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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Biten, pinched and scratched every time i feed!

31 replies

PocketTasha · 28/07/2005 12:14

Hi all, i really need some useful advice. I am having trouble with DS2 feeding. I made lots of mistakes with DS1, with out much real advice. I didn't even know the breastfeeding councellors existed. I breast fed exclusively for three months, then mixed until four months, and it all went wrong. I am keen not to make the same mistakes. DS2 is now 7 months. When i breastfeed him he bites regularly, he is a fidgit anyway but pulls and tugs at the breast, pinching me as a result. He is happilily feeding as he does this. But it is obviously less than comfortable for me. I have tried so many things. Taking him off the breast when he bites, resulted in him biting harder to keep the nipple in his mouth while he smiles at me! He even wrinkles his nose as he bites down! i tried gently holding his nose to make him let go, but he seems to think this is a funny game, and actually laughs when i do it, and proceeds to bite again to get the same reaction! Also, i have recently started introducing a few bottle feeds during the day. Partly because of the way he pulls and fidgits. It makes feeding in public really really hard, because he pulls up my clothes and looks like he's struggling! Quantity of milk has never been a problem. Having not gotten to this stage last time i am at a loss as to how to handle it.

OP posts:
Magscat · 29/07/2005 13:14

That last line should have said 'milk/mush balance'.

PS - DD was born New Years's Eve - was your ds?

PocketTasha · 29/07/2005 13:59

magscat, He was born new years day. Just missed 2004!

I know that he doesn't want to stop breastfeeding. cos he gets annoyed with the bottle sometimes and still goes for the breast first if he is hungry. At the moment i give him

6am bf
9am porridge followed by a bottle of milk about 6 ounces
1pm breast or bottle
4pm a baby meal, normally a jar of heinz mums own. (m liquidizer wasn't good enough to make proper puree for him) But now he's starting on lumps. followed by a fruit puree or pettit filous.
6pm breast or bottle
10pm bf

i'm wondering if i should be giving two meals now at 1pm and 6pm instead of at 4.

OP posts:
PocketTasha · 29/07/2005 14:04

When i talk about knock on effect i mean before with DS1. I had no idea that letting him start using a beaker would mean that he wouldn't want to breastfeed. Or that milks for hungrier babies where bad with breastfeeding. I got no advice on confidence to feed in public as i found it quite hard. And i didn't know at all what the balances should be. It really jeopordised the breast feeding. This time i've gone in better informed. but now i'm on new ground. don't want to mess up again.

OP posts:
PocketTasha · 29/07/2005 14:06

Thank you for answering btw.

OP posts:
Magscat · 29/07/2005 18:19

It's difficult isn't it because they're all different and it's hard to know what sort of things are a consequence of your actions & what would have happened anyway.
I've herad of introducing bottles as something that can out the baby off b/f but not beakers -could it have been a co-incidence? My dd has a beaker for water and it hasn't put her off b/f.

As for introducing a later meal, I'm not sure what sort of time is best but I would be concerned that giving a jar at 6pm might put baby off the bedtime breastfeed. I know that all the way through nursery the little ones eat tea at about 4 - 4.30pm but I must admit I'm finding it easy to get out of synch when it's mush at 12ish, bottle at 2ish and mush again at 4/4.30.

I guess so long as they are getting their 20oz a day then we should be aiming for 3 meals a day as well and that's all that really matters.
Fully admit I'm no expert though

shhhh · 30/07/2005 21:40

PocketTasha DD is not at the biting stage YET (!!) but does fidget and nice me while feeding, well she sort of squeezes/kneeds my breast while feeding. This is cute but does hurt at times. I dread the biting stage !! Anyway one way I get to stop her is by not uncovering my breast totally during a feed. I then place her hand on my top that is slightly covering my breast so she then kneeds/squeezes my top instead. This seems to make her content. I suppose what dd is doing during the feed is kind of comfortering herself during the feed. After the feed she tends to go to sleep so she must be content. HTH.

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