pls tell me I'm right to wait! (blw a prem baby)

[FruitfulOfFruit]

Ds2 is just 6 months but was prem, so developmentally he is somewhere between 19 and 26 weeks. He is ff, happy on five 6 or 7oz bottles a day. He is just starting to look interested in what we put into our mouths.

But he can't sit up or pick things up. He can manage in his slightly reclined highchair. And yesterday he noticed a toy on his highchair tray for the first time and tried to pick it up. So he is nearly there I guess.

I could wean him if I was going to spoon puree in. But he is not capable of picking up food and putting it in his mouth. If I handed him a steamed carrot he might be able to get it to his mouth.

So I'm thinking I'll wait until he can do it himself. But my friends are all amazed/amused/horrified that he is still on just milk. So I'm starting to doubt myself!

wait

much less hassle, much more fun, much better for ds.

Do all your friends have prem babies? if not then ignore their "advice" as you have to do what feels right for you. If blw is the route you want to take then waiting til he's better at picking things up and sitting up is the best way, you don't really want him eating whilst reclining, it makes it easier to choke/gag. A few weeks will make all the difference, in that respect.

But there's no hard and fast rules, if you WANT to give him a little bit of something to try, it won't kill him, whether it's a little bit of milky porridge or a sliver of ripe pear. It's up to you, stand your ground, you're doing a great job and you know best!

do whatever makes you happy and confident, if you want to wait, you should absolutely do so. (plus BLW's a right laugh ).

there are some prem baby mums on the BLW forum, it's weird, they seem to have received a lot of conflicting advice on when to wean. i wonder if anyone really knows, which is why i'd be inclined to leave it up to the baby himself.

Mmm, the HV said to wean at 6mo as if he wasn't prem. Or 5mo...

Nobody knows with prem babies. I'm guessing that his stomach is the same as any 6mo - he's been using it for 6 months!

I shall keep reminding my friends that the advice up until the 1950's was to start weaning at 9 months.

I'd trust your instincts, babies usually tell you when they are ready, I didn't think there was a set time and they had to all switch? I thought each child was different and you being the childs mother would know better than anyone.