Baby led weaning

[mehhh]

Hi everyone

My dd is 6 months old and we recently started weaning her this weekend, we gave her some banana chopped into finger food she didn't really do much with it but gagged a little bit, she has had carrot and sweet potato chopped into finger sized pieces which she was ok with but didn't swallow much

Yesterday I gave her some bread/toast And she vomited an awful lot, she has done the same again today when I gave her some mashed potato on a spoon, she is not a sicky baby and isn't usually sick but both times it's like a tap, I'm really worrying about how to do this and what is normal etc and also what she can eat etc?

Any tips / help will be extremely appreciated as I am becoming a nervous wreck when feeding her & dreading what to feed her etc.... it's like she isn't gagging and being sick as she is eating, just slightly after

[ElfEars]

When I first started baby led weaning I would offer my DS food at each mealtime but I would just put the food in front of them so they can explore the food at their own pace. They do gag abit at first but try not to panic as gagging is different to chojing. If you are on Facebook the Baby Led Weaning UK website is really helpful.

[ElfEars]

The only food to avoid are honey before 1, quorn before 9 months and whole nuts.

[mehhh]

Thank you @ElfEars I did that with the bread but she choked, I'm trying to keep calm with it but it's so nerve wracking!

Is the sickness normal? She has literally only ever sort of spit up a bit of spit every now and again but it's like she's emptying her stomach from gagging

[ElfEars]

I agree, weaning can be so scary!

I think so. My son was never a sicky baby but was sick quite a bit when he started weaning. I think it lasted around a month.

[mindutopia]

Gagging is normal when they start and though it's unpleasant if they are sick, it's perfectly normal and doesn't pose any risk. Unfortunately, all children can be sick when they gag (my 5 year old still does it occasionally). I would focus on offering things that aren't slippery that she can easily hold and manage with her hands. Banana can be slippery at first and mushes easily (which isn't necessarily a good thing). Toast is better, but do big fingers with some sort of spread on it so it's not too dry and she can't easily swallow it (nut butter, mashed banana, hummus, avocado were all ones we did). Carrot and sweet potato would be good. We did yorkshire puddings to start as well as they are easy to hold. Cucumber or melon sticks, etc. Mash is less good as the texture is weird and obviously if you're spoon feeding, she doesn't have much control over where it's going.

Really though just keep at it. Gagging and vomiting unfortunately can be pretty normal. It could be her gag reflex is still just very sensitive and it might make sense to wait a few more weeks, but I would probably try a few more foods before you decide that. Just offer once a day, make sure it's food she can easily pick up and hold with a handle so she can move it in and out of her mouth with no trouble, try new foods and see if any of those are easier. And really just give it time. Mine didn't eat anything for the first 2 weeks. It could be she's just a bit enthusiastic (or maybe hungry, make sure she has had plenty of milk before) and hasn't gotten the hang of it yet, but she will.

[mehhh]

Thank you @mindutopia !! She does seem to be getting a little better at it currently but doesn't seem to be actually eating so will just see how we get on! Xx

[thethoughtfox]

Toast and especially untoasted sliced bread are not easy to manage when they are just starting out. They haven't yet learned how to move it when it gets stuck to the roof of their mouths. Be careful with mashed potato too for the same reason.