Nephews First Tooth & Nursing

My mom did the same thing everyone has: a quick flick to the cheek, set the child down, and walk away. She said my sisters never bit her again. I'm crossing my fingers that my own good luck continues with my almost 6mo....

The moment he does it, she need to say "NO!" in a hard, no-nonsense voice, get up quickly and put him on the floor and walk away. It has to be fast and immediate (hence the floor and not taking the time to head to the crib). The combined stern voice and sudden lack of mom is usually enough to startle them (and upset them) that they quickly learn that biting is a no no.

Usually 20 seconds on the floor is enough and she can go back and try and nurse again.

What I did when my children bit down was, in addition to saying "no" I took my thumb and forefinger and put them on each side of the child's mouth to gently, but firmly unclench those little jaws. It wasn't comfortable for the child, but didn't hurt them either... and it helped teach them that biting me hurt (not just me but them a little as well). It didn't mean they quit immediately, but they did get the idea after a few times.

Tell her not to react much at all. It's her strong reaction that is cracking him up; my daughter did the same thing. When my daughter bit me, I'd simply reach down, put a finger between me and her to unlatch her and take away my boob for a few seconds and say "No biting" in a firm but quiet voice. If she bit again when I gave it back to her, I'd put her down for a few seconds and cover up my boob and again say, "No biting." No naughty face to giggle at, no shock to make her laugh, just took it away. If she bit a third time, which she did try once, nursing time was over. I covered up, I put her down, I said, "No biting," and I walked away. She fussed and that's OK. After five minutes, an eternity to a baby, we tried it again, and she didn't bite. It took a few days of this, but she finally got the point. Good luck!

I found the best way to deal with this was to put my son down the minute he bit.
Nursing was over.
I was not a chew toy.
I would give him a cold teething ring so he could chomp on something, but he wasn't chomping on me.
It takes patience and listening to some crying, but they do get it figured out.
Babies teeth are sharp and they really hurt. I figured my son would quit biting or I would quit nursing him all together because I didn't want to have to go get my nipple sewed back on. He made me bleed.
So....down he went and I walked away every single time.
I was able to nurse him for 15 months and the biting stopped very quickly.
They do understand that biting results in the boobie being taken away.

Does she put him down and ignore him for a few minutes? That's the only way my son stopped. Wishing her good luck! I hope she figures out a way to stop it!

With all of my babies I always did the stern NO BITE then unlatched them and laid them next to me for a few mins then I would try again. It didn't take long before they realized oh man when I bite my food goes away! Lol just because they get teeth and bite doesn't mean its the end of nursing though! She just needs to be consistent with the baby and not give up.:-) baby will learn, if they didn't I wouldn't still be nursing my 20 month old who has had a mouth full of teeth since was 6 months. She was born with a tooth as well! Good luck to her!

If he thinks it's funny then Mom isn't being firm enough. If she is really hurting she has to let him know. He just doesn't understand that he is hurting her. If her reaction upsets the baby, GOOD, that means he got the message. It's not in her job description to be injured. Besides, anticipating the painful bites will decrease her let-down anyway. If all else fails, she can use a nipple shield during feedings.

La Leche league recommends snapping your infant on the nose with your finger when they bite. It stuns the child yet does not cause injury.

I would take him off the breast if he bites. Walk off and go do something else. If he's hungry - this will upset him. Wait 5 minutes (don't give him other foods), try to nurse again. If she's consistent - he WILL realize if he bites the nursing stops.

ahhhh fun times. my DD is 16 mo and I have been there. I know it is super hard not to yell ouch, bc I totally do at times, but that is why they are laughing bc the noise and reaction. she needs to try really hard not to react and then break the babies latch and tell them that they hurt her and no more milk bc of it.....they will soon catch on. I did that and it worked, I also when she got older told her how much it hurt me and we dont bite and that worked too. good luck, she can call her local LLL too.

When my son started doing this I would pinch his cheek just enough for him to take notice that his action was going to get a reaction. He would cry for a second and then go right back to nursing. I only had to do this 2 times before he learned that he didn't want that reaction again.

An eyedropper of white vinegar in his mouth everytime he bites. It won't hurt him but it will be unpleasant and memorable not to mention it is a punishment that fits the crime.

T.

It may sound harsh, but this really works. Next time the baby bites down, instead of pulling away, or pushing him away (which is the normal instinctual thing to do), pull the baby close to you, suffocating him with your breast. This causes him to open his mouth to get air, and he'll let go of the nipple without having to rip it away. You want him to have a negative consequence to his action, and an immediate lack of air will do the trick. And I'm not talking about really smothering him for any length of time, just a quick second will do it.

Also, the baby has to break suction and use a different part of his mouth to bite, so if you really pay attention to his signals, sometimes you can catch it before he clamps down.

I usually said, "No biting mama!" and "looks like you're all done!" when it happened, and put my boob away.

Good luck. It doesn't last long, this nipple biting phase, but it sure does suck.