Nipple Shield

[Anonymous]

Can you please share your experience with a NS? I have flat nipples and I'm struggling to get baby to latch on one side, but of course it's the side that produces 2-3x more milk. I have been using a nipple shield on it but baby cries and gets frustrated, I think there isn't enough milk coming out (I can pump 3 oz at a time from it so I know it's there). I'm also worried about using it long term. I am working with an LC and see her again on Friday. Baby is only a few weeks old. TIA.

[Anonymous]

My first never learned to latch so I used a NP for the 24months I breastfed, no issues other than the pain of having to keep track of it.

2nd I used it for 4 weeks because she struggled with latching as well and then she figured out how to do it on her own. BF for 18 months until she self weaned.

[Anonymous]

Do what you need to do today and tomorrow (ie pumping/nipple shields) to keep the milk flowing and keep baby nursing, and then ask the LC on Friday to look at your specific needs and baby's latch.

I used shields about 8 weeks, btw, and am still nursing - without them, obviously - 2.5 years later. There was an issue with DS getting enough milk though, and we did some supplementing until he got a stronger latch - he was a 36 weeker, so not really premature - but not really fully baked either.

Congrats on your little one and hang in there!

[Anonymous]

PP from above - also - get a haha to hang off the side that produces a lot so that you don't lose the milk while baby is latched on the other side.

[Anonymous]

Haka not haha

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My first never learned to latch so I used a NP for the 24months I breastfed, no issues other than the pain of having to keep track of it.

2nd I used it for 4 weeks because she struggled with latching as well and then she figured out how to do it on her own. BF for 18 months until she self weaned.

OP here, thanks so much for the response. I hate using the NS. It's so inconvenient and my baby can't get the hang of it. We'll use it for an hour and then I'll give her a 2 oz bottle,. it's so frustrating.

[Anonymous]

Is the shield correctly sized and are you putting your whole nipple in?
If the baby takes a bottle she should be ok with the shield. I had to get a bigger one than I initially thought I needed to make sure it covered all the nipple and provided enough stimulation for the milk to flow.
Also pumping will extend your nipples and baby's mouth will grow bigger and it'll get better.
I used a NS for 8 weeks and then weaned off it and nursed for another year after.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is the shield correctly sized and are you putting your whole nipple in?
If the baby takes a bottle she should be ok with the shield. I had to get a bigger one than I initially thought I needed to make sure it covered all the nipple and provided enough stimulation for the milk to flow.
Also pumping will extend your nipples and baby's mouth will grow bigger and it'll get better.
I used a NS for 8 weeks and then weaned off it and nursed for another year after.

Op again, I know I need to remember this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is the shield correctly sized and are you putting your whole nipple in?
If the baby takes a bottle she should be ok with the shield. I had to get a bigger one than I initially thought I needed to make sure it covered all the nipple and provided enough stimulation for the milk to flow.
Also pumping will extend your nipples and baby's mouth will grow bigger and it'll get better.
I used a NS for 8 weeks and then weaned off it and nursed for another year after.

Op again, I know I need to remember this.

Also the LC said its the right size.

[Anonymous]

I used a nipple shield with my first for 6 months before she finally latched on her own (and I liked it so much I kept nursing her another 12 months to make up for the first 6 months I missed out on, ha).

There are far more nipple shields out there than many LCs will tell you about, and the Medela nipple shield is pure crap, so if that's what you were given, find something new ASAP. The Medela shield doesn't stick, kept falling off, baby and i were miserable. I used NUK after the first few weeks and it was so much better. You can buy it on Amazon, and it comes with a carrying case, which is awesome.

With #2, I only needed the nipple shield for the first week and only on one side, but the only one she would take was some fancy german "cherry shaped" one that my 2nd LC was kind enough to give me as part of her service. Highly recommend Susan Howard at Virginia Hospital Center if you're in VA - she came with a bag full of them for me to try.

[Anonymous]

I also had latch issues. I think I have flat large nipples. I never could get the shield to work. My kids would gag from the plastic (they also hated bottles and pacifiers, so maybe that’s related?). I just kept up on the latch and then it worked. About 3 weeks in.

I often hand expressed so the milk got flowing and then put the baby on. That way they didn’t have to suck to stimulate letdown.

I love nursing and it’s my favorite part of babies. Not everyone likes it so don’t stress too much. You can always pump until baby’s mouth gets bigger

[Anonymous]

I found flipping the shield inside out and kind of popping it onto nipple helped me get it placed better. Also you can wet the edge a bit to get it to stay in place better, (not a ton or it gets slippy). We used a shield for about 2-3 months until baby’s mouth was big enough to latch well...she had some torticollis and neck tension we needed to work through too.

Also it helps to have more than one shield, they’re easy to lose. I kept one in diaper bag, one in bedroom, one in living room. The little dressing or snack size Rubbermaid container is a good for storage if yours doesn’t come with a case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I found flipping the shield inside out and kind of popping it onto nipple helped me get it placed better. Also you can wet the edge a bit to get it to stay in place better, (not a ton or it gets slippy). We used a shield for about 2-3 months until baby’s mouth was big enough to latch well...she had some torticollis and neck tension we needed to work through too.

Also it helps to have more than one shield, they’re easy to lose. I kept one in diaper bag, one in bedroom, one in living room. The little dressing or snack size Rubbermaid container is a good for storage if yours doesn’t come with a case.

This is all great advice. Also you can keep it in your bra.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I found flipping the shield inside out and kind of popping it onto nipple helped me get it placed better. Also you can wet the edge a bit to get it to stay in place better, (not a ton or it gets slippy). We used a shield for about 2-3 months until baby’s mouth was big enough to latch well...she had some torticollis and neck tension we needed to work through too.

Also it helps to have more than one shield, they’re easy to lose. I kept one in diaper bag, one in bedroom, one in living room. The little dressing or snack size Rubbermaid container is a good for storage if yours doesn’t come with a case.

OP here, I do all of this, I have 4 shields ha, but two of them are in different sizes. I like the Medela one the best b/c it sticks the easiest.

All of these responses give me hope, I'll stick with the shield until her mouth gets bigger. I just wish she was better/faster at getting the milk out.

[Anonymous]

I used them for the first 6-8 weeks for both of my kids and then was able to nurse them for about a year without one. It's a pain at the time but now I actually forgot I had to do that until this post reminded me. It gets easier!