Nothing I've tried will heal my cracked nipples. What else can I do?

You wanted to know what helps cracked sore nipples most and the key is getting to the root of the problem and treating it, and in most cases cracked sore nipples are caused by an improper latch. And so if you're struggling with this issue I suggest seeing a lactation specialist who can actually watch you nurse one-on-one and make adjustments as necessary to help breastfeeding be successful for you and your baby. If it's not an improper latch, it's possible that it could be like an anatomical anomaly either for the mother or the baby so the pediatrician can assess the baby and see if there are any tongue ties a doctor can examine the woman’s breasts to see if there's any anatomical issues that may be causing the problem and then it's also possible that its a fungal infection. All of these things can cause issues and so you need to get to the root of the problem. But how do you help them heal in the meantime? There are definitely some things that you can do, if just one side is affected, try starting the baby on the unaffected side first, and then let them nurse on the affected side second because they tend to suck more strongly from the first side and a little more gently from the second side and this will help you until it's able to heal. You may also find that applying ice for a couple of minutes before starting a nursing session is helpful because it numbs the area and makes it more tolerable when you're nursing your baby. If you just find that it's too painful altogether to nurse then you can pump and feed your baby the expressed breast milk, and if that's even too painful then you can manually express breast milk but it is really important to continue extracting breast milk from the breast regularly to maintain supply and also prevent additional complications like mastitis. You can also try changing the baby’s position and this may alleviate pressure on a certain point that is very painful and make it more tolerable for you to nurse your baby. Something you can try right after breastfeeding is a saline soak. And you can buy saline packets from the drugstore or you can make your own saline solution. And it might sound painful to put a sore, cracked area into a salty solution, but the concentration of salt is minimal and it shouldn't hurt. And you can make your own saline by mixing a ½ teaspoon of salt into 8 oz. of warm water, mix it well, and make a new batch each day so that you avoid bacterial contamination, and soak the sore cracked nipples for just a few minutes after nursing. And if you find that your baby doesn't like the salty taste it's okay to rinse it off before you latch your baby on, and they shouldn't even notice it. Ointment may also be applied after using the saline solution, and the ointment that you use is going to depend on the possible cause of the sore cracked nipples. For example if they are becoming infected then you may need to use an antibiotic ointment, or if its a yeast infection then you need an anti-fungal ointment. Lanolin ointments can also be very helpful, and you can apply that after breastfeeding sessions. In between nursing sessions it's good if you can let the breasts air dry. Obviously it's not possible to walk around topless all the time and so when you need to put a shirt on and a bra it can be painful, but you can find good nursing pads and some of them actually have a little indent for the nipple and so those would be ideal, and there are even breast shells to keep the nipple from rubbing on clothing and so you can look into that if you need those until you start to feel a little bit better. You can also talk to your doctor about over-the-counter pain relievers, for example ibuprofen and Tylenol are okay to take while breastfeeding so that may be something your doctor recommends for the pain. A lot of women also have questions about how to wash a sore cracked nipples and generally speaking nipples don't have to be specifically washes unless they are cracked and you want to do what you can to keep them clean so when you take a shower, use a soap that doesn't have any perfumes or dyes, it's just a very mild soap. If the nipple seems obviously infected, like if you have a fever or you notice that pus coming out of it or is red, swollen, that type of thing, it is looking infected to you, then have your doctor take a look too. They can determine if further investigation or treatment is necessary so that you can feel better, and breast feeding can be successful for you and your baby. Good luck with everything and if you have more questions in the future for me feel free to ask them on our Facebook page at facebook.com/intermountainmoms and recommend us to your friends and family to.