust me, you'll fall in love all over again!

Catherine, mom to Richard and Patricia (b 9/20/01)

I suffered with the pain for about a week than my grandmother ( mother of a zillion!) showed me how to hold my son and I didnt hurt again. Im pretty large in the chest so I had to hold him with one arm and my breast with the other. I really cant explain but maybe have someone from LLL come and help you.
Good Luck
Morgan

I thought of one more thing you could try. WHen my son got his first two teeth around 4-5 mos, he bit me really bad on the right breast. It was pain like in the beginning. I was told by a lactation consultant to express a little breastmilk after the feeding and let it airdry. This was to keep away infection and to help with cracking, pain, etc. After it dried, I was then to put the Lansinoh on. It really felt a lot better than just the Lansinoh alone.