21wo DD has a cold and is biting my nipple during feeds - advice & sympathy wanted!

[Enfyshedd]

Joy of joys, I have a 4.5mo with 2 bottom teeth and a very hard top gum. She's been biting since Friday when she started having a blocked nose and yesterday managed to draw blood. Biggest problem is that she'll only go to sleep on the boob apart from her lunchtime nap in the pram when out and about - have tried several different dummies and she just doesn't like them. Also she's not a big fan of formula. Any ideas?

Aw, it sucks when they bite :( My DD1 also used to bite when she had a cold, thankfully she's grown out of it now. Biting is usually a very short phase, lots of babies go through it and come out the other side so it can be done.

If it's because of the cold then there are a few tricks you can try. DD1 used to do it because she couldn't breathe through her nose but didn't want to let go, so she hung on with her teeth I found that unblocking her before feeds helped, either with saline drops or vicks. Also a room humidifier really helped at night.

You can also get ready to stick your little finger in her mouth so that she can't bite you. They can't bite if they are latched on so if you can feel when she comes off you can get ready to stop her from biting.

Good luck! It rarely lasts long, the biting phase :)