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I have friends who never had sore nipples. But I did and I know others who did. I am not sure why not it would be different, I guess all babies suck at different strengths and some moms have more sensitive nipples. I was told if they are latched on properly (which can be difficult at firs) then your nipples may hurt but only like a mild sunburn. My dd was not latching on properly and it hurt way more so I knew something was not happening right. Within about 10-12 days is got much better and I bf her for about 6 months. Now with my second child, it has been a breeze, no pain at all. Best advice I can give you is to have a lactation consultant come to your hospital room AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE. (Just to be sure the baby is latching on correctly). The lactation consultants that came to my hospital were free. Also see if you have a la leche league in your town and they can help a lot!!! Best of luck. I hope it goes really well for you.

Latching is a problem sometimes the first few days. Mine cracked and were soooo sore the first couple weeks till they healed up.

This is my first baby and I am lucky she has been able to establish a good suction. I believe this is the reason why my nipples have not been sore. On the occassions when she only had hold of my nipple and not areola I have felt discomfort immediately. To fix this I put my finger in the edge of her mouth and pull my nipple down and out and let her try again. After each feeding I also rub my nipples with a little milk and then let them air dry. I have not had any cracking. I commend all your efforts despite the frustration...hang in there!

I had no soreness at all. DD had a good latch right from the start.

I never thought I'd write about this one, as I nursed my other (much older) children and thought it wouldn't be a problem with my newborn son. I was only able to nurse my first child for roughly six weeks (I don't know if I did something wrong or what, but ended up formula feeding him because it seemed I couldn't keep up with his appetite), I nursed my second child for 15 months, my third for 18 months, and my fourth for 2 years. I'm now nursing my fifth child, and I have some very obviously sore (as in bloodied) nipples. I thought we had a good latch and it was just a matter of getting used to breastfeeding again, but the lactation consultant at the hospital felt my son might be latching on improperly and made suggestions...such as aiming my nipple for the baby's nose, and making sure the baby got as much areola as possible (that I already knew, though). I had a visiting nurse stop by today and she said to put the baby belly to belly, elevate the baby with a pillow, and to hold the baby's head with the hand opposite the side I'm nursing on and my breast with the hand on the same side I'm nursing on...in other words, if I'm nursing with my right breast, hold my right breast with my right hand and the baby's head with my left. I was also given some cream and some pads to help with the bloodied nipples. I'm praying the soreness will go away soon!

I was painfully engorged for 1-2 days with my first but after that no troubles. No nipple soreness at all.

Breastfeeding my first child was a challenge, but I never had sore nipples. Now, with my son, 5 wks old, owwww! He's not the best at latching on and he goofs around - and he BITES! So, I've been dealing with my share of cracked, blistered and bloody nips. The best thing I've found - Lansinoh - purple, green, white tube - got it at Target near the nursing/feeding supplies. It really works. Also, I've heard, change your pads often.

SaraL...my newborn son sounds a little like yours. My milk is in now, but sometimes when he wants to eat, he wants to eat immediately and goes a little crazy if he doesn't latch properly right away. My other kids will chuckle because of the sounds he makes. Also, the sore, bloodied nipples...I've got them, too, though they're getting better. A visiting nurse gave me some gel pads and they've helped. I also have some of the lotion you're talking about. Never had to deal with this before, though, and feel a bit weird about it because this is my fifth child!!

i didn't really have sore nipples. i did give myself nipple stimulation before delivery to help labor along...i don't know if that helped get them prepared. the first couple of days kind of hurt when he would latch on, but i think that is only because he was trying to get the hang of it. his second day he actually left a bruise...like a hickey. but he was trying to suck at the wrong spot. but over all...i didn't have hardly any issues. i never even used any of the nipple creams or ointments. good luck