At the end of my tether with bedtime biting

[ChrismumMiaow]

We've had on and off biting for the last couple of months since DS got his top teeth (now 11mo) but he seems to be doing it deliberately now, particulary when I tell him to stop pinching me.

I pretty much always BF him to sleep at bedtime, and when he is with me for naps and am completely happy with this, but obviously I can't do it when he's biting me.

DS is currently screaming in his cot as he bit me again and I just don't know what to do with him. I know DH could cuddle him to sleep (although he'd spend the first 10 minutes trying to divebomb his nipples while screaming) but I don't know whether this is will help him realise that biting is bad. (DH will go up in a few minutes anyway)

I don't want to be cruel, but I don't want to stop BF and I can't carry on with this biting. I'm very firm with 'no' and have previously been stopping BF for 5 -10 minutes to give him a chance to forget what he's done before continuing the feed. Should I stop the feed entirely? Should I stop feeding him to sleep (God knows how I'll manage that!)

Now's a good time to work on it though, while DH is around for the holidays.

Help!

My DS is just about 9 months, has 8 teeth, and has been doing this for ages. If it's any consolation, he seems to have stopped. Nothing helped. I tried every tactic and he just kept going as his other teeth were bothering him. Just had to wait it out and pray that he wouldn't draw blood. He does seem to have replaced it with twisting the opposite nipple though...

Had this with DS. He didn't get his first tooth until about 11 mo and I eventually stopped bf when he was 14 mo.
I persevered for a few weeks when he started biting and would pull him off, say no, put him down and ignore him etc.... But it didn't really make any difference to the behaviour and I took it as a sign that he was self-weaning so stopped bf. He had been used to taking the odd bottle of ebm so just gave him cows milk in the bottle for a while then he just went to a beaker for drinks.
Felt a bit weird to stop bf but I was ready for the independence and it was nice that DH could do bedtime for a change....
HTH

Well DH and I have discussed his behaviour after more biting threatened to put me in such a mood that I might spoil xmas!

We decided that he's doing it when I offer milk when DS is not really asking for it - if I'm sitting on the sofa he thinks I'm offering, so will come for a snack even though he doesn't really want one. He also bites when I jump to feed him at the first sign of tiredness during his nap-window

So the plan is not to offer at those times. At nap times I shall wait till he's really definitely tired, or take him out in the sling instead. And the rest of the time I won't offer unless he's really hungry.

Also, when he bites, that's it for the feed - no trying again in 5 or 10 minutes

Hopefully then he'll pay attention, and the biting might stop!

Obviously DH and I discussed DS's behaviour. If DH were doing the biting that would be pretty easy to solve!

When you are bitten you react - so I think he would do it again, to get a reaction. Just calmly just say "no" and put it away. Then if he is stressed and obviously still wants it, try again. If he bites again just say "no" and put it away.
Keep doing that and he will soon learn that biting doesn't get attention, he just loses the milk.
I had this with my little one at around the same age and that worked. She hasn't bitten me since and I am still feeding at 20 months.
Also, try to see it from the child's eyes. He is in pain with new teeth coming through all the time and he can't talk to you about it. These strange things in his mouth. He doesn't know what they are for and how powerful they are! He is learning and exploring all the time.
Good luck with it, it's not easy!