The act of nursing is sometimes painful to the mother, especially
before the habit is fully established
The act of nursing is sometimes painful to the mother, especially
before the habit is fully established. The discomfort is greatly
increased if the skin that covers the nipples is tender and delicate.
The suction pulls it off leaving them in a state in which the
necessary pressure of the child”s lips cause intense agony. This can
be prevented in a great measure, says Elizabeth Robinson Scovil, in
_Ladies” Home Journal_, if not entirely, by bathing the nipples
twice a day for six weeks before the confinement with powdered alum
dissolved in alcohol; or salt dissolved in brandy. If there is any
symptom of the skin cracking when the child begins; to nurse, they
should be painted with a mixture of tannin and glycerine. This must
be washed off before the baby touches them and renewed when it leaves
them. If they are very painful, the doctor will probably order morphia
added to the mixture. A rubber nipple shield to be put on at the time
of nursing, is a great relief. If the nipples are retracted or drawn
inward, they can be drawn out painlessly by filling a pint bottle with
boiling water, emptying it and quickly applying the mouth over the
nipple. As the air in the bottle cools, it condenses, leaving a vacuum
and the nipple is pushed out by the air behind it.
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