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For many expecting mothers and their partners, preparing for birth and parenthood is an integral part of pregnancy. But one aspect many future parents forget about is to prepare for breastfeeding.
The World Health Organisation recommends exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months. Thereafter, breastfeeding should be continued alongside solid foods for up to 2 years (or even longer). This means that, even if a mother decides to take the full 52 weeks of maternity leave she is legally entitled to in the UK, there will be an overlap between breastfeeding and the return to work.
There are many different breastfeeding problems that can lead to pain during the nursing period, one of them being a thrush infection on the nipples. Breastfeeding thrush can develop both on the mother’s nipples and in the baby’s mouth. Giving a clear thrush diagnosis is not always easy because the symptoms may be similar to other causes of breast or nipple pain.
It’s not uncommon for a woman’s nipples to become sore during the first few days and weeks of breastfeeding. While sore nipples can be a real nuisance, the pain gets much worse when the nipples crack open and start bleeding.
Some breastfeeding women discover small white or yellow spots on their nipples. What many might mistake for skin blemishes is, in fact, a so-called milk bleb or blister. When breast milk starts backing up behind the blister, breastfeeding can become quite painful.
There is no breastfeeding without milk let down. The let-down reflex ensures that the breast milk is released from the mammary glands and flows towards the nipples. If it doesn’t happen, the baby will suckle at the breast in vain, only managing to extract a few scattered drops of milk that might be left in the ducts from the last feeding.