Baby lead weaning terrifies me.. anyone else?

[MumofHennHals]

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It didn’t terrify me but I didn’t do it, stuck to purées and working our way up to proper food.

Remember that you don’t have to do it just because it’s the popular thing to do right now.

Always start on puree. Then move onto soft things like well cooker Broccoli, porridge, pasta etc.

Why?

I did a pre weaning first aid course via NCT that focussed a lot on what to do if a child chokes. Made me feel a lot more prepared for introducing solids. Might be worth looking into, assuming your fear is chocking?

I enjoyed it and found it worked well for my two. But as the PP says, you don't have to do it if it terrifies you.

Then don't do it.

I don't do it! Purées all the way. Gradually dabbled in finger food when felt comfortable. Sounds like you are the same as me and @SouthLondonMum22 op. No one NEEDS to 'do baby led weaning'. Listen to your gut.

Agree with the first poster. We did a mixture of purées and solid foods, gradually working our way up. I watched some first aid videos on YouTube for what to do in case of choking which helped me feel less anxious.

Ooo yeah I was proper scared. Everyone else was doing it and I felt I had to do the same but every time I gave mine anything it would result in weird choking noises. In the end I did a mixed approach where sometimes we tried purees, and sometimes I'd plonk spag bol or a chilli on the tray and the baby could just pick at it. The food was quite small and mushy so I didn't have to worry about choking as much. In the end we just worked our way up to bigger bits and different foods and it was fine. Just do what you're comfortable with. Your little one won't be still living off milk when they're 18. 😃 Good luck!

Even if you do traditional weaning you’re still supposed to offer finger foods from 6 months.

I was a child minder for a decade . I obviously did it the way parents wanted to wean - however I found I felt far more relaxed doing the puree

One thing about raising babies/ children - there are many ways to do things - most are fine - your child will pick up on your anxiety so do it the way that works for you.

BLW worked well for us. I couldn’t be faffed with puréing homemade food and didn’t like processed jars. I wasn’t frightened. They never choked just gagged.

I know however (because they told us) that extended (older) family definitely felt nervous and didn’t like it. So what you’re feeling us not unusual.

If you don’t like BLW and prefer purées then lumps then real food, do that. Millions nay billions of babies have been weaned that way.

We did BLW for our two (now teens).

Absolutely loved it. Yes they gagged, but no choking. They were enjoying proper food in cafes and restaurants whilst we enjoyed our own food. Haven't pureed a single thing in my entire life!

Is it your child or a grandchild?
If the later then go on a first aid course but it's also possible to follow blw easily with softer meals such as sausages and mash potatoes (you can remove the skin and then cut length ways into quarters). Or a thick soup on pre-loaded spoons.

If it's your baby then you don't need to do BLW if your not comfortable with it.

I did it with both of mine but because its what suited us best and they both took it to it and were extremely adamant even from a 6 months they were in control of spoons!

I did pureed for dd1 and had a nightmare getting her onto solids,so did blw on dd2,she nows is a marvellous eater where dd1 is so picky,my mother used to panic awful saying she's choking where it was actually her gag reflex when food was too big to swallow,no choking ever occurred.
I was more terrified of giving grapes when older.

I did a bit of both - whichever suits you and your baby I think.

Honestly, I think it's best to go with whichever approach works best for that particular child.

For DC1 I was keen to baby lead wean, but he kept chocking and spluttering, and he just lapped up the purees (even that nasty cold stuff straight from a jar! 🤮)

So then for DC2, I was all ready to go with the purees, but he would not let me spoon anything into his mouth! He would only fed himself, so we did do the baby lead weaning in the end (luckily he seemed to manage with less choking than DC1).

Just go with what your child prefers is my advice!

I was a bit nervous about it, but did plenty of reading around the subject. All went well with both my children. I would say though, it's just a method of weaning. There are no guarantees. My eldest (now 16) ended up eating pretty much everything, with just the odd perfectly normal dislike. His brother turned into the faddiest eater alive and wouldn't even look at a vegetable, despite wolfing everything down during weaning.

Yes I hated it but I worked my way up. I did a mixture of purées and finger food. I started off with easy finger food (baby wotsits that dissolve easily) to build myself up

Purees for dc1, but homemade, so never really that smooth. I bf both until about 1, so food was only ever to dabble with anyway.

Blw with no 2. Can't even remember why. Probably because she was an awkward madam and it was easier. Think it may have been on here I got the idea for porridge fingers. Game changer in terms of having to get out to work in the morning.

Dc1 is my fussy child, but dc2 is vegetable averse. I like to show her pictures of her stuffing broccoli florets into her mouth with her first.

BLW worked well for us but nothing wrong with traditional weaning either. Our baby who ate everything is now a fussy pre schooler.

You don't have to start with puree

It terrified me I didn’t do it, did purées etc.

DC is now 6 and a good eater

I know you don't but I find it best

I had some pna and couldn't handle baby led weaning. So I didn't put myself through it. My two children were pureed fed, built up to finger foods then started serving cut up portions of our own meals until they got used to the chunkier texture. They're now 4 and 2 and are both very good eaters. So just do what's right for you.