Is "nipping" a sign of self-weaning?

[CreepyWeeBrackets]

DS is five in May and autistic. He was a bottle-refusnik and has serious food and gastric issues. BF was a godsend in the respect of continuing to bond with him / comfort him when he regressed and wouldn't even make eye-contact with me. Also, autistic children do get obsessive and rigid in their routines < justifies self>

We have made progress in that for the last couple of years he knows that BF is not needed outside of the house. In the last year, not during the day at home. DH has been a star at night and has been sleeping with him in order to break the habit and now he just comes in to see me in the morning for a quick nip.

Lately it has been a nipping action and a bit painful. He is too young to be losing baby teeth but I wondered if his adult teeth are shifting beneath and changing the shape of his jaw or whether he is just forgetting how to latch? He has started school full-time but I doubt this would have any impact in terms of peers. If he cared what other people thought or did he wouldn't be autistic.

TIA

My son comes in to see me for a quick nip, not DH.

5 years is not too early to lose baby teeth or to have adult teeth (unfortunately - the tooth fairy has gouged us over the last year!).

My eldest DD self weaned at 3.6y because her jaw changed shape to accommodate her first adult molars as big gaps at the back of her jaws appeared almost overnight and she could no longer get her tongue in the right place.

She had her 4 1st adult molars at less than 4.9y, and now at just turned 6y, she has 9 adult teeth (4 bottom front teeth, 1 top front tooth and the 4 molars), is down a further two teeth that have yet to be replaced and has been losing baby teeth since she was just turned 5 (in Reception still though).

It might be he has picked up a new 'thing' to do (however painful it is for you) or it could be he is losing the ability to bf - it can be gradual (mostly it is) or it may be comparatively sudden, or it may be that he isn't that interested any more (DD2 is a similar age to your DS [4.3y] and she 'feeds' about once or twice a week and then it's a very short 'feed', I think she will wean soon probably within the next 6m or so but then that might only be in 25 feeds time!).

Does your DS initiate nursing or is it offered? If you offer, perhaps try being neutral and cuddling him in your usual nursing position and seeing if he asks/latches or not. I am not saying that you are encouraging him to nurse just perhaps see if he is nursing from the routine/familiarity side rather than the urge to do so IYSWIM. It may be then gentler on him if he stops while he is still mainly able to bf rather than get to the point where he still has to have a bf in the morning as part of his routine but not be physically able to and getting distressed over a change being forced on him by his own body.

I hope you find a way through this and hats off to you for nursing as long as your DS needs it.

Thank you for your reply, TruthSweet - and for teh praise

Lots of food for thought there.