Should breast feeding be completely pain free?

Thanks for everyones help so far, ive been posting a lot of questions and gotten a lot of great feedback.

I recently weaned DS from a nipple shield. DD is still using one, hope to wean her soon. DS has been without the nipple shield less than a week. I find that he latches on pretty good with my help but a few times during feeding my nipple suddenly starts hurting really bad. Not sure if his latch goes bad, but ill unlatch him and relatch him. Sometimes it feels like hes biting me -he has no teeth only 8 wks old. DS is also a voracious eater. He always eats like hes been starving for days so dont know if he is just agressive and can suck too hard.

Just wondering if breast feeding should be completely pain free or do you occasional nipple pain?

 

I breastfed 6 kids. None of them were always completely pain free. I would say after a certain point they mostly were, but I think it took a few months to get to that point. Then when it was around my period, or sometimes for unknown reasons, I'd end up tender and sometimes downright sore. And honestly, with Spencer I was tender and sore an awful lot of the time... until well past the first year. It drove me nuts. I think it may have been related to the fact that he has a really high arch in the roof of his mouth, which made latching difficult at first, too. He was my hardest, in many ways... but then I think he might be my most trying teenager when he gets to that point, too. LOL

 

I know that Emmett will often shallow out his latch during a feed as a way to slow the flow. That causes sore nipples for me. He'll also sometimes clamp down with his gums which is essentially a bite - ouch! I think what you're doing is exactly right. Pain during BFing is an indication that something isn't quite right so it's always a good idea to stop & relatch.

 

All three of mine clamp down during nursing sessions. In my case, it's because I have a forceful letdown. So sometimes when I let down, they will clamp down to slow the flow. I don't know if this could be the issue for you. That being said, I agree with the stop and relatch strategy. It may take some time for him to adjust his eating style.

 

Thanks. Today was going good til one session where DS really kept hurting me. Eventually my nipple got a blood blister on the tip of it! Ow!