In most cases, sore nipples are caused by hormonal changes from pregnancy or menstruation, allergies or friction from clothing. In rare cases, it can be a sign of a serious disease like breast cancer. Your healthcare provider should evaluate any pain that's accompanied by discharge or lumps as soon as possible.
Nipple pain is common in the early days of breastfeeding. This is because your nipples are not used to breastfeeding. The pain lasts for a short time, usually around 1 week. Soreness that continues throughout the breastfeed, or lasts for more than 1 week of breastfeeding, is not normal.
Your levels of progesterone peak during the week before your period. Progesterone causes your milk glands to swell, resulting in breast pain and tenderness. Experiencing premenstrual breast pain a week before your period is completely normal and nothing to worry about.
Yes, breast tenderness can be one of the earliest signs of pregnancy. It usually starts around 4 to 6 weeks and lasts through the first trimester.
Sore nipples are a common symptom throughout the menstrual cycle. Sometimes they indicate a person is pregnant or about to ovulate. They may also signal a health problem or mean nothing at all.
If you feel tenderness in your breasts you may be experiencing a typical side-effect of PMS. Other non-pregnancy sources of tenderness include medical conditions like infection or cysts. You may even be feeling sore from wearing an ill-fitting bra or pulling a muscle around the chest wall.
The hormonal changes that occur as part of menstruation can cause breast tenderness and sore nipples. Most cases of breast or nipple tenderness occur just before menstruation begins (in the days just before your period). This is because estrogen and progesterone cause your breast tissue to swell.
You may notice soreness in your breasts and nipples as soon as one to two weeks after conception.
SORE, SWOLLEN AND TENDER BREASTS: If you experience that your breasts are becoming extra sensitive to any type of touch, it's a sign of pregnancy. This is due to the reason that during early stage of pregnancy, blood flow to your breasts increases, making the breast tissues more sensitive and swollen.
The nipples and the area around the nipples (areola) become darker and larger. Small bumps may appear on the areola. These bumps will go away after you have your baby. You may notice a yellowish discharge, called colostrum, from your nipples as early as the 16th to 19th week.
While breast pain is definitely a common symptom of early pregnancy, many women experience breast pain before starting their period, too. During early pregnancy (one to two weeks after conception) your breasts might feel sore, tender to the touch, and heavy.
While your breasts may feel tender during PMS, they can be tender during early pregnancy as well. “You may also be pretty fatigued,” Giles added. “The key difference between the two, however, is that with pregnancy, your period doesn't occur.”
It is usually mild discomfort, but some describe it as severe, depending on how they feel pain. However, the pain/discomfort should not continue throughout your nursing session and should not be present in between feedings.
There are many possible causes of nipple pain, most of which are not a cause for concern. Many normal everyday activities can cause nipple pain, from sex to a new detergent. Routine hormonal changes like your period, pregnancy, or nursing can also lead to nipple pain. Rarely, nipple pain can be a sign of breast cancer.
Symptoms of rising hCG levels can include fatigue, nausea/vomiting (aka morning sickness), dizziness or light-headedness, breast tenderness, and feeling emotionally sensitive.
The most common early signs and symptoms of pregnancy might include: Missed period. If you're in your childbearing years and a week or more has passed without the start of an expected menstrual cycle, you might be pregnant. However, this symptom can be misleading if you have an irregular menstrual cycle.
7 to 14 days after conception: Breasts may feel swollen, sore, tingly and heavy.
Breast sensitivity: Your breasts may become sensitive in case of both PMS and pregnancy. But in this one, you can spot the difference by the type of sensitivity. If your breasts get sore, you may be pregnant. Whereas, if they have swollen up and are only tender, chances are that you are only experiencing PMS.
Fungal Infection
You may be wondering, “why are my nipples sore when I'm not pregnant or on my period?”, “Should you be concerned when you have sore nipples, but you're not pregnant?” You may have a fungal infection if you have sore nipples, but you're not pregnant.
hCG is a hormone produced by your placenta when you are pregnant. It appears shortly after the embryo attaches to the wall of the uterus. If you are pregnant, this hormone increases very rapidly. If you have a 28 day menstrual cycle, you can detect hCG in your urine 12-15 days after ovulation.
Tingly, sore, full-feeling, tender, even painful-to-the-touch breasts and nipples are often one of the first symptoms of pregnancy(though, of course, they can also come along for the PMS ride, too).
Most commonly, cyclical breast pain will begin a few weeks before menstruation, around ovulation or the luteal phase, and starts to subside once bleeding begins. This is due to an increase in estrogen prior to menstruation that stimulates and often irritates ducts in the breast.