16 months old suddenly bites then refuse to nurse

[MrsEnger]

My 16 months old has been nursing perfectly, she latches like a pro and we both enjoy our breast feeeding sessions. However yesterday she suddenly starts to bite me, then despite she obviously want to have milk, as soon as she latches on she bites and stops, even if I don't tell her off.

She then wants the millk again, but she'll bite and push her head away after seconds. Then she cries on and doens't sleep.

Has anyone seen such a situation before, please give me some advice. Thanks so much in advance.

Sounds like classic teething to me... try the usual calpol/teething powder. Also crunchy/chewy foods at mealtimes to help massage the gums, like crusty toast, apple etc.
Also breastfeeding a 16 month old here! Yay

Hi @MrsEnger

I had the same issue as you, although my DD was about 4 months old when it started. I couldn't really tell why she did it, but she'd bite and I would yell (couldn't help it, it HURT!) and then she'd cry and refuse to feed. It was like she wanted the milk but couldn't get past the biting sometimes. I learnt to put my finger right up by my nipple and whenever I felt her start to bite I would push down and stop it before it happened.

Hopefully there'll be some other responses with some answers!! Hugs 💐

Ps in a younger baby like 4m I would say it's more likely to be trapped wind. Another possibility is an uncomfortable/unstable feeding position. I used to try to make the rugby hold work, but my baby felt her head was unsupported so she would bite down to hold her head in the right place. Switched to side lying and she bit less.
But at 16m this doesn't apply any more, I reckon probably teething

My babies bit every time new teeth came in, and had to learn to adjust their latch sometimes depending on the tooth, so there would be a ropey few days as this all took place. It’s tense, I remember once googling ‘has a baby ever bitten a nipple off’ clearly was a bit scared!! Like pp I got to know signs it was going to happen, baby/toddler would kind of pause and need to remove their tongue so there would be a moment to get a finger in to break the latch.

Thanks so much @Mummy1608, @Bubble54, @Heruka! Now I know I'm not alone I feel a lot better, and I'll take your advice. Hope it's teething and she'll get back to that sweet baby again.

Fed her some thawed milk and she's settling now.

Aww glad she settled 😊 fingers crossed for you 🤞 x

I had the same when my DD was teething. Latched on, bit me, latched off... Latched back on, bit me, latched off and so on...until I had patches of blood through my bra! It only lasted a couple of days though.