I know this is silly but I've had a huge breakthrough with nipple-twiddling DS and I have to tell someone who won't laugh at me (too hard)!

[Jacksmama]

DS at 19 months is a nipple-twiddler. When he's nursing on one breast he always manages to grope his way to the other breast (no matter what I'm wearing... he once almost strangled me as I was wearing a turtle-neck ) and twiddles the other nipple. Drives me batty, besides being really uncomfortable and painful even when I'm ovulating and my nipples are sore.

I've had to grab his hand and hold it still, which means he can flail his legs freely (another hilarious habit is to reach up with his foot and try to touch my nose with his toes, popping off briefly to say "beep!" and then nursing again...
so at times I've just tried to press my forearm against the other breast while cradling his legs, thus denying him access to the oh-so-tempting-and twiddleable other nipple. It's made nursing a bit of torture at times.

I recently read a thread where a mum said that she simply asked her baby to sleep through the night and it worked (tongue-in-cheek, of course), so last night, as DS was nursing (and twiddling) away, I said to him, "DS, please don't do that, it hurts Mama."

And he pulled his hand out of my bra!

Of course it's such an ingrained habit that he soon reached in again, but I just repeated "please don't do that, it hurts Mama" and he stopped, every time!

I don't know anyone in RL who'd not laugh at me a little for being so delighted about this - most of my friends have lo's but they seem to think I'm being a hippy for breastfeeding so long... and I just had to tell someone!

Brilliant! Well done you that's a fab achievement. My dd is a twiddler at 10 months and it cheeses me off enough now, couldn't begin to imagine coping with it for another 9 months...

Fantastic

I feel your nipple twiddling, leg flailing, twisting, acrobatic pain.

Whoever thought the simple thing would work?!

Hurrah

But I did laugh at the foot on the nose and the beep It's only funny when it's not happening to you!

Oh well done. I found that if when DS did it I blew right in his face he stopped in surprise and five times later quit doing it forever. Hurrah!

Oh I wish I'd thought of blowing in his face months ago - he's been doing this half of forever - at least since before I started ovulating again in May because that's when it really started to make me want to bang my head against the wall.

I'd tried taking his hand out of my bra every time he did it - rope, twiddle, remove hand, repeat ad nauseam... yeah, that worked well ... not!

Don't they start developing empathy around 18 months or so? He's started to get this concerned look on his face when he hears other babies/ toddlers crying. Plus the increased verbal understanding - I'm guessing this wouldn't have worked a few months ago.

Next step: asking him to sleep through the night, LOL!

Sorry for all the italics

You should have put a crocodile clip in your bra muwhwhahahhahah!

Jacksmama - we have the same thing, except 20mo DS rarely gets as far as the nipple (it annoys me that much).

I've tried asking him, and although he seems to have some empathy for other kids, he rarely seems to have any for me unless I am visibly displaying some strong emotion (so just telling him it hurts me has no effect unfortunately)

I do the clamping my arm thing, and have had some success asking him to be gentle with Mummy instead, so he strokes my face instead.

I shall have to try the blowing thing too.

Or a teeny tiny mousetrap [evil ]

Tried asking ds, but didn't work for us!

But on a sweet note, this morning we were feeding in bed. He came off and started looking at my "milks".

I asked what he was doing and he said "I'm looking at your milks". I asked why he was looking at my milks and he said "I just want to look at how bonny they are" PMSL

Mawbroon, what a gorgeous boy!How old is he?
I am so glad I found this thread.My ds is 13 months and likes to scratch around in my bellybutton (very soft squishy and large due to 5 births!).But he has scratched enough to make it very sore(even after cutting his nails). I ended up putting a band aid over it, which he took off.
Saying"No" doesn't work, so I'll try asking him nicely! And I'll try the blowing in his face, cos I am mightily sick of it!

Just wanted to report success continues - he's hardly twiddled at all since yesterday! I am so happy!!!

cool! I hope it lasts for you....

angifi - he will be 4 next month and is showing no signs of stopping - ever!! i don't mind though, my experience with him is that it's easier to go with the flow rather than fight him over breastfeeding. I am 18wks pg, and the dip in supply doesn't seem to be putting him off at all, so I am preparing myself for tandem feeding.

Oh very cool!! I'm looking forward to hearing how that's going for you - I probably won't have another one [mixed feelings emoticon] so will have to hear second-hand whether it's knackering or manageable.

I'm not planning to wean DS either - he's such a little milk monster, I don't think that would go over very well. He can wean himself. DH thinks nursing a toddler is a bit but I told him it's my decision and DS can stop when he wants.

PMSL at thought of being able to spot a BFing MNetter by the teeny tiny mousetrap in her bra....

ROFL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You'd need quite the breast pad to disguise that nipple!