14 Month Old Biting While Breastfeeding, Thinking of Weaning - Help!

I have two tips for you:

First, even though it seems counterintuitive, when she bites DON'T try to pull her off the nipple instantly -- you're much more likely to get scraped and her instinct may be to clamp down harder to keep a grip. Instead, smoosh your breast firmly towards her face, then immediately use my second tip:

Pinch her nose. She will open her mouth to breathe. This will not come naturally to you at all when you're in pain, at least not at first!

Then give her a firm NO BITING, if she's awake, or reposition her if she's sleepy-nursing and not ready to stop (which is when my toddler tends to bite).

The laughing thing is simply a response to your sudden and unexpected attention. Soon enough, she'll break out in tears instead...which is a sign she's getting it...and then the biting will stop, except, in my experience, when she's very tired and not paying attention.

Hope these tips give you the break you need so that you can wean when you feel she's ready. We're still going at two.

I am right there with you! I too have a almost 14month old that I am nursing. I love nursing him. I love him so much. I too nurse him to at night mostly when he gets up for a feeding., but as far as the biting goes ... I agree with Lisa because being firm will somehow make her understand that NO IS NO. Jeremiah (my son) only bite me once and I looked right into his gorgeous eyes and told him NO! Well for the most part it works but every now and again he gets anxious (mostly from teething) and he will try to bite me., but he doesn't. He smiles at me too.. Don't they just warm our hearts?

J.,

Is she possibly teething badly? My son did this when he was teething and it wasn't intentional. I would suggest firmly saying no when she does this. I would gently remove him from the breast and put him on the floor for a minute. He got the idea that you don't bite or clamp down (even if it wasn't intentional). He never did it again. I am currently nursing my almost 14 month old daughter now too. I am sad a little bit about the weaning process. However, mine won't sleep through the night unless she is nursed back to sleep. Hope that helps!

L.

My son is 15-months-old and yesterday was the first day and night that I didn't nurse him. :( I am very sad about this and don't feel emotionally ready, but in my heart it feels right. One reason I decided to wean is because he has almost all of his teeth and was hurting my nipples when he nursed. It was to the point that when I would nurse him at night (which I have done for the past month) it was not enjoyable at all. Of course I still loved the closeness we had when nursing, but luckily he likes to cuddle even when he's not nursing. Surprisingly, I am doing okay today and trying not to dwell on the negative aspects of weaning. Instead, I am focusing on our wonderful journey of nursing we experienced for the past 15 months. I feel blessed I was able to nurse for as long as I did. I have a blog "Raising a Healthy Child" that you might be interested in. The website is: www.amikolaycik.blogspot.com. Good luck!

I'm sorry, but you are a nasty freak to be breastfeeding a kid that old. That is disgusting, and perverted. Wow, that is nasty, poor kid.

I experienced the same situation when our son was 10 months old and teething. My nipples were so sore and blead a bit for about 2 weeks. I was about to give up, but my heart said not to. He is now 1 and will occasionally bite me when he is not vigorously interested. I gently pull him away by sticking my finger in his mouth so he doesn't clamp down and I place him on the floor. I try to explain that his biting hurts, he smiles and tries to climb back on, when he re-latches it's OK so maybe he understood. Be patient but firm. If you decide it's time to wean her off, don't be so hard on yourself, she's lucky to have had your precious milk for over a year. I breastfed our second child til about 3 years old, she was told by a lactation specialist that she was a "lucky child." That comment has really stuck to her head at age 12 now.