Fussy Eater or just a fussing Mummy??

[JoNorthrop2013]

Hi,

I'm very new to all this, but just looking for a bit of help/advice please! ??

i have a 16 month old little boy. He is and always has been really good with everything but recently he had hand foot and mouth, followed by cold and a chest infection. While he was poorly he was obviously off his food, although i didn't push it and just let him eat when he wanted and as much as he could manage. Up to this point, he has always been a really really good eater, never fussed with his food and just got on with it.

Since he has recovered (although he's still not 100% himself) he's lost interest in his food and mealtimes are becoming a little bit difficult. He eats his breakfast ok - because he's starving lol. But lunch and tea are a bit of a battle. He's just not interested. He refuses completely to be spoon fed, he will eat a little bit of finger food but he isn't eating much compared to what he was having before he was poorly. He will feed himself with his spoon at breakfast, but not any other meal.

Is there anything i can do to help to encourage him to get back to his old eating habits? Or should i just go with it and let him lead and decide how much he wants etc? I do worry when he doesn't eat much and he's now waking in the night with a rumbling tummy!

Any help is HUGELY appreciated!

Jo
xx

Very normal after an illness for them to go off eating and hand foot and mouth is dreadful - my two have recently had it. Your ds is also at that difficult age between 1 and 2 where they can become very fussy with eating anyway, without throwing illness into the equation. My dd2 (13mo) hasn't eaten properly for around 3 weeks now - not helped by developing bronchiolitis after recovering from the hand foot and mouth My ds1 has longstanding feeding / eating problems so his scenario is different. I would say the most important thing right now is not what / how much he is eating, but that you don't make a big deal of him not wanting to eat. This may be a short phase or it may take months, but if you stay (outwardly, at least) relaxed about it and offer him foods but don't fuss if he doesn't eat, then hopefully you'll have your good eater back again before he's 2 (or maybe even in a week or two, before that sounds forever away). Lots of fussy eaters at this age eat everything again from the age of 2 onwards. It's really hard when they refuse to eat and get upset - I find it particularly hard with dd2 given ds1's eating difficulties, because I'm desperate for a different experience with her - but patience pays off and it helps to think of the fussy periods as a phase that will pass, that you just have to sit out. All the best, I hope that helps a little x

Hi :-)

Thank you for your reply.

I think it's the keeping calm about it that i find most difficult. I don't get angry at him or anything obviously, but i think he senses my worries/frustrations and that doesn't help. And i do go in to mealtimes worrying before we've started at the minute through sheer desperation to get him to eat.

A more relaxed Mummy and a few deep breaths before a meal might just help! I feel much better also knowing that it's probably just a phase that will pass.

Hand foot and mouth is an awful virus, I'd never heard of it until my boy started nursery.

Thanks again for your help/advice! X

It is hard when your previously good eater suddenly becomes fussy and doubly worrying when they are ill.

I agree with mummy try to relax, no child has ever starved themselves and its normal for his appetite to be suppressed when he's ill.

If he's refusing to spoon feed himself at lunch and tea, could you feed him? Know it feels like a step backwards but its not forever. Another option is to just try to adjust your expectations. Put out roughly half of what he used to eat, he can always ask for more.

What's his milk intake like too? My dd (6) is poorly at the moment ans seems to be existing on fudge and milk

Have you read My Child Won't Eat by Carlos Gonzalez? It might help you to relax