Nursing/Teething/Biting

[MrsK]

Any tips? K2(9mo) is teething. He's horrible at it. Gets high fevers and stays up all night screaming. So far, he's cut two bottom teeth and is working on two top teeth. He just started table food and does not yet drink from a sippy cup. He's been biting me when nursing. (Ouch!) When he bites, I've been telling him "nurse nice," taking him off, and letting him cry a little before trying again. After two bites, I pack up the ladies. Twice today, I had to give him bottles in lieu of nursing after he repeatedly bit me. Is it time to wean? Do I resort to nipple shields? I was hoping to wean at about 1 yr.

I already have a biting toddler (who, interestingly, never bit when nursing and only began once he was weaned). I really can't deal with another biter.

[ides]

Are you giving him anything for pain? O chomped a few times while teething but it didn't become a regular thing. Like you I would remove him, give him a minute then try again. We gave O baby oragel & it was like magic. Much happier guy. We tried giving things to chew as well but he wasn't into it.

[Michele]

I used ibuprofen for mine when they got bite-y during teething. Did a lot of "no bite" and end the nursing session. I never switched to bottles though. And if you can tough out the "nurse nice" and wait a few minutes (ok really I only waited 10-15 seconds) and relatch, then I would say to avoid the bottle. He might end up preferring it during the teething times, and then refusing the breast, which will potentially lower your supply and lead to earlier weaning. YMMV of course. But keeping breast feeding at the breast is associated with longer successful breastfeeding. Giving the bottle could be "giving in" as well. Since you've taken away his motivation (hunger) to not bite. As in, it doesn't matter if I bite mommy, I still get fed.

My three learned pretty quickly not to bite. They wanted milk more than they wanted a teething toy. . It usually only took a couple of redirections a day for about a week.

One other thing that mine did after learning not to bite, was changing their latch during teething times. Often that was my only cue that their teeth were bugging them....nursing would start to hurt. To combat this, I would pop them off and tell them to relatch and I would offer the breast again and make sure they latched properly. I also medicated with ibuprofen. This was definitely the more annoying and time consuming part of teething for us. The no bite they learned quickly. The relatch was really hard for them to understand. Sometimes I'd make them relatch 10 times for one session. They would latch right, then halfway through would shift and it would start to hurt. The first time D did the funny teething latch I didn't correct him. And after a few days I ended up with a cracked nipple that wouldn't heal. I almost quit breastfeeding bc of it. Jack Newmans All Purpose Nipple Ointment and lots of relatching finally healed it and now I don't let a bad latch last even an entire nursing session.

[MrsK]

What do you suggest I do about his dismount? When he's finished, he'll abruptly pull away without releasing suction (usually to check out what his brother is doing).

[Thirteen]

If you sense he's about done, you can anticipate and brace the back of his head to prevent a yanking.
Or, if he really is done, just slip your finger in there and break the seal.

I second the ibuprofen.


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[Michele]

I do what 13 does.

[MrsK]

I do that too. But he's pulling before he's done. He'll relatch after he pulls off. If I try to hold his head when he nurses, he starts flapping his arms and squirming.

[Bittersweet]

DS went through a distracted nursing phase and would abruptly pull off or turn to look at something without letting go. I think the standard advice is to nurse in a dark quiet room or increase night feedings, which is hardly practical when you have another little one to tend to. A nursing necklace helped a little bit as did nursing while standing/moving/walking. Otherwise I waited it out and now he's more down to business.

[Michele]

I have no patience for distracted sipping type nursing. I will nurse all night long but I can't do the pop on pop off. My kids eventually learned.

But darnit if parenting isn't all about being consistent and doing the same thin over and over and over again until they get it.

[MrsK]

I've found that wearing a nursing apron helps with the distracted nursing ...sometimes. His technique leaves a lot to be desired these days.

[Michele]

It's probably all related to teeth. I've been grinding/clenching mine and I know how much pain that causes me. So I can only imagine the pain of new eruptions.

[MrsK]

Funny how kids are so different. K1 never complained about teething. He even seemed proud of himself when we noticed new teeth and his first word was "teeth".