Support your breast with your thumb on one side, fingers on the other and your hand well away from the areola.

Step 1: Massage your breast before starting (see Helpful tips)

Step 2: Tickle your baby's lips with your nipple pointed upward and wait for him to open his mouth wide (like a yawn) with his tongue down and out.

Step 3: Bring your baby towards the breast, chin first, catching the bottom lip on the breast approximately 1" (2.5 cm) away from the base of the nipple.

Step 4: Guide the top lip up and over the nipple, landing on the breast just above the nipple.

How to Check a Good Latch

A good latch should not hurt - if you feel nipple pain, unlatch the baby and try latching again. With a good latch, you should see the following:

The chin should be pressed against the breast with the baby's head tilted back slightly (you will NOT see the baby's bottom lip).

The nose can be lightly touching the breast (it is NOT necessary to press down on the breast to create breathing space, as the baby will pull away from the breast if he/she cannot breathe).

The feeding begins with little sucks progressing to sucks that become deep and slow; there should be a pause during the suck when he baby's mouth ipens with widest. The longer the pause, themore milk baby is getting. On average, there should be at least 10-20 minutes in total of this deeper and slower type of suck at each feeding.

You may hear gulping sounds or quiet sounds like "ca" or "eh" when the baby swallows. You should not hear "clicking" or "smacking" with a good latch. If you are unable to indentify swallowing, seek help from a breastfeeding professional.

How to Unlatch Your Baby

If you need to take your baby off the breast (i.e. nipple pain when latching), keeping your baby close to the breast, insert your forefinger or pinkie finger into the corner of the baby's mouth, sliding your finger alongside of the breast far enough inside the mouth so that you hear a gentle "popping" sound (suction/seal is broken). Quickly slide the baby away from your breast.