Problems latching properly

Hi there I’m EXACTLY the same little one is 7 days old today Despite over 10 midwives seeing me struggle in hospital for 3 days on discharge my community midwife was the only one to ask me to show her what was happening. I’m not sure if it’s the same issue for you but my nipples were too flat for baby to get a good latch. This got worse as the milk came in & breast were engorged and sore hand expression was v slow and ineffective. Welcome the Haakkaa it 1 let’s down milk & 2 draws out nipple for a better latch. So I pop on for 10 mins collect some milk for later & then immediately pop baby on while nipple fresh from Haakka they are £15 on Amazon or £6 in aldi. Another thing I use are Mam silicon nipple shields total game changer baby latches immediately every single time no more tears from baby (or me) with a frustrated baby unable to latch. Good luck & ask your midwife for position advice also it’s harder to explain via txt. M x

I struggled with my boys latch too, and got 2 cracked nipples which was so painful! I did the same and pumped for a day to help but didn’t want nipples confusion so didn’t carry on. I found it really helped to hold his head with the opposite arm to where his head was in a rugby hold, so if he’s feeding off your left boob then hold his head with your right hand and hold your boob with your left hand to position your nipple properly. I also tried to kinda prep my nipple so would try to get it to stick out as much as possible to avoid a shallow latch. I’m no expert, just the advise I got from my midwife. I hope it helps. Breast feeding is hard and I’m only a couple of weeks in myself so understand your pain ❤️

Have him checked for a tongue tie by a ped dentist or ENT. Keep trying to latch this time is super important for supply building and milk maturing. It gets better I promise

Nipple cream and nipple shields to help heal. My baby lost a lot of weight the first week we were home due to latch issues. We worked with a lactation consultant to get my baby's latch better. Look up the flipple method, it's away to hold your breast to get a deeper latch. What worked for us was feeding in a reclined position as it forced baby to open wider. I was doing triple feeding and using nipple shields for the first month with my baby. It was a lot of work but after a month his latch was better and we didn't need to supplement as much. Definitely connect with lactation support.

For me getting comfy with a breastfeeding pillow and to prop my boob up with a muslin underneath helped. It just keeps your nipple in line with their mouth. Always do nipple to nose so they take a good mouthful too ❤️

I had exactly the same experience with my first born and her shallow latch was due to a tongue tie. We had it snipped under the NHS but the experience and aftercare was poor so ended up needing her tie snipped again but we went privately the second time around. I got an appointment within 2 days and it saved our breastfeeding journey. Definitely finding a position that you are the most relaxed in helps as well. I loved side lying once I got the hang of it.

I struggled at the start too! My saviour to keep my breastfeeding journey going was nipple shields - it for baby latching and saved my nipples! I then managed to get baby to latch without and it was then fine - I assume maybe baby learnt how to latch better by using the nipple shields? I’m not sure