Ouch! My 5 1/2 Month Old Bit Me While nursing...hard!

He can learn not to bite. My last guy got teeth at 3mos! You may think this is cruel, but what I have always done is to flick them with my finger right under the chin. They cry for a few seconds but they learn quick!!

any biting at all, i would take my son off and stop nursing. He'd realize... oh. when i do that i don't get to eat. He figured it pretty fast. And i jumped/shouted too... don't worry about that so much, you can't help it, it hurts! When i tried the pulling away and starting again he'd just do it again. OUCH!another thing... perhaps he's rEALLY HUNGRY, or it's always on the same breast, perhaps your let down is slower on that side and start with the other (?)

T.:

you are doing fine/ telling him no is what you need to do.. he will understand.

watch for when he is biting.. if he is biting he is not nursing. try to find when it happen and prepare to put your finger in or remove him before he does this.

P., RLC, IBCLC
Breastfeeding and Parenting Solutions
www.breastfeedingandparentingsolutions.com

Yelling out was a natural reaction. You can put him down with no reaction and walk away for a minute. Lansinoh will help your torn nipple. It could just be teething that's making him bite or boredom. If he's nursing he can not bite you. You have to stop sucking and move your toungue to bite. Quickly taking him off the breast or sticking your finger in might help if you anticipate it happening again. Please don't stop nursing. Stick it out. I've too been bit, even by my 61/2mo. without teeth.
Good Luck,
Mom of 3 5yrs., 3yrs. &61/2mo.

Hi T.,
My 27 year old did this when she was teething,at 2 months!Her first teeth came at 2 months of age.The doctor told me to pop her on the cheek.(Which I did not do!)
Try very lightly massaging the back of her head and neck. It should alleviate the tension that the biting is trying to release. And yes, she did stop and we continued nursing.
Good Luck to you both!

My first child bit me a few times when nursing, and another mother told me when they do that to press their face against the breast so they have to release to breath. It sounds cruel, but it worked. She started to bit around 8 months, and it was only a few times.

For a few weeks, keep your finger close by and watch for signs that he's about to bite. Babies do it more when the breast is empty, so if you can watch for the signs that the milk is about gone (more sucking, less swallowing) then you can break the latch and switch sides before you get bitten.
When he does bite, try not to yell (I know it's hard, but scaring him doesn't work too well and can lead to other problems). Firmly say no and set him down. Give him a bit, he'll probably get upset, then re-latch him. It won't take him too long to learn that if he bites, the milk goes away.
Hang in there! I promise it will get better :)

My daughter did not get her teeth until 8 months but I will try to give you some suggestions. She is 14 months now and is still nursing. I have found she only bites when she has to burp or gets a new tooth. So if he bites you can try to burp him to see if that helps. When my daughter bites me I tell her in a calm but stern voice "No Bite". I then give her another chance and if she bites again I sit her down on the floor beside me and say "All done". Then I give her a toy that is appropriate to chew on. Try some oragel to releave some pain from his gums and maybe even some Tylenol. Then you can always try nursing again in a few minutes. The main thing is to let him know it's ok to chew on toys but not you!!
I have found that the bigger deal I made about her biting me the funnier she thought it was. I used to do the same thing you did and yell out in pain(which is only natural and it probally startled you as well). When I would do that my daughter would laugh at me which made me more made than ever that she thought it was funny.
I have also heard of moms lightly flicking their babies on the cheek if they bite, I guess you have to do it hard enough to get their attention but not hurt them. I never tried it but it might work for you.
Unfortunately you have to find what works for you and just be consistant. Take a deep breath and relax you can do it!! You can always pump and give him a bottle once or twice or until he's done teething (if that is the case to keep your supply up). Good luck and hang in there the bond you share with him is worth it in the end.

T.-
This is something that is pretty common. As with any age, children are just trying to figure out how their bodies work. The best advice (though it may sound a little strange)that I can give is that instead of pulling him off your breast gently pull him closer in. By doing this he won't be able to easily able to get air in through his nose and he will then naturally release his jaw to move his face away from your breast to breathe through the mouth. This should be done very gently and not stop him from breathing. This action should be light enough just to make switch to mouth breathing. Babies can make an immediate connection between biting and breathing. When mom gets upset babies don't always know it is due to their actions, making it hard for a small child to learn that way. Hope this helps, the best of luck with your continued breast feeding in the months ahead.

I feel your pain (LITERALLY!). My son is 6 mos and got his first two teeth at 4 1/2 and 5 months. He bit me HARD also. I tried all the tricks excecpt pushing his face in. It happened so fast, I could only jump, scream and pull him off FAST! He did this for about a week straight. Only thing I found is that if I put my finger at his mouth and he chomped on it, then I wouldn't nurse. Instead I would massage his gums. I also gave him the bottle with expressed milk too because I couldn't take the pain and I had a couple of small wounds too. He did stop after about a week. Good luck!!!!

Denise

my daughter did that once after she got her first teeth and I did the same thing as you. I screamed then she started crying. I scared her so bad when I screamed that she never did it again. I would also tell her no teeth before I fed her and when I swiched sides.

K.

Don't feel bad about yelping...it hurts!

Just stop nursing when he does that. Put him down and go away for a while and then maybe try again a little while later. Then he will start to learn that when he bites he doesn't get what he wants. They usually just do it out of curiosity...they want to know what these new things in their mouth do! Usually they learn pretty quick.

If he bites and clamps down, you should acutally pull him in (not your natural reaction, I know), so that his nose is pressed hard against your breast. That way he will have to open his mouth to breath and will naturally open up. Know that most kids only bite a few times or for a short stretch. It's so wonderful that you want to keep giving your son the best by breastfeeding him! If you need support persisting or want more help with breastfeeding, check for your local La Leche League group at www.llli.org

Hi T.,
All three of my kids bit me at one point during nursing. As soon as they did I would flick their cheek next to their mouth. It would "shock" them and they would associate the shock with biting me. I only had to do this on three separate occasions at most and they never did it again. I successfully nursed them all for 1 year. Good luck! Don't be afraid to do it hard, it only stings temporarily!
W.

Have you considered a breast pump.....they can be rented or purchased....that way your child would still be receiving breast milk, but you would not have the pain with new teeth. By now your child should be starting or already have been started on baby food as well. At 5 1/2 months, they don't understand don't bite. They have no clue what that means.....

If you are breast feeding for the bonding....the baby has already bonded with you....if it is for the nutrients in breast milk,then a breast pump is probably your answer.

Best of luck...

R.

T. - My daughter has bitten hard too, especially when she has new teeth coming in. The bad news is that it has happened more than once, but the good news is that biting has been rare and mostly limited to when teeth have just broken through the surface (she's 10 months old and has four teeth with three more about to come through; I've probably been bitten 5 times).

The most helpful advice I've gotten is to watch your baby closely while he is nursing, and once he stops actively sucking & swallowing, pull him from your breast. Do NOT let him linger, because that's when he'll bite. There are other things that'll help, but this is really the most important.

You can also give him stuff to chew on in the interim to help lessen his urge to bite. My daughter really loved those little hand-held mesh things you can get at the grocery store, you know the ones you can put choking hazard food in? We would put ice in them and that really seemed to feel good on her gums. He may be a little young for them, but peeled carrots or really firm apple slices worked well too (until he can bite off big chunks, they they are a choking hazard).

Saying "NO! That hurts mom!" in no uncertain terms seemed to help with my daughter too. It scared and upset her, which stunk, but I was more concerned with continuing breastfeeding, which was really good for her, and we couldn't do that if my nipple was a chew toy.

I'm sure your husband means well by suggesting the total EBM diet, but that would be an absolute pain in the behind. If you can tame bitey mcbitepants, it is so much easier and more special to just nurse. I am really glad that I'm still nursing my 10 month old, bites and all. Good luck finding what is best for you!

Believe me - he understands NO BITING. Or, he will anyway! My son bit me once when he first got teeth at 6 months. It took about 5 times of pulling him away from my breast, saying NO BITING, and offering it to him again, before he got it. The key is that you actually have to give him another chance right away, as painful as that sounds. I used a "3 strikes and you're out" policy for any given nursing session. It took us about a day and he's never bitten me since. Sometimes I could tell he wanted to but he knew he wasn't allowed to - he would actually cry he was so frustrated - but he never bit me. He still nurses at 20 months :) Just hang in there- I promise if you're firm and consistent, it will stop very quickly! Good for you for breastfeeding!

I've nursed three little ones. They ALL try it...it's fun to see mom jump after all. What worked for me was gently pulling the baby in to me to temporarily make it so they can't breathe...it seems cruel when put like that but it will make them let go with their mouth (really only takes a second or two) and then you get them to associate that bad feeling with biting. The other thing you can try is to end the nursing session by placing the baby on the floor and say "no biting" then don't give in for several minutes. You may think your baby is too young but you want to nip this in the bud so to speak! Good luck and hang in there...nursing is a great and rewarding experience.

You can try to nurse for a shorter period (ie. if he normally nurses for 10 minutes, unlatch him at 7-8 minutes). It's likely he will bite towards the end of a nursing session once the milk is running out to stimulate more milk or out of boredom. If you unlatch him before he gets to that point, maybe you can discourage that behavior before it becomes habit. HTH!

You did the right thing. Show that it hurt you, then "close up shop." Your child doesn't mean to hurt you, but when he realizes that it's the end of this wonderful food, he will stop. It's a simple learned behavior. I really didn't ever say "No biting." I just closed up shop. I think I may have said, "We're done," but very young children read much more than just words. My mother used to show sympathy regarding my daughter's decision to test her new teeth saying, "She didn't mean to." I said, "Great, then she can try again next time." Basically each time the child bites (even a little bit), you just shut down the session. I don't recall my child biting more than once (maybe twice). Putting a stop to the feeding session is pretty powerful. I would not stop breastfeeding.

I have all kinds of insight into this.... as a breastfeeding peer counselor, I can tell you that MOST children that bite will quickly learn not to if you remove them from the breast with a firm "No Biting" and puting them down for a minute or so. I have not met any other mothers that have had a child bite more than a few times when they did this... other than me.

As a breastfeeding mother, I can tell you that some (VERY FEW, but I am one of the lucky ones I guess) continue to bite. My son has been a rough teether (he cuts 4 teeth at a time) and each time he would bite. He also bit me to the point of drawing blood. My strong reaction mixed with his pain led him to have a nursing strike twice. But I stuck with it and worked with him and he learned. He still would bite once or twice with each new set of teeth, but quickly remembered that it wasn't ok. Some children are biters in my opinion... but, please don't think that your son is that... very few are. The only reason I bring it up is to assure you that you can work through it! My son was EBFed for 6 months and is nearly 20 months old (with ALL of his teeth but with 2 year old molars) and we are a very happy nursing couple still. You obviously enjoy your nursing relationship and teeth do NOT have to end it. Just be patient, understanding, but firm. You will make it through this!!!

Oh, yikes, we just had this happen in my house too. Ouch.

A couple of thoughts:
1) Make sure the baby is really hungry, otherwise, wait.
2) Make sure you stop as soon as the drinking is done - turn off the tv and go somewhere quiet so you can hear when the swallowing tapers off. Remove baby right at the end.
3) If the baby has a cold (mine did), suck out his nose before you feed - there's a correlation between stuffy nose and biting, I've heard.
4) If he bites, pull him off calmly and give a chew toy (I always forgot to have one ready). Flinching was really upsetting to my daughter but it was hard for me to not do it!
5) Keep nursing: he'll likely pull off your scab once or twice, but it's worth it to keep going.

Hi T., I've breastfed 5 children, and that's a total of 11 years of nursing, and I've had these instances happen. Ow! This incident with your baby probably indicates a spurt of teething sensations in your babies gums. This will not last, and yes your baby will learn. No guarantee it will never happen again, though. This likely hood of biting, as I recall, and I am still nursing by soon to be 1 yo bb, seems to be increased when baby has had all he/she may really want. I also know that involuntary biting (clamping down) occurs when my babies have started dozing off, so, to help prevent biting during this teething phase, just break the suction with your finger and stop him from nursing when he appears to be getting bored or starts dozing off.

Again, this will not last and keeping nursing has so many advantages that to quit over this would be sad.

Best wishes,
B.

Dear T.,
You have done the right things so far and he is capable of understanding not to bite.
One of the things I noticed when I was nursing my 6 children was that biting usually occurred near the end of the nursing session when the baby was relaxed and barely nursing.
Then all of a sudden he or she would realize that they did not want to stop and would go to latch on rather vigorously and clamp down.
It usually only took a couple of times of me yelling "OW!"
or "NO!" and they would get the idea and the problem would go away.
So, good luck, and I am glad that you want to continue nursing.