7 month old not eating & drinking with childminder.

[Laurachapman]

I apologise if this gets long winded......
I have a nearly 7 month old son who is breastfed and on solids. We've not had the best of starts in that I had mastitis and recurrent, eventually ruptured, breast abscess for 4 months. Now only have one functioning boob for feeding. Noah started solids at 17 weeks as he was very ready for it. It has been hit and miss as he has a very sensitive gag reflex and would projectile vomit if he coughed too hard or gagged etc. He had a virus over Xmas and that set him back a bit. We've eventually gotten to 3 meals a day but he's fussy and doesn't always want to eat plus we cannot get him to take fluids from a cup or bottle.

I returned to work last week and was very worried about his eating and drinking while away from him. Our childminder was confident that she would be able to get him drinking but no real luck unfortunately. He will let the smallest amount of water or expressed milk dribble into his mouth but he won't suck on sippy cup or bottle.

He has breakfast and breastfeed in the morning before he's dropped off, she tries him with expressed milk around 11ish but he barely takes an ounce. He has lunch (if he's in the mood) and then a smaller meal late afternoon before I pick him up at 5pm and bring him home for dinner and milk. He may have a dribble of water during the day.

My health visitor says babies can't ignore thirst but he's having nowhere near the fluids he would if he was with me and his soft spot was a little sunken each day.

Does anyone please have any advice? I'm so worried that he's not getting what he needs and that he will be ill. I'd really appreciate any help offered.

Laura

I've had babies from 8m old (am a CM) and they often don't drink much in the day at first. I would try him on ebm from an open cup, but other than that I'd ask your CM to ensure he has lots of watery and milky foods (soup, yogurt etc). He may be getting a bit more dehydrated than usual if her house is hotter than yours. Also ensure that he has a big milk breastfeed before you drop him off and another when he gets home. Don't forget that food is largely water in any case.

I'm not sure if this helps but my DD went on solids at six months and despite nursery offering three meals a day she's only really now, at eight months, showing al least some interest....She is bottle fed though and kept up her milk so no issues re dehydration- but in relation to food itself, hopefully your little one will show an interest in his own time if the CM keeps trying??

Thanks both, appreciate your replies. I've ordered him a 'doidy' cup today as HV recommended it. He does have a big boob feed before we go then by the time I get home after the initial cuddling in and kissing my face he then is frantic to get under my shirt! CM did give him soup last week and I packed him yoghurts as he had a cough and sore throat. I have every confidence in her and she's fantastic with him.

I worry that a frequent state of dehydration will harm him and his development. It was only the first week though and with any luck as he settles it will get easier. I just wish he would happily glug away on a sippy cup of milk or water - might ease my guilt of having to leave him in the first place. We've tried so many different cups - he simply won't suck on them. He doesn't have a dummy either so just isn't used to anything other than me. It's frustrating and worrying :(

I wouldn't be too concerned that his immediate need to breastfeed when he gets home indicates dehydration - it's far more likely to be his best (and most sensible) way of reconnecting with you and comforting himself after a long day away from you. Unless you're getting other signs (like constipation) then he's probably not getting dehydrated.

He will get used to a bottle or sippy cup eventually if offered it every day. It took a good two months for my DS to take either, and now at almost 6 months he takes them like a pro, insisting on holding them himself. We used the most basic tommee tippee sippy cup, which allows him to pour the water into his mouth from a little spout, and the playtex bottle with a latex teat (once I discovered that bottle it only took a week of offering before he took to it.)

I think the most important thing is that he understands that if he's really thirsty then the bottle or cup will provide him with milk or water, and that will come from your cm offering them to him on a regular basis. Try not to worry - my DS went a few weeks refusing the bottle and not taking enough milk, but once he got the hang of it he more than made up for it and put on a pound in a week good suggestion about giving him the foods that you mix milk into as well - then you know he's getting some milk. Good luck - it's hard enough being back at work without having to worry that they're not eating enough.

Thanks again.

CM is offering the cup frequently, same as we do at home. He has the Tommee Tippee free flow which he lets water/milk dribble in plus I've just tried a Munchkin cup which just needs minimal pressure to get the liquid out - he will chomp but not suck so this cup seems to work slightly better. He still only has very little fluid though.

He lost weight last week so I think that's pushed me into panic mode, on top of the guilt I already feel for leaving him. I'm hoping that once he settles and gets the hang of the cup, and eats more solids, that his weight gain will improve and his little soft spot will be back to normal.

ZueleikaD - he's not constipated but he is doing less poohs than usual. I will keep an eye on that though.

Thanks again for the tips and reassurance.

Hi OP, my advice isn't current re bottles etc as my youngest is rising 4, but I wanted to post because of my experiences with my eldest. Like yours, the most she EVER took of a bottle was 1oz - until I stopped BF. I think I spent most of her first year worried about what she ate/drank, getting worked up into a lather by HVs who should have known better till food became a total stress.

Wish I'd known then about the willowy, energetic 11 yo she would (so quickly) grow up to be. So many people told me not to worry, that she'd get/take what she needs. Turns out they were right (in her situation - I know this isn't everyone's experience).