Hello all!
This is my fourth baby (all breast fed, six years of breastfeeding experience so far) but I still need some help. He doesn't latch on to much more than my nipple. His mouth is SO small, but he opens it wide enough when he yaawns, but even the few times I've gotten him to open wide to latch on, he seems to slip off until he's not holding much more than the nipple in his mouth. Anyways, probably because of this, my nipples are bloody and the pain is excruciating when he nurses. I've managed to stop them from cracking by using lanolin and hydro-gel breast pads, but they're not healing (he's only 6 days old, though). Any suggestions to help with the pain/speed healing? Also the engorgement is SO bad. I have to pump 2-3 times a day or my breasts are too hard for him to latch onto at all. All this is making me understand why some people give up and say they can't breastfeed! If I didn't know from past experience that this too, shall pass, I wouldn't be able to take the pain. It's THAT bad!