Breastfeeding Tips: Can Your Prepare Your Nipples?
- November 20, 2013
- by Melissa Lawrence
Hello, hello. This question for a viewer on YouTube made me laugh out loud: can I prepare my nipples for breastfeeding to minimize pain and discomfort in the early weeks and months of nursing a baby! What a great question, never thought about this before so hat’s off.
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In today vlog, I give my answer which is basically, in my experience NOT REALLY. If you’re interested in preparing for breastfeeding, as I was because it’s something I was very nervous about, there are a few things you can do like get a good nursing bra, start investigating breast pumps,and explore nipple creamsand ointments that have soothing properties to help keep sore nipples from breastfeeding lubricated and reduce inflammation.
These are things I would encourage any new mom pondering how to get ready for a baby who wants to breastfeed to explore. But can you essentially PREP your nipples such that they will be more resilient and less affected by the wear and tear a baby’s suck can cause. In today’s vlog, I get into the nitty gritty of how in my view you really can’t.
One key thing to reducing nipple pain is a good latch and taking the newborn out of that latch properly. Another is pacing yourself and nursing on each side for a certain amount of time while not overdoing it. But short of these breast feeding tips and a few others that I mention in the vlog, nothing can really get your nipples ready for how it feels to have a newborn infant with a strong suck going at you for up to 10 hours a day! It’s a totally new experience and it often hurts. But if you have good habits, over time this will go away and you will be able to comfortably breastfeed your little wonder.
For more on my thoughts, watch today’s vlog and please weigh in below with what helped you when it came to sore nipples from nursing!
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