What To Do When Breastfeeding Hurts?
Many women, when the baby is born, decide to feed it through breastfeeding, as it brings several benefits for both. However, it is not uncommon to hear some mothers say that breastfeeding hurts.
While it is common for you as a first-time mother to experience discomfort or tenderness in your breasts when your baby starts to breastfeed, it is not normal for you to experience a lot of pain when your baby suckles at the breast.
But if you are going through this phase and feel pain in your breasts, we invite you to keep reading. Here we will explain several factors why many mothers say that breastfeeding hurts and what steps you can take about it.
Factors that make breastfeeding hurt
There are several factors why some mothers say that breastfeeding hurts. Among these are:
- The baby does not grip the nipple well. When the newborn does not take the breast well or suck it properly, it often causes the nipples to ache. In addition, cracks may appear that are painful and may cause bleeding.
- Short sublingual brake. It may sometimes happen that the baby has a short sublingual frenulum, also called ankyloglossia. This can cause the baby to not suckle the nipple properly and, therefore, not get the amount of milk he needs.
- Mastitis. This is usually the result of an infection that has seeped through open cracks. The symptoms are: the chest is hot and hurts a lot, chills, malaise and fever may appear.
- Fungi. This could be due to an infection, maybe the baby has them in his mouth because he took some antibiotic. Symptoms include: the breast is pink and moist, and it also causes sharp pain.
- Breast obstruction. This occurs when the ducts in the breasts fill with milk and become clogged, causing a lot of pain. It can only occur on one nipple, the skin turns red, a white dot appears on the nipple, and then a lump emerges.
- Breast congestion. It occurs when the milk comes out after starting to breastfeed ; this can cause the breasts to inflame and ache.
What can be done when breastfeeding hurts?
To make breastfeeding your baby as painless and pleasurable as possible, write down the following tips:
- When breastfeeding your baby, you should put your head straight and wait for your baby to open his mouth wide. When you do this, you should hold the chest with one hand and guide it towards the baby’s palate. You must make sure that the child’s mouth covers most of the areola.
- You should breastfeed the baby approximately every 2 hours ; at night, you may have to wake him up to breastfeed.
- If the baby only breastfeeds, offer the other breast the next time you breastfeed him. That way you’ll avoid having just one hurt.
- Change your position when breastfeeding, this way you can relieve discomfort and pain more easily.
- Avoid wearing bras that are too tight. Otherwise, it may cause increased pressure or friction of the hoops on the skin.
- Wash your breasts only with warm water, do not use soaps that contain alcohol or other chemicals as they can create irritation and leave them dry.
- To avoid cracking the breasts, the best treatment is breast milk itself.
- Try to stay calm and let stress go.
In any case, your doctor will be the one who can best guide you on what to do if the pain becomes more and more intense. While it is true that motherhood involves moments that require an effort on the part of the mother, the suffering and pain should never be excessive.
