My 6 month old baby has a tendency to bite down when breastfeeding. Sometimes she does it with her gums or lips, but recently she has started doing it with her new bottom teeth! I say no loudly and remove her from the breast, but she doesn't seem to notice that she's done anything wrong. She just does it again the next time! Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Thanks for all of your responses! It seems like my daughter is biting when she is not that hungry or when she's bored. I have cut down on the non-nutritive nursing and that seemed to help. But, she's still biting and I will try the "press into the breast" technique if needed! Thanks again...
Hi Natasha,
Pull your bundle of joy INTO your breast. Just for a moment. Not for 30 seconds. Not for a minute.... but a short moment. Your child will let go. Worked the first couple of times with my baby and she never bit again. Good luck and I am glad you are breastfeeding. It is difficult and easy at the same time.
L.
Dr Sears says to pull the baby INTO the breast rather than pulling them off, although when a baby bites that is definitely not your insticnt. The theory is that the baby will stop biting as it is hard for them to breathe that way.
Mine bit twice with his 2 bottom teeth (very bloody mess & painful for a couple of days) and after that never did it again. A sharp "No" & ending the nursing session surprised him. I think he was just testing his new teeth out. Sorry the 'no' didn't work for you. I hope someone else has a helpful suggestion.
My baby did that when he was getting new teeth. What I did is I pulled him into my breast really close and he would let go. Also I read some helpful info on the Leleche website. Good luck!
As mean as it sounds, my girlfriend gave me a tip to say No and then press your babies' face into your breast for a second. This will cause your baby to release in order to breathe. I did it once with my baby, and she never bit me again.
These postings match my experience. Biting definitely hurts! Your reaction is important as if it appears "funny" or "interesting" to the baby, she will continue to do it to get a reaction. If your reaction is nonchallant (while you may be crying from the bite in your head), it's not as interesting to continue to do it.
Also, it was helpful to me to understand that a baby CANNOT bite while actually nursing as the tongue has to be over the teeth to nurse. That helped me to use the techniques described and not give up. If my DD was actually hungry, she wasn't going to bite.
