Latch issues

How long, or how many attempts did it take your little ones to learn to latch? We have had a difficult start, forceps delivery, weight loss due to not feeding/sucking, therefore expressing and bottles. I can’t top up with formula because he has high blood calcium which is being monitored by paediatrician. I was all about to give up trying to get him on the boob after I thought that he was taking in air from the shield and therefore making trapped wind and unable to sleep independently on his back. However my milk supply now seems to be dwindling which means I’m struggling to keep up with the milk that he needs and so his expressed ‘portions’ are smaller so he is not settling after a feed and seems constantly hungry. He has now managed to learn to suck my nipples directly to feed, which I suppose would be better for my milk supply and his feeding needs, but it is really painful, and so I don’t think his latch is very good and now I’m worried if I keep trying my nipples are going to be in so much pain that expressing is going to be torturous, but expressing alone isn’t producing enough milk. Help! How long did it take for your little ones to learn to latch correctly. I feel like I’ve read and look at everything there is to, I’ve seen midwives and breastfeeding nurses. It’s causing me so much stress which I know won’t be helping my production.

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No one prepared me for the pain I’ll go through with my nipples until my baby learns how to latch well.She is 3 weeks now and we still learning,it seems as if she is comfortable and sucking nicely but when I can feel the pain in my nipples I know that she is not attached well.They say keep on trying and it will get better but I don’t know when it gets better,still waiting for the ‘better days’ that me and my baby will both enjoy this.I think they say that after 6 weeks it gets easier and better because also your milk supply needs sometime too in order to properly come down.You are doing great whatever amount of breast milk your baby gets,it’s a win win for both of you but if very painful,expressing with pump would be the solution,maybe ask a latch professional to advise how it will be best for you and when/how often etc to use the pump. It might be little milk through pump in the begging which is fine,give as little as you can get and then whatever HV or latch professional says💛🤞

Are there any breastfeeding cafes or local organisations where they give advice? I called in a lactation consultant for £100 who also volunteered at one of those local council places and we significantly improved our latch. Please know that it does get better with some professional advice 🙏

4 weeks It was tough mentally hard frustrating but we got there. Are you using a nipple sheild? Seeing a lactation consultant? We would start with a bit in a bottle like 30 ml then try latch onto a sheild once latch was OK on sheild We would start feed with sheild if he got agitated finish the fees with the bottle once he latches everytime on sheild then start feed on sheild half way take the sheild off see if baby latches on nipple

My little boy had a severe tongue tie which meant he couldn't latch without shields, and even then it was a constant fight. It got cut at day12 and I continued with the shields for a few days while he got used to being able to use his tongue and then weaned him off the shield. Him latching directly to me realllllly hurt, but the pain only lasted 3-4 days. He's combi fed because my supply is too low for him (probably thanks to those early weeks with latching troubles) so he had more bottles than normal to give my nipples a rest. I used silver cups between feeds which helped the recovery. He latches now without pain - so it does get better, I promise!

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