The Flipple Technique

The ‘flipple’ is a word combination for ‘flip the nipple’. It is a technique I love to teach mamas who have babies that just can’t get that deep latch they need for their nipple comfort and good milk transfer. The flipple technique is great to use if your baby is a premie with a small mouth or your if baby has a mild oral tether that makes it difficult for them to latch deeply. You can also use the flipple if your nipples are sore or damaged and you need to make sure baby gets a very deep latch to prevent further pain and chafing.

Here’s how to flipple!

-Get in your most comfortable nursing position leaving one free hand

-place you’re thumb or a few fingers near the base of your nipple

-press in an upward motion so the nipple lifts up and is tilting away from baby’s nose

-Wait for baby to open wide, pull her closer and let the bottom of your breast be the first part that meets her bottom lip. -You can then release your fingers so the nipple ‘flips’ into baby’s mouth or you can tuck it in there so it is far back in the baby’s mouth.

-Your nipple should be the very last thing in the baby’s mouth before she latches (see photo)

If your baby still isn’t getting that deep latch, unlatch and try the flipple again. If the flipple alone doesn’t help to get a good deep latch, try making a C shape with your thumb on top and fingers underneath and ‘sandwich’ your breast with the nipple flipped up, above baby’s nose before latching. Sounds complicated right? It’s not! I’d be happy to demo it for you if you think it would benefit you and your babe.

It’s important to note that the sandwich technique is a short term solution for a premie, a baby with a small mouth or mild tongue tie. It can sometimes cause milk ducts to compress (or get sandwiched) and cause inefficient milk transfer.

This pic was a screenshot of a video on the flipple technique posted by LactationMotovation.com, a UK based BF support website