Emailed Question:
I have been using nipple shields for the past 4 months to breastfeed my son due to problems with sore, cracked, bleeding and scabbed nipples. They worked great and my nipples are now cleared up. I would like to take the nipple shields away now, but my baby does not seem to want to give them up and will not nurse without them. Please advise!
Answer:
What you are experiencing is nipple confusion and you will need to work backwards in the sense of reintroducing bare-breast feeding. Feed your baby for the majority of the feed with the nipple shield, then 3/4 of the way through remove the nipple shield and continue feeding with the bare-breast. With each feeding decrease the length of time using the nipple shield until he no longer insists on using the nipple. This will take approximately one week.
Note: A sleepy baby is more likely to be fooled than a hungry baby, so offer the bare breast then.