Help and ouch - 10 month old chewing

[putyourhatonsweetie]

Hello

I have been breastfeeding my 10 month old son and was really hoping to make it to 12 months so I could just move on to cows milk in a cup.

However - he now has four teeeth and is chewing at my nipples - which makes my eyes water at every feed. Have managed to stop a sharp bite - by swiftly removing him and saying no - but don't know how to get round the chewing. any ideas gratefully received - can't do many more feeds as we are.

thanks so much xx

Is he chewing at every feed? When in the feed is he chewing?

Can't really give advice specifically on chewing, but I also have a DS, who at not quite 9 months, has 7 sharp little teeth which he liked to test out by nibbling on my nipple. He also finds it funny, by unlatching and grinning up me after he has taken a sharp bite. He does it rarely now, mainly when he gets distracted or is not hungry enough. He prefers eating to biting and he's got usednto his teeth now - he can't feed and bite at the same time and full stomach won out over testing his new knashers. I found it best to feed in silence in dim lighting and when DS was very hungry. Hopenit gets better. You could try nipple shields too, although I never used them, they may protect you a little. Good luck - I'm hoping to get to 12 months too, which biting aside, shouldn't be too difficult as DS is proving very hard to night wean at the moment

Hi, I remember this stage with my ds1 I used to say "stop - no biting" in an authoritive voice and pop him on the floor. he soon learn't that biting and chewing mean't no milk

Thanks for the replies, tends to be at the beginning of the feed - and most feeds, I thought it was worse at night but then I wonder if I just feel it more when there is nithing else going on and I'm already pissed off as it is the middle of the night and I'm tired!

Sometimes as children get older they can get impatient. Your milk supply has likely stabilised and your let down may be slower than at the early stage of BFing. Alongside telling your DS that biting and chewing are unacceptable like kd73 suggests, you could try expressing a little milk before your son latches on - this can help him to start drinking before he gets bored and starts chewing.

How often are you feeding? Are you feeding on demand or do you have set times? Sorry for all the questions!

thanks - i feed him 3 times in the day - more or less at the same time - and this coincides with demand. usually once or twice in the night on demand, sometimes more often [sore point!]

You have my sympathy. DD is almost 8 months and has two razor-sharp teeth. She has taken to clamping them down then ripping her head away. She did it good and proper tonight and has taken most of the skin of the bottom of my left nipple. There was blood dripping from me and everything. It was excriuciating and still hurts now 2 hours later. Not sure how I'll feed again on that side until it's healed. Off to dig out the lanisoh.

OPeaches DS did exactly the same to me tonight, hadn't thought about digging out the lanisoh, really not looking forward to him waking up later, think my right boob.

No tips here, except I do know that he only really does this when he is properly teething (i.e. about to break a tooth).

Sorry, very tired, that reads like I know what is going through your DS's mind. I mean that I know my DS only does this when he is properly teething

oh goodness - drawing blood is really bad. keep smiling/ grimacing

Have you thought about reducing the amount you feed him? At this stage - provided he is healthy and eating well during the day etc - he is unlikely to need a night feed (though I imagine he may want one and therefore think he needs one!).

When my DD was about 9-10 months this happened to me and I stopped the night feeds. I also only fed when she really 'demanded' it, rather than when she was bored or tired etc. I decided I wanted to seperate being a 'thing to do' from being a source of milk. I still BF her when she was upset or needed reassurance but otherwise I tried to distract her when she seemed to want BFing - if she was undistractable I would feed her, but sometimes she was perfectly happy to do something else.

This seemed to help and BFing got a lot easier after that, so we continued until she self weaned (2 weeks ago ) at nearly 2yo. Renegotiating BF on your terms might help you get to the year mark if that is where you're trying to get to.

HTH - good luck.

Thanks, I am quite sure he doesn't need the night feeds...however we have had a rough few weeks and I am so incredibly short termist at 2am (if I feed him I can roll over and go back to sleep and you know, perhaps tomorrow night I'll be tougher!) there should be a doormat emoticon.

So I convinced myself I was off to buy a big box of formula and hit the gin ...fortunately didn't get round to it and the last 24 hours he has been a dream and hasn't bitten me or chewed once, (a couple of pinches but that was my fault for walking round without any clothes on!) fingers crossed he has snapped out of it.