Breastfeeding Help - Chesapeake, VA

My son is only two months old, but my Mom had the same problem with me, right down to the laughing. She had to switch to pumping and feeding me with a bottle. I know that is not waht you want to hear, but that might be the way to go. Good luck!!

Have you tried to pump and give him a bottle? I have the same fear. I have a 3 month old and I am so nervous about when he starts getting teeth. If you find something that works and I hope that you do maybe you can let me know. Good Luck

Hi R.!
When my son was around this age, he started doing the same thing. I would simply use my finger to break any suction he had by wedging it between my breast and his gums. At the same time I would say a very stern "NO" without much intonation or without making a face, because otherwise he would think it was funny or a game and try it again! I would just repeat if he started to do it again (and again!). It didn't take long, but he did stop. I guess it just got annoying enough to him to have to stop in the middle of lunch all the time :)

Anyway, good for you for continuing to BF, and hang in there, because you'll see that the rewards for you both will make even this phase worth it! *hugs*

It will get better, as most everyone as said so far. My son bit as well, and we nursed for 2 1/2 years, so I promise, the biting stops. Don't make a big deal and scream and yell and stick him in his crib to cry. You don't want him to associate the breast with anger and upsetting you. He isn't meaning to hurt you, so why get mad and scream at him? All that does is scare him, and can cause a nursing strike. They don't last long, but it's still uncomfortable.
There's no reason to start pumping and giving a bottle, unless you plan to wean early, because you won't be able to keep up much of a milk supply with the pump only.
Like others have said, watch him closely, because when he bites, he isn't nursing. It's probably the end of the feeding, when most babies bite, if it is, start paying attention to the signs of when he's done eating and he's just sucking. Take him off. If he does bite, take him off, say, No, don't bite mommy. And hand him a chew toy. Lay him down with it. Come back in a couple of minutes and try again. But be calm about it, again, there's no reason to scare him and make him think he's done something so terrible you're angry with him.
Even though he's only 5 months, he understands. He can understand when you're angry and upset, and trust me, that isn't waht he wants. And he understands when you mean business. You just let him know that biting isn't acceptable. He'll soon learn that when he bites, not only is the breast gone, but mommy walks away too. And because you're handing him something to chew on, he learns, okay,when my teeth hurt, I bite this, and when I'm hungry I suck on mommy!!
Again, it won't last forever, and he isn't doing it on purpose. Keep it up!!

R. I totally understand what you are saying. My daugther is now 10 mths old and has 5 teeth. All you can do is when they bite down pull them off and tell them "NO" Even though he is only 5 mths he will get the point after a few times. My daughter did the samething with smiling and laughing...she does it now when she is told "NO" about something for the first time too. You just have to make sure that you don't crack a smile even though sometimes it's hard...I never gave my daughter a bottle either and I am still breastfeeding her now. It will get better you just have to be consistant and make sure that you tell him NO the sameway everytime. Good luck and I help that it helps...it does get better so DON'T GIVE UP!!! :-)

Hi! I breastfeed my five year old daughter and I am breastfeeding my 4 month old son now. When my daughter started biting I did what Melissa did also by sticking my finger in her mouth and pulling her away from my breast and told her No, No! Ofcourse at first she thought it was funny and would laugh at me but after several attempts to do this she finally stopped. My main thing was you would just have to watch for them to stop sucking and that is when it would happen. She would normally even look up at me right before she would do it. It gets better I promise! My olny problem is I seemed to produce more milk with my daughter than I have this time with my son. Let me know if you hear of any ideas on boosting milk production. Anyways, Good Luck and let me know if you have any questions!
S.

My daughter never bit during feedings, but she did bite my shoulder when I was burping her, she was about 5 1/2 months old, I pulled her down and bit her right back on the shoulder, hard enough to leave a little tooth mark, but not break the skin, she cried of course, but to this day (she is 5 1/2) she has never bitten again. The problem is that they don't understand how much it hurts and to them you are a chew toy. If it gets too bad and he won't stop and you don't want to give him formula, then you might need to pump and just give him breastmilk in a bottle. you can still bond and still give him the good breastmilk nutrition without sores on your breasts, or cuts from his new teeth. I know it might be a hard thing to have to do a bottle, but you cannot allow him to bite. I wish you the best.

The biting is not intended to hurt you, but because the activity of teething is so uncomfortable your baby is trying to relieve the discomfort. Of course, he has to be taught not to do this. Typically, as long as he is hungry and actively nursing he won't bite. Pay attention to signs that he has stopped sucking and remove him from the breast before he bites. I know that is not always possible, but is the first place to start.

This is what worked for me. When he bites try giving a small sharp pinch on the top of his arm, near the armpit - but on the fleshy part of the arm, as soon as he bites. This produces an immediate pain response in him that is associated with the action of biting. When my babies were in that stage I nursed with my hand really close to that spot on their arm so the pinch could be immediate. Then I removed the baby from nursing (because usually they were done anyway). If they tried to latch on again, I would say, "No, you bit mommy." Later I would go right back to nursing as usual, unless they tried to bite again, in which case I just repeated the above procedure.

I know the biting hurts - it is a bit of a shock, but this stage doesn't last long and is due to the teething. My experience is that it only lasts a day or two. I don't endorse biting back or getting angry or overreacting emotionally. Your son didn't bite to be vicious nor did he intend to hurt you. You can get through it - it doesn't have to be a reason to wean. If a bite breaks the skin apply a little antibiotic ointment to moisturize and prevent infection.

More information is available at : http://www.kellymom.com/bf/older-baby/biting.html

Blessings,
D.

Another option is when he bites, to bring him in close to your breast, almost as if you're smothering him. That will force him to let go and open wide to breathe (no, it doesn't hurt him!). Other than that, when is he biting? At the end of a nursing session? Latching on? If it's when he's latching on, try offering him something to chew on (seriously, a cold washcloth, or freeze breastmilk in an ice cube tray, like a popsicle!). If it's at the end of his nursing time, try to take him off earlier. If it's other than that, feel free to email me. My oldest was a biter! She's now 4!

R. I hope you can get this worked out. I completely understand you not wanting to give a bottle. I am exclusiely bfing too and wont even think of a bottle! I hope you can somehow get him to stop biting. I just now at almost 4 mths ran into an obstacle too w DD. Not biting but pulling off the brest to smile at me, stare or look around. It seems she never gets down to the business of eating unless she is really hungry or sleepy
There has to be a way to work thru t. you made it this far- keep going!

My son did that too. Basically, if your son is actively nursing, he can't bite so what I did was to watch him like a hawk. I kept my pinky finger on the edge of his mouth and if he stopped nursing, I popped him off. If he was still hungry, he'd latch back on and nurse. If he wasn't he was fine not too. If he did bite me and wanted to keep latching on to bite, I would get a bottle and fill it with ice water and let him chew on that. It was the only time I ever used a bottle but the coldness must have helped ease the pain of teething. I would never put my son down for 10 minutes and ignore him though. I have been told to put him down and say "No biting" but not to ignore him, especially at 5 months.

You can do this! I went through the same thing (well not exactly) but my baby girl got 2 bottom teeth when she was 4 months old, I was in tears and asked everyone what to do, the best advice was REACT! react naturally, if your baby is biting it means he is not sucking,so when this happens don't hold back b/c you think you will scare him - scream, put him in his crib and cry in another room, this helped me. I think it lets the baby know that he/she has hurt you and they don't want you to hurt. He probably thinks that you are playing a game when he bites, just let him know that it is not a game. This advice came to me from a mommy that breastfeed 3 kids. It helped me, if you are still haveing problems maybe visit your local La Leche Leauge meeting, the 1st time is free, see if it helps. good luck, and know that you are doing the BEST thing for you child by breastfeeding.

I'm a mother of 5. Most of mine are grown now. I breastfed all of mine. Yes, it is a bit of a problem when they bite. I actually thumped their cheek w/ my finger when it happened. It doesn't hurt them, but does startle them a bit and let's them know not to do it again. Also, raise your voice when you do it. It's a form of conditioning and doesn't hurt them. You may have to do this a couple of times for it to sink in. I was able to successfully continue breastfeeding after teeth due to this method.

First I want to say "YAY for breastfeeding!!!!!" My daughter is 9 months old and still nursing strong! She was a late teether (lucky for me), but she now has two bottom teeth and also bites me. I want to say - SHAME on you moms for "punishing" your baby by putting them down or thumping their cheek!! That is awful! Your baby has no idea why you are doing that to them. They do not understand cause and effect. I think a more natural way would be better. the first time my daughter bit me it startled me and I said "OW!" quite loudly and pulled her off--- I honestly did not mean to, but it was reflex. Well, this REALLY upset her, and made me feel like dirt! I immidiately let her nurse again and she did not bite me. Now when she bites me I put my finger there to release her from nursing, and then let her start back up. She usually doesn't do it again, and if she does, I do the same thing. If I stop her from nursing and she does not get upset I will offer her a teething ring to bite on, sometimes she will take it, and sometimes she would prefer to continue nursing!

just don't punish the little man.

First congrats on still breastfeeding. I have a 17 month old son who is still breastfeeding who started teething at 4 months, so I know what you are going through. He bit me a few times and I was so nervous to try to breastfeed everytime those first few days. All, I can say is take each breastfeeding session at a time. Try to make sure he is really hungry when he breastfeeds. I also would try to rub his gums before he breastfeeds. I also would try to get some numbing gel for his gums. He won't like it when you rub it on his gums, but it will numb up his mouth where he doesn't have to try to use you as a teething ring. I would also try some baby pain reliever 30-45 minutes before he eats if he is really teething. I hope this helps.

:) Jen

My daughter is 10 months, and she has bit me several times. (She liked to gum me real bad before she had teeth too). Anyway, I take her away from the breast and tell her no. Sometimes I flick her on the nose. She will quit biting for a couple of weeks, and then she tries me out again. It was worse when she was about 5 months (she didn't actually get her teeth until 9 months, but those gums hurt too!!) Now she seldom bites. Don't worry. It will get better.

Hi R., Way to go for nursing your baby boy! I'm P. and I nursed my son Landen who is now almost 3 until just past his first birthday and am now nursing my daughter who is 7 and a half months.
My son and I overcame ALOT of issues including low milk supply/weight gain issues, severe thrush and illness/surgery on my end in the first few months so when he got teeth at 6 months and began biting me I wasn't about to quit after surviving so much already! I would yell loudly when he bit me, it would startle him and he would let go. Then I'd take him away from the breast for 5 or 10 mins but not leave him alone. If he bit again I would thump him in the cheek like someone else mentioned. I know it sounds really mean and like it hurts but you don't have to do it hard, just enough to get his attention and tell him WHY you did that. It is usually just a stage and this too shall pass.

My son did that when he got his first tooth. I had to basically yell at him "no, no!! That hurt mommy!" Then take him away from the breast, but still lay him next to it. When he tried to latch back on, I said "no because you hurt mommy". After about 2 or 3 days of this he finally stopped (I was REAL sore) but it worked. I breastfed my son until he was almost 18 months when he weaned himself. It is hard to be firm with your voice when you have that innocent face looking up at you. But that is the only way your son is going to know you are serious, and this ISN'T a game.

Good Luck to you, and you are welcome to contact me for anything further.

I have a very similar problem with my son who is 5 1/2 months old. He is making breastfeeding not very pleasant for me. There are two pieces of advice that have helped me. First, I heard that if they are biting down and teething on you, then they are not that hungry, so immediately end the feeding session. I found that piece of advice VERY ACCURATE! I would stop and wait until he would get very hungry and then it was all about the business of eating, then when he would start getting full he would do it again, So that is how I knew he was not hungry any more and his mind had moved on to something else. Second, I have solved most of my problems and moved forward by introducing a sippy cup (nuby brand for 3 months +, it seems to feel more similar to a breast than a bottle to my son) and fed pumped milk through that. This acomplishes many things. He still gets breast milk, and I have skipped the bottle all together giving him a headstart. He took it happily the first time I offered at 5 months. I think people would be surprised at what their children are capable of.

Hello my name is T. and I do believe it is time to use the breast pump. Thatlittle bundle of joy of yours is teething. He does not know what he does is hurting you. But he knows that is mouth is hurting him. He is just a baby. He is not 1 yrs old. You are going to have to give him the bottle. Or deal with him teething on your breast.
T.