Help: worries about daughter's fluid/food consumption

[quesadilla]

Wonder if anyone has any experience of this: my dd (18 months) has up to now been a pretty good eater and has always loved milk and been getting through about 400 ml per day. She's had a recent bout of illness and although is generally better one of the side-effects is she seems to have become very resistant to my offering her any food or drink and shakes her head whenever I try to give her a bottle or spoon feed her with anything at all. She will eat and drink but only on her terms and in practice that means very chaotic eating patterns and eating stuff that's not necessarily healthy (biscuits for breakfast, won't touch cereal or fruit etc.) She's clearly getting the fluid she needs as she will drink water when she's thirsty but I'm worried about the sudden drop-off in fluid consumption and concerned that its going to set up a dynamic whereby she rejects anything I give her. Anyone have

It can be very difficult when they are so young and you are worried but I would stop the alternatives now. Offer her the breakfast, if she shakes her head just keep on eating your breakfast and chatting and clear up when you've finished. Same with all the other meals and snacks during the day. I promise you she won't starve.

If you are worried about her fluid intake try cups with straws as that always works with my DC and making lollies together.

You might also like this book.

Thanks. I know its largely neurosis on my part and as you say she's clearly getting enough food and fluid to survive. Its the drinking bit that disturbs me though... I don't understand how she can go from craving liquid of any kind to rejecting it and I'm worried that by trying to get her to drink during her illness I've set up some bad dynamic where she now associates liquid with coercion. I know it sounds very neurotic but it is worrying me.

It will pass I promise, just relax .

It's probably just that she still feels a bit icky, I'm sure she'll return to normal eating patterns soon :)

Once when I was ill the last thing I'd eaten had been wholemeal toast, it hugely put me off for ages, couldn't touch the stuff!

Rather than stressing about meals and drinking have you tried just feeding her fruit little and often? It can take them a while to get their appetite back I think.

This is all good advice. I'm basically allowing her to eat what/when she likes at the moment and that seems relatively successful. She also seems to prefer adult food at adult mealtimes to food that's obviously been prepared for her.

Thanks for all the suggestions.