Help! Nursing strike I suppose, but I need advice on how you have coped with similar....

[Woollymummy]

My nearly 9 month old DS has been off solids recently as he cut the first of his top front teeth. Then he got over that and presumably is about to cut the next top tooth, as he hasn't wanted to feed from me since yesterday. I have expressed milk whenever I can but with a toddler it is not that easy to catch the moment. The milk I have expressed I have given to him as porridge, in a cup and in a bottle. I am slightly worried he is actually fed up with milk full stop as he hardly seems to drink much, but I am never sure how much he gets in a single feeding session anyway.

What would you recommend? I have read all the Kellymom stuff, so no point posting that unless for other users, but I would love to know what worked for you - did you use a bottle or cup, did you go onto formula or not? (DP is suggesting I go and ditch BF altogether).

How long did your strike/strikes last? I have only one other child DD aged 2.7 and she never did this. It is awful to admit but I haven't spent much time skin to skin with him to encourage bonding, and have been getting stressed with the whole palaver, so maybe he can smell the tension in me.

He is a very active baby, nearly walking at nearly 9 months, spends loads of the day on his feet and eats almost all the same as his big sister, sometimes slightly mashed but increasingly more whole (he is getting more tetchy if he doesn't have finger/fist food as well as two spoons). Has anyone weened successfully at this early. I really don't want to, but is he trying to and it is in fact not a nursing strike?

Many thanks if you have bothered to read this far.

My DS did this a couple of weeks ago at almost 11 months. He just suddenly stopped feeding (tried to bite a couple of times which he'd never doe before), and refused to feed for a day and a half. I just offered feeds at the usual times, tried not to stress about it, and one time he decided he did want milk again. I didn't offer a bottle or anything instead, but I don't think he ever got hungry or thirsty because of the missed feeds. I gave him his meals as usual, which he ate fine. I still have no idea why he did it! But he now feeds as usual. It was almost as if he forgot how to feed for a while! Good luck.

My son basically gets his mouth in position, then writhes away as if in pain, never even starts sucking. I have tried to get the milk ready for him by squeezing the nipple, but nothing works. He is a thumbsucker and it seems he is getting from his thumb all the comfort he would normally get from my boobs....

Yes, sounds exactly like mine. He would open his mouth and turn towards me, but then squirm and cry out as if in pain. He's also a thumb sucker which I hadn't thought about in this context before.

The first feed after the strike was an early morning one - he sleeps through until 5ish then wakes for a feed and I think being in that half-awake state might have helped him to relax enough to feed again, if that makes sense.

Mine went on strike at about 8 months-ish after a nasty bug that gave him a very sore throat. He was refusing feeds and pretty much anything else for a couple of days. We tried getting fluid into him by tempting him with juicy strawberries, oranges, etc, and by surrounding him with sippy cups so it was always available. Meanwhile, I expressed and he did take some of that in a bottle. Spent all of saturday basically topless and 'available' (cheap slapper that I am!) and eventually he consented to have the odd suck without going into meltdown. He insisted on sitting upright though, and it was days more before he laid down to feed - it must have reminded him of being in pain.

Try different positions, and no pressure because I think it can be really counterproductive.

BTW, when DS decided to 'forgive' my boobs, it was lovely, as he seemed to be rediscovering them and BF, and spent a lot of time stroking them and smiling. I hope this happens for you soon!

My DD (now 2 and still bf) went on a couple of strikes in her first year (can't remember exactly when now, annoyingly, but one was before she'd started on solids and one later). Both times lasted about 24-36 hours and managed to get her to feed eventually lying down at night - sounds a bit like allbuggiedout's experience - it seemed that she would relax enough when lying down and a bit sleepy. She was also almost starting to feed and then pulling away crying as if in pain, but I never did figure out what it was. Hope yours passes soon!

yes, my ds did this a couple of times at 9-10 months. i was very upset and i'm sure that didn't help!

once he re-attached when i co-bathed with him, and the other time i was so upset dh looked after him and i went out for a walk for half an hour and when i came back i was calmer and i think he fed not long after that.

throughout that whole period, 9-11 months, he was quite reluctant to feed, but now (14months) is fine.

i hope you get through it, good luck