Scared of weaning

[lilg24]

Hey I'm pretty new here and don't really post just after some advice, my baby is nearly 25 weeks and is currently under the dietician for milk allergy, she is on neocate has been for months and has been prescribed aptamil Pepti now due to reflux, I have started to give purées as she seems interested in food and she has baby rice with banana the dietician has said in a couple of weeks to start offering basically everything obv without milk and the thought of it petrifies me, I did try with weetabix and she gagged which I know can be normal but the thought of her choking is terrifying, she hasn't been the best to feed with bottles due to reflux and lots of vomiting so I worry she may not take to food but she can't obviously have purées for long, I don't really know the reason for this post but I don't really have anyone to talk to about this and my fears. She's my first baby so don't know if I'm just being a panicky mum.... any advice tips would be helpful.

I understand the concern but gagging is actually a good sign - it means that she can bring food from the back of her mouth out if its too much. Choking and gagging are very different. Babies who have puree for too long can struggle once texture is introduced so it's great that you're thinking about the next stage.

Could you sign up for a paediatric first aid course to ease your mind a bit? Your local children's centre, St John's ambulance and even the local hospital may have sessions you can attend. The health visitors locally may also run a (likely virtual) weaning course, there'll be lots of parents in the same place as you, with or without the milk allergy.

Once you get your head around the "rules" of weaning its such great fun to see your little one experience food's, I loved weaning!

You quite often find food can help a reflux baby too, it settles better.

I found weaning terrifying the first time round. I was more worried about giving the right food rather than choking. I would suggest you watch some you tube video on the difference between gagging and choking and how to deal with a baby is they do choke. I preferred blw so I didn’t have to deal with the whole different stages of food.

My girls also have allergies. Ideally you need to give your lo the top allergens as soon as possible and regularly to reduce the chances they develop an allergy to them.

My baby had reflux and she also had issues with her tongue which meant she didn't know
how to move the food around in her mouth, so the good would just sit there, so she'd gag and vomit all the time when trying. She didn't really eat til she was 12 months after speech therapy to get her tongue moving. (Doc wanted to snip it like a tongue tie but at 6 months I felt she was too old). Anyway I say all this to say, don't worry, take it slow with soft foods, food before 1 is just for fun as they say, and echoing others, there's lots of info on google re what's normal (gagging, coughing) v what's not (choking, turning blue) etc. And if she really can't get her hang of it, see the doctor.

Definitely suggest a first aid course to put your mind at ease I did the same thing as I was also nervous of potential choking!

Thank you for all your advice I think I will look into a first aid course to put my mind at ease from a panicky first time mum.

First aid course is a good idea - there's loads of videos on YouTube that show the difference between choking and gagging too that might help in the interim. Depending on your highchair, I'd say don't strap baby into start with if it's safe. They're not climbing out at 6mo and if you do need to grab her quickly you're not having to undo the straps.

It seems scary but watching your baby really enjoying food for the first time is loads of fun. I've got so many pictures of my eldest covered in food!

Our daughter and SIL are following a book called Baby Led Weaning.
Oh my goodness, what a success! Watching them feeding him (or feeding himself, really) has made us oldies realise where we went wrong.
I shall ask her tomorrow for the author’s name and get back.
It’s fantastic, he is SO excited about food!

(8 months now)

@DenisetheMenace

Our daughter and SIL are following a book called Baby Led Weaning. Oh my goodness, what a success! Watching them feeding him (or feeding himself, really) has made us oldies realise where we went wrong. I shall ask her tomorrow for the author’s name and get back. It’s fantastic, he is SO excited about food!

That would be great thank you

Both of mine had reflux. Did purées with the first from 17 weeks as he loved food, then switched to baby led weaning at 6ish months. My second couldn’t take purées at all - terrible gag reflex. Went straight to baby led weaning at 6 months and she did great.

With reflux, you just have to be careful as some foods make it worse. Apple seems to make every reflux baby I’ve ever met worse, while pear is very well tolerated. Tomato, prunes, mango, peaches etc were also a bit problematic here until maybe 10 months or so, and the reflux improved slightly. You can find lists online of foods for reflux babies if you Google it.

@Fitforforty

I found weaning terrifying the first time round. I was more worried about giving the right food rather than choking. I would suggest you watch some you tube video on the difference between gagging and choking and how to deal with a baby is they do choke. I preferred blw so I didn’t have to deal with the whole different stages of food.

My girls also have allergies. Ideally you need to give your lo the top allergens as soon as possible and regularly to reduce the chances they develop an allergy to them.

Thank you for your message, I do worry about different allergens as this is all new to me so far she has had wheat which I have given for a couple of days with no other to see how she reacted so if she did react I would know it was that.... is that the right way in my thinking?

I found this online before and found it helpful - traffic light system of food for reflux babies.

@PippinStar

I found this online before and found it helpful - traffic light system of food for reflux babies.

That's great thank you I did think about certain foods making it worse, I did try to introduce juice after a meal just a few sips so she got used to a sippy cup and majority of it just comes straight back up. But I've now been told by the dietician not to bother with the juice as milk is all she needs as in liquid wise.

If you have Instagram have a look at sr_nutrition she gives loads of helpful info on weaning and also dairy allergies. My little one has multiple allergies but there are plenty of alternatives to try ☺️ good luck!

@PollyRoe16

If you have Instagram have a look at sr_nutrition she gives loads of helpful info on weaning and also dairy allergies. My little one has multiple allergies but there are plenty of alternatives to try ☺️ good luck!

I haven't got Instagram but thank you 🙂

I did the same. I have no other new foods around the time of giving new allergens for my own sakes. But allergies don’t often occur on the first exposure and they can develop at any time. My Dad had developed allergies in his 70s.

Hello again, lilg24

Baby Led Weaning by Annabel Karmel.

Our daughter has followed this from six months and he is a very confident and adventurous eater now, at 9 months.

@DenisetheMenace

Hello again, lilg24

Baby Led Weaning by Annabel Karmel.

Our daughter has followed this from six months and he is a very confident and adventurous eater now, at 9 months.

Thank you for this 🙂