Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Nurseries

Find nursery advice from other Mumsnetters on our Nursery forum. For more guidance on early years development, sign up for Mumsnet Ages & Stages emails.

Flip

Original poster

Putting baby in nursery next week but she won't eat solids or bottlefeed. Help!

10 replies

elliegirl · 16/02/2009 19:55

Hi all

I'm going back to work as of next week and I'll be putting my 10 month old in nursery for four full days a week. She's settled in well. But the problem is that for the last week and a half she won't eat solids and now wants to breastfeed all the time. She has never wanted to take the bottle. Until recently she was taking small measures of formula from a cup/beaker but now she barely does that and I've found myself forced to breastfeed her during the day (I had got it down to two breastfeeds a day - one at first thing in the morning and one last thing at night).

Her teeth are coming through and she seems to have picked up a bad cough. Apart from that I don't know why she would reject her food so much. I'm so distressed thinking about her going to nursery and not eating anything at all and not having me there to breastfeed her either. She's already quite slight in weight.

Has anyone else experienced this and if so what did they do to sort the problem? Any advice would be great.

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Original poster

elliegirl · 16/02/2009 19:56

Hi all

Has anyone else experienced this and if so what did they do to sort the problem? Any advice would be great.

OP posts:

Parapluie · 16/02/2009 22:52

Hello Elliegirl - I am sorry I can't offer you any positive stories or advice but I just wanted to let you know that this is a situation that I can see myself being in very shortly and I wanted to let you know that you are not the only one!
My DD is breastfed too - she is not a massive eater compared to milk monster and does not like bottles either. She is NOT settling in well to nursery at the moment full stop so maybe you are one step ahead of us.
Hope it gets better for you both soon. Maybe when she is in the nursery and you are not there she WILL take solids again because she will realise that she will have to.

Jackstini · 16/02/2009 23:03

Hi Ellie - will she take EBM? You may find she will take a cup from someone else and possibly start trying solids once she see other babies doing the same.
Her settling in visits will have let her know things are changing and that could have affected her feeding pattern but it will settle again.
Am going back to work myself in 2 weeks and wondering if ds will behave similarly to dd!

Pannacotta · 16/02/2009 23:04

Why not send in EBM for her? She can have it from a cup rather than a bottle.

ThingOne · 16/02/2009 23:12

I went back to work when my DS1 was about nine months old. He wouldn't take milk other than from the breast. He just ate more when he was at he childminder's and had a boob full as soon as he saw me.

At ten months your child may be fine during the day without milk. She can have a feed or two before she goes, a feed when you pick her up, and a feed at bedtime. Even if she doesn't feed all night, she will get plenty of milk from that.

callmeovercautious · 16/02/2009 23:26

I suspect she is just feeling poorly with her teeth and the cough. By next week she might well be fine.

I was shocked by how well my DD settled at 11m. I was convinced they would not get her to settle for a nap etc. She ate everything, drank all her milk and slept soundly for 2 hours a day

See how she goes

Original poster

elliegirl · 17/02/2009 09:29

Thank you everyone for your advice. I wanted to avoid expressing breastmilk, but it may be the only option to get her to accept a beaker/bottle while she's at nursery. She breastfeeds well in the morning and night, so we can carry on like that if necessary - but that's providing she starts eating solids properly again! I'm hoping she'll get over this by the time I go back to work. What a nightmare!

Good luck to all the mothers who have babies going into nursery soon. After the initial teething probs, they'll all benefit from being in a fun environment with other babies.

OP posts:

mummy2rachel · 18/02/2009 11:52

Just wanted to offer some support to you. I do sympathise as my dd was the same when she started nursery 3 months ago. She soon started taking solids and formula in nursery after a couple of weeks. Those early weeks were heartbreaking though as I felt so guilty for leaving her. On the bright side, she has settled a lot better now and is starting to enjoy the nursery environment.

fifitot · 20/02/2009 19:30

Same thing happened to me - DD refused formula and even ebm (all that hard work every day for nothing!). Occasionally she had a bit but made up for it with food and water and then full on bf before and after nursery.

Honestly - she will be fine. She won't starve! She may not take to it straight away but she'll soon adapt.

Scarfmaker · 22/02/2009 22:36

Elliegirl - have you asked the nursery what they have been feeding your 10 month old for the past week and a half?

As she is so young the slightest change of taste, consistency of food etc. to what you are feeding her at home can sometimes send babies this age straight back to wanting their comfort item i.e. milk!

Just a thought but have a word and see if this could be the problem. If after communicating with nursery and this is not the case have a word with your health visitor who can advise you if you are worried about her weight.

Flip