Tampon help!!

I’m 19 and have had my period for about 7 or 8 years and have never used a tampon. I just spent about 30 min trying to put one in and it hurt like never before. I’ve watched all the videos and looked at all the diagrams and it still was very painful even when I followed all the steps. And I know you’re supposed to relax but it’s hard to relax when it hurts so its just a never ending cycle of pain. Does it usually hurt your first few times putting in tampons? Any tips on how to avoid the pain??