Biting - terrified to feed

[wafflesmum]

Ouch. Was bitten 3 times yesterday on the same side which is now really painful to feed from and then today twice on the other side. I'm scared to feed her it was so bloody sore. Took her off and said 'No' loudly each time and she cried but went on and did the same thing again. Umm, what to do?

Watching with interest. DD has started biting my shoulder really hard when I'm carrying her and I'm scared to feed too, even though she hasn't thought of biting the boob yet.

I seem to remember when DS did it I read some advice to gently put him down and walk away for a minute but it seemed a bit harsh. DD is so little, just 6 months.

I took it as an indication that it was time to find a bottle...but he was 7 or 8 months at the time, and worked for me.

Mind you at nearer a year, he did the biting arm thing, and I got some very odd looks (hugely discoloured marks on arm!!). Said no firmly and put him on floor for a minute. Worked well after a week or 2.

Should maybe add she has been a nightmare to feed during the day for weeks - just not interested and I've been offering a lot to try and avoid loads of night feeds but she usually squirms and cried and won't feed. Are they related?

What age is she Waffles...? Could she be ready to wean herself?

Wouldn't have thought so LaT, she's only 6 months. Doing largely BLW but she's swallowing a great deal already. She feeds through the night really well, unfortunately , and during the day I've tried feeding her lying down in the bedroom with the blackout blinds, but she still doesn't want to.

I've got a little biter too, she's drawn blood on one occassion :(

I've found that she only bites when she isn't really interested in feeding or at the end of the feed when she's had enough. I'm being really strict about taking her off when she's finished actively feeding and not letting her bob on and off like I was previously.

I had read that when they bite you should pull them in towards you for a second, this blocks their nose and they open their mouths to breathe thus letting go. It's worked brilliantly so far. Also really hard but try not to make a loud noise as some babies find this funny/exciting/interesting and will continue to bite to get a reaction. Eye contact and a firm (but not shouty) "No biting Mummy" and put the goods away. :) This seems to be working for us. I can sometimes catch her when she's just about to bite and say "no" and she stops and feeds nicely again.

Good luck.

Meant to say WRT not wanting to feed during the day it could be that her tummy is full of solids and she then can't face milk. It might be worth offering a feed before solids if you're not already doing that?

I've posted about this before, my DS did/does exactly the same. All I can say is it doesn't happen so much now and I've learnt to predict when he will do it and withdraw my nipple fast!
Get the Lansinoh out, it'll help with the soreness.
My sympathies it's quite frightening!

I've found that it's often a stage they go through when their teeth are new and they're not quite sure what to do with them. When my baby bites me I pinch his nose to make him let go and then either offer him the other side or end the feed.