5 1/2 Month Old Pulling on Nipples During Feedings!

I would lightly flick my son on the nose just to startle him. If he kept it up I would put the breast away even if he wasn't finished. After a couple of days he was much better.

K., I truly commend you on nursing your baby. I sooooo love nursing my dazzling son, Dylan Orion. And.....don't laugh, but I call him my LUSCIOUSLY VORACIOUS MILKY MONSTER because he loves to nurse with wild abandon! Nursing is the most amazing communication I've ever experienced with another being before.

Please know........in the beginning my nipples also cracked and bled and were so dry, and it was so painful. But, I was determined to continue nursing Dylan. Then, I discovered MOTHERLOVE'S NIPPLE CREAM. This amazing product was a lifesaver! It literally healed my nipples almost instantly and the great thing about the NIPPLE CREAM is that it is 100% natural so it is not harmful if your baby ingests it.

Here's the website for MOTHERLOVE:

http://www.motherlove.com/product_nipple_cream.php

And, this is what they say about their NIPPLE CREAM:

"Use on sore, cracked nursing nipples to quickly soften and heal skin, and relieve pain. This creamy salve goes on easily and also serves as an excellent diaper rash ointment. All ingredients are safe for ingestion, so it does not need to be washed off prior to nursing.

Does not contain lanolin which contains several pesticides; or Vitamin E which should not be ingested by infants. According to the Skin Deep toxicology database, Vitamin E is considered a health concern by the Amierican Hospital Formulary Service because it can cause liver dysfunction and is "potentially fatal" to low birth weight babies."

I bought my NIPPLE CREAM at WHOLE FOODS and THE PUMP STATION, but to find a store close to you go to:

http://www.motherlove.com/storelocator.php

Even, the GREEN CRADLE in Sherman Oaks sells it.

I also love the LA LECHE LEAGUE for all the help they've given me, and I highly recommend calling a LLL LEADER in your area! If you haven't checked them out already...here's their website for California: http://www.llli.org/Web/California.html

Hope this helps! Please free to call me anytime: (323) 906~2784 or e~mail me at ____@____.com

With lots of love,
L. (BFing MAMA to 2 year old Dylan Orion.....29 September 2007) : )

Nurse laying down as much as possible until she gets through this phase. I did that with my older son and it worked great. It is very hard for them to jerk their head back while laying down. Also, try to nurse in a quiet room with few distractions. As far as your nipples, if it were me, I'd treat for thrush. If they are that sore, chances are, you have thrush. Is there any chance you are pregnant again? That would also explain the soreness.

T.

Hi K.!

I am going through the same thing with my 5 month old daughter! We too have exclusively BF and the past few weeks she's been teething and biting everything...including me! She's my 4th and only my 1st did this...a friend (also a lactation consultant) told me to say firmly "No...that hurts mommmy!"...if that did not work (which it did only at first)...then to gently flick her on her cheek when she would bite down and pull away...and that does work! Gets her attention for sure! And even when she did it after the little flick...to stop feeding her right then and there.

This is exactly what I did...and she doesn't do it anymore! Phew - because THAT HURTS and breastfeeding should not be so painful!!

Good luck...and great job to you for sticking with it!!

C.

That happens at about that age. They get distracted... hence turning their head etc. Or, when teething. My kids did that.
I simply took them off, told them "no.... it hurts Mommy..." and then put them back on. If they did that again, I took them off, and repeated telling them no, it hurts..
It was a phase that passed. Some babies will even bite the nipple... but my kids did that IF teething.
My kids stopped. And I just continued to breastfeed.

Try Lasinoh, or lanolin breast creams to heal your nipples.
Also, when showering or bathing, do not put soap on your nipples or rub it, it will just dry it out. Just rinse it with warm water.

Oh, also, she wants more ounces now, because from this age, it is a "growth-spurt" period. Every 3 months is a growth-spurt time and their intake needs do increase, and the frequency too.
SOMETIMES, a baby will tug at the nipple while sucking, because there is either no let-down, or not enough milk coming out... or not fast enough for them. My son was like that... he had a GINORMOUS appetite and he was "impatient" about the milk coming out, though I did have lots of breastmilk. Their body is growing as their development and intake needs... and so they do need more intake... and still feeding on-demand. Your baby's frequency for feedings may/will probably increase too, to reflect the growth-spurt.
But, for the 1st year of life, a baby's PRIMARY source of nutrition is breastmilk/Formula....NOT solids and NOT other liquids- per our Pediatrician.

The lanolin breast cream will really help your nipples to heal. Try it.

All the best,
Susan

All the best,
Susan

My son did something similar when he was 7-8 mos. When I told him "no/it hurts mommy", he would either laugh or seem traumatized, so that didn't help. I ended up pumping/bottle feeding only for a few days, and then I tried breastfeeding again. It seemed to work - he "forgot" his previous biting/pulling, and breastfed normally again. Of course we went throught the same thing again one month later...
I would think that storing milk w/ a little blood in it would be ok. Maybe I wouldn't store it for months, but I'm sure it would be fine for a few days or a wk.

My still nursing 16 month old son has only done this a couple of times, so I don't know what to do to stop it, but I would try to prevent it as much as possible by nursing in a quiet place with no distractions. Obviously this can be difficult while out, but you can always see if you can find a quiet location, or even the car. My son has always had a harder time nursing in restaurants or loud places, he wants to be able to see everything. If you're home and having difficulties, make sure the door is shut, no kids around, no tv, etc. And make sure you stop this before she gets all of her teeth! It really hurts then.

Good luck on continuing to breastfeed, don't give up because of this, you can do it!

This is the age they do get distracted but it will pass soon. In the meantime, try nursing her in a quiet, somewhat dim room. Don't read,eat, or use the computer... while nursing. Some moms use covers or a blanket to cover the child. If she's biting... take her off, say, "That hurts Mommy." and stop the feeding. They learn quickly.

I breastfed my first till he was 2, I was sure he would be the first kid to take boob milk to kindergarden, the 2nd kid till he was a year and the 3rd (My 1st girl ) till she was 5 months. It's sounds like your little one has made the decision that no matter how important breast feeding is to mom the outside world and all it has to offer in distractions are way more important!!!!. My heart breaks for you and my boobs actually hurt after reading your letter, if you want to continue the nutritional aspect of feeding, I suggest to continue pumping and give your poor boobs a break , I wish you the best and it sounds like you have a smart, curious little one on your hands be ready when she starts walking!!!

She is probably teething. But, still, that is NOT OK. I think she may have to give it up. If she is used to a bottle, it is much easier for her to get milk. She probably doesn't want to work that hard. As far as blood in the milk -- that does not taste good. Before you get a terrible infection -- STOP. You have given her all she needs in terms of immunity, she will not get anymore of that.
I would start her on baby food, too. She is old enough, and is probably ready!
I am so sorry this is happening to you. I know you must be very dissapointed, but she is letting you know that she is no longer interested in breastfeeding. It is not OK to have your nipples be viewed as something to chomp on or be pulled.
Things will get better and you are not a failure. You have done the best thing you can for her. Put some soothing Aloe Vera gel on your nipples. Also BT's Calendula Gel is wonderfully healing.
Good luck!

I had the same issue with my son for a couple of stages during our 2 1/2 years of nursing. I tried everything, but the only thing that worked for me was keeping my finger near my nursing nipple and trying to anticipate when he was about to bite down and turn away. He would slow his sucking down a bit, rest, suck a bit, then rest, repeat, bite and turn. Once I figured the pattern out, I simply had my finger there to pop him off before he bit. If he became interested again, I would let him back on, but watch for the "distraction pattern". My boy was big, and always needed more milk than I could pump. If I stopped nursing for more than a day, my milk production dropped significantly, even though I was pumping (which I don't think was easier on my nipple in the long run anyway) I needed to nurse, so I used a ton of Lansinoah (sp?) lanolin for breast-feeding mothers to help heal and protect my sore nipples while I nursed through the pain. I am still glad that I did, and though I remember it being a struggle, I remember more those wonderful times of bonding I had with my son. He is a self-sufficient 4 1/2 year old who is very healthy, not clingy or needy, never needed a paci, and is able to self-soothe. I believe this is because of his early nurturing at the breast, so keep it up and good luck to you.

Hi K.,

Five months is exactly the age that many babies become distracted at mealtime... whether nursing or on the bottle. For my daughter, this was also the age when using a "hooter hider" was no longer acceptable. She'd just bat it away. So I had to minimize distractions as much as possible. Take her to a darker, quieter room. Maybe play soft music in the background so she didn't hear every little thing happening outside that room, too.

Good luck and speedy healing!

I had this same issue with my daughter. I started making sure feedings were quiet (meaning my 3 yr old wasn't running wild LOL) and I layed down with her. This started about the same time and it also felt like she was chewing on my nipple sometimes when she was teething OUCH! It was very painful, and my problem was that it was so painful I had to stop nursing for 2 days while I let them somewhat heal (this happened twice) and she REFUSED a bottle. You're lucky your little one takes a bottle as mine would not (still won't but now she's taking a sippy cup but she still prefers boob, what a BATTLE!). As another mother mentioned, I would put away the boob even if she wasn't finished if it felt like she was abusing my nipples LOL! She learned that she wouldn't get boob if she was mean!
Goodluck, mine is 10 months now, nurses without chewing or biting (we had a few episodes ;)) but she learned and your angel will too :)

You could switch to formula while you're at work, and then breastfeed in the mornings and evenings. This will give you a break from the pump also. It may not be what you originally intended, but I had to stop pumping at work because work got too crazy, and I found my daughter took to the formula well. I was able to continue breastfeeding morning and evenings until 13 months (when both top and bottom teeth came in--then forget it).

It's supposed to be a bonding experience, not bondage for you. Good luck.