Crying at the Breast

My 2.5 year old daughter is an on-again-off-again eater and that's just the way she is. My 4 year old son is ready to eat all the time. It's just how they're made. Don't fret.
Just keep offering her healthy foods and she'll take what she needs.
good luck

i say go w/ the flow..sounds like a growing spurt and she's hungry..my son was a distracted nurser ..then i quit nursing at 15 months and started back up again a month later..supply drops after AF ..are you having periods? maybe it's time to just let her eat more but still keep nursing..you have more milk than you think you do i bet. if you really have trouble w/ supply get DOM aka "motilium" google it..at 9 months i was only pumping one ounce..got the DOM and started filling bottles again..takes 72 hours to notice a difference..and you only need to take it for 2 weeks max..maybe like 2 x's a day.

She is too young to self wean. She may be going through a nursing strike. This is common when they start eating solids or taking bottles. I posted some info yesterday to a similiar question. I found some great info at
www.kellymom.com go there and search nursing strike.

Nurse as long as you can, she still needs it!
Best wishes,
M.

Hi S.- My son is 6 months old and has also taken to solids with enthusiasm. He will scarf down more than one #2 size baby food jar twice daily. He just keeps eating and I never know if I should stop or keep feeding him. He still does take the breast, which I offer first, though but I also worry if he is getting enough milk. Either way, he seems content though we have had to give him prune juice diluted with water to help with constipation.

Some babies go through a nursing strike, they typically do not self wean, so do some reading up on nursing strike and see what you can do to keep your milk supply up. Here are a few great sites:

http://www.llli.org//FAQ/strike.html
http://www.breastfeed-essentials.com/nursingstrike.html
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/baby/back-to-breast.html

Too much food could interfere, not saying that she is eating too much at this point but I would recommend that you make sure she gets back to the breast - offer her the breast every time before she eats a solid meal and also after... this could help your milk supply and also help to make sure she is getting her proper nutrition. But again, check out nursing strike and how to deal and you might come up with some better answers for you and your baby!

Good luck!

My 6 month old was ready for baby food at 5 months, so we started off slow with just rice cereal and breast milk. He very quickly wanted more! I don't think we followed the books - now he is up to three jars a day plus cereal and nursing 3-5 times a day. What a porker. Just wanted to let you know that as long as she isn't showing any allergic reactions, she's fine. I know the books say one thing, but your child isn't a by-the-book experiment, she's a baby! She has her own little quirks and differences from everyone else. If she's eating her heart out, be glad she's got a healthy appetite!

Are you in Long Beach? I would call Susan Orr right away. She's the breastfeeding guru in town. ###-###-####. If not, call a lactation consultant in your area, and/or contact La Leche League.Your daughter may have an ear or throat infection that pains her to nurse. -or- you may not be producing enough milk and she is frustrated (try lots of pumping to activate the milk supply....if nothing else, it will give you lots of nutritious milk to store to give her in the future)- or- she may be self weaning. My 11 mo old nursed 5 times on a Thursday, and on Friday, she was DONE! . I tried all the things Susan recommended, including a doc visit, but apparently my strong minded little one decided she was finished. (I was so bummed, since I didn't get a chance to wean myself).

Re. solids, check with pediatrician of course, but one thing I would consider is that b/f babies statistically are not prone to being overweight later in life cuz when nursing,they stop when they are full, as opposed to bottle fed babies who are kind of forced to finish the "x" amount of ounces that are in the bottle. So personally I'd let her use her own judgement as to when she's had enough. She'll stop eating, for sure. And most likely the left overs will end up on the floor, ha ha.
One last thing, my daughter didnt like baby food- it has no flavor, plus god knows what else is in it. I'd recommend pureeing your own fruits and steamed veggies. That way you can make sure they are organic and have no other harmful ingredients in them. Jessica Seinfelds new cookbook called Deceptively Delicious offers great suggestions on pureeing foods and hiding in meals kids like. This will come in really handy as she gets bigger, but for now you can extroplate and make things more appropriate for a 7 mo old. (you can also do this with organic free range meats, too, cooking, pureeing and mixing in with other veggies.
Good luck!
-A., Realtor mom of 4 1/2 daughter (I also teach Bradley method childbirth classes on the side)

My daughter is still breastfeeding at 18 months, but at around the same age as your little girl, she made it pretty clear that breastfeeding is nice, but doesn't satisfy her appetite.

I would just try to relax and go with it. Be glad you have one who is easy to feed!

You've gotten some great advice already from the nursing moms on here. My daughter also went through peaks and valleys depending on all the different things going on. Your milk is probably fine and I found that my daughter is a great eater! She nursed better after we started solid foods, if I fed her first then topped her off with breastmilk. :)

Hi S.,

Is your daughter teething? My son quit nursing at about the same age; I didn't realize until later that he had more teeth coming in, and I think the pressure on his gums while he was feeding was painful.

Relax, stick with it, and check out my favorite how-to-feed-your-kid book: Child of Mine, by Ellyn Satter. Her advice is specific, and her approach really takes the pressure off.
good luck!
C.

Was just reading the responses.. and agreed that it could be a multiple choice of things... As far as not making enough milk, IF that is even the issue, drink Rootbeer! i swear by it.. When I was nursing, if I ever drank Rootbeer.. WHOA.... MILK galore, I actually had to PUMP out 8 oz of each breast because I was flooding the poor baby's mouth and he couldn't drink it fast enough. hah... Your baby is probably teething, or it's possible it's an ear infection. My exp is that when laying down, they feel the pressure in their ears.. Im only suggesting this because Im' a deaf mom, and I still get ear infections, and when I lay down... *kind of like when you go to nurse the baby she's down*, my ears build up the pressure and a sucking motion seems to make it worse. However, I would suggest that if she DOEs have an ear infection, not to give her antibiotics until it's severe.. it sounds mean, but I was more prone to them, and as an adult, when I don't take anything, they actually heal up faster... It sounds awful, I know.. but.. just an opinion,that's all. I"m sure your girl is just hungry for food now.. and prefers the solids.. My boy at seven months was eating 6 full Gerbers nbr two jars a day. (Again, his father is six foot ten, so.. big boy, but...) He never went thru the little teaspoon thing either, just one day decided he was ready for food. Whew... At least she's happyy to eat, right? She'll let you know when she's done... all babies do!
S.

Let us know how it goes!!!!

Babies wean at different times...or not at all. When babies wean earilier than mom figured she'd BF, it's VERY emotional.

She won't overeat solids, feed her slowly and allow her stomach to tell her brain that she's full. Their metabolisms are so fast that our kids ate so much, you'd think they should be 100 pounds on on Maury Povich. They are thin as anything and lean. we fed them good food, not bread and crackers and cereal for the most part - veggies, some fruit, protein, etc. No juice, only water and no cow's milk.

Still nurse her. You might want to try staying away from corn (including corn syrup which is in EVERYTHING), dairy and tomatoes and see how she does with your milk. You can always feed her solids and then give her the breast...or vice versa.

I have a 9-1/2 month old daughter. She started eating 1 small jar a day and has now worked her way up to 1 jar, 3 times a day (which our pediatrician recommends). She never did the whole tablespoon thing either. But trust me...she will stop eating when she is full. Sometime they get like this when they hit a growth spurt. It sounds like you are doing just fine. Hang in there!

Another thing to consider...is she teething? Sometimes when they are teething, nursing can be difficult. I gave ny daughter teething tabs or orajel a few minutes before nursing, and it helped a lot!

As far as breast feeding, I am still nursing as well. If you are concerned about your milk flow.....I take Fenugreek. It helps me with my Milk supply. I take 3 capsules, 3 x a day. It works for us. Keep up with the water too.

Best of Luck!

My daughter at about six months just literaly turned her nose up at my breast. It was like - yuck! I had been offering some foods and a bit of formula since 4 months, along with breastfeeding. I think she just wasn't getting enough from my breast or her palate had changed and she just didn't care for it anymore, and that was fine with me. We continued on formula and started introducing foods. My rule is - at that age - let them lead you a bit in terms of food and beverage. They know what they need. Give them plenty of opportunity to eat and also a good variety. But they will lead the way at this stage.

Hi S.
How often is she nursing. How often is she crying at the breast? I do not think she is crying at the breast b/c of your milk taste (ie, sugar). I have never heard of this and I have been in this field for many years. Has she been sick? Has something changed with your nursing?

Sometimes at this age, babies cant settle down and need to go into a quiet dark room where there are no distrattions. Might this help?

Would you like her to wean? If you dont want her to wean, I would suggest that you nurse FIRST before giving any food.

Good luck. Please write back. Very few babies self wean at this young age unless they are given solids primarily and your milk supply shrinks dramatically. To stop this I would do some extra pumping until you figure it out to keep your supply strong!

Hang in there!

Hi S.! I know how horrible it can feel to have your daughter "refuse" you when it comes to eating. I went through the same thing with mine...just know that it is a phase. There are so many factors that have to be just right for our little ones. Like....if you recently changed one of your products that you use (lotion, shampoo, perfume, deodarent...) they might not like it. If they are teething or growing or even if they are learning how to get around on their own or discovering a new skill they don't want to stop to nurse. If it is a teething problem try and give her a frozen wash cloth a couple minutes before nursing to numb her gums a little. Also, if she's teething the pressure on her ears could be too much when she is lying down...try different positions. Tana (my daughter) went through the same phase....when it was time to nurse I made sure that it was a quiet room (her room had her nursing chair in there and that is where I nursed her 90% of the time) I also would make sure not to offer her food first. Feeding her 3 meals a day with actual baby food is absolutely fine just don't give it to her before nursing. You seem like you are doing everything right...drinking water, staying hydrated...I hope this all makes sense.
One last thing I just thought of....if you have changed your diet recently she may not like that either! However, your milk is the MOST IMPORTANT thing that you can be giving your baby!!!!!!!! Don't ever replace a nursing time for baby food. Tana nurses when she first wakes up, eats rice cereal and fruit mid morining, nurses in afternoon, eats rice cereal and veggies in evening, and nurses when she goes to bed and she is 10 1/2 months old.
Gooed luck, I would be interested in knowing how this turns out!

I have an 8.5 month old daughter and in my experience, she cries at the breast if she's hungry for solids. And she cries at the solids if she wants the breast. She knows what she wants but her cues are the same for both. Now that she's a bit older she's starting to give me different cues for solids and breast, but it was a process of trial and error when she was your baby's age. I think you are on the right track, she's totally ready for solids, I don't think there is anything wrong with your milk. She's just hungry for something with some substance! I always offer the breast after a solid meal, she usually takes it. I think at this age, the breast milk is a drink for them, rather then a meal, ya know? So do both!

I don't know where you heard the starting at 1 tablespoon thing because it seems a little ridiculous. I started both of my children off at about a 1/4 cup of rice cereal mixed with 1/3 of a jar of baby food when they first started eating solids and my sister also did that with her son and neither of us has had any problems with their digestive systems or anything. Both of my kids and my nephew are all within weight standards and any doctors and the ladies at WIC never said they were eating to much. If your daughter is just eating plain baby food and no cereal I really wouldn't worry cuz that stuff is pretty thin and it doesn't have alot of bad stuff so you don't have to worry about her getting what she needs. I'm not a doctor or anything but it seems to me you should just let her decide how much is enough and don't worry about overeating unless it's really extreme like two jars a feeding! Well hoped that helped a little and good luck and try not to worry so much!

When my son went to his 4month check up with the doctor, he told me that my son should be eating between 1 to 3 jars of baby food per day. Of course Im talking about the small jars that say 1st foods. He is now 7 months and he eats the 2nd foods, 1 whole jar, 3 times a day. He drinks a lot less milk and he enjoys eating solid foods more. I think he is starting to associate drinking the milk with going nite nite or napping, because he fights me with his bottle sometimes as well. He really only wants the milk when he is tired and ready to sleep...if he is not ready to sleep, he will not drink his milk unless I sit him up completely and even then he will only take it for a few minutes. Maybe your baby is doing the same thing...?? Hope this helps a little!

i really wouldn't be worried about your daughter eating too much solid food too quickly. neither one of my kids progressed with solids as intended by the doctors that wrote those lists. in fact both of them ended up starting on plain yogurt at 7 months after i tried every other possible food combination and got nowhere with it.
as for the crying when nursing, now that your daughter is eating the solids is she still crying when you try to nurse her after her meals? she may be self weaning now that's she found something more satisfying. it really sounds more like she was hungry for real food rather than something being wrong with your milk. good luck!

Hi S.
My son did the same thing and I thought I had done something wrong too. It sounds like you've gotten some good advice from the other responses but I agree, keep with it. I don't think she is trying to wean herself at this age. My son would go through a lot of phases like pulling off because he got distracted or crying because he was teething and the suction hurt.

The last time this happened to me my son was 15 months, he would cry every time I tried to nurse him. It turns out he had an ear infection in both ears and the pressure from nursing hurt his ears. I had no idea! I felt horrible.

Good luck with everything.

I'm not sure if this is what you want to hear. But I planned on breastfeeding my daughter for a year. At 7 months she just refused. It broke my heart. I kept up with the food and put her on soy formula (which I have heard lately isn't the best for girls).
I work with a lot of mom's and the main story I have come to believe is that they quit when they are ready. If you push them through it because you aren't ready then that is when they become harder to wean.
Just my experience.
Good luck. I remember like yesterday how hard it was for me.
~T

S.:
You may want to have her ears checked. She may have an ear infection that is bothered by the nursing.It is probably not your milk.

Good Luck!

Hiya.

It does sound like a nursing strike. Was your baby startled at the breast (did you jump when she bit down or make any sudden movements while she was nursing?) or have you recently changed laundry detergents, lotion, soap, deodorant, etc.? Has she recently had an ear infection or a cold (Congestion can make breathing difficult while nursing.)Any of these can contribute to a nursing strike.

Check out kellymom.com or the La Leche League website -- they should be helpful. Keep in mind that your baby's digestive system is still too immature to process a lot of food (see Dr. Sears' website -- askDrSears.com) and your milk is the perfect food for your baby for the first year.

One thing you might try is relaxing with your baby in a warm bath. Some babies take the breast when they are partially submerged in warm water. Just make sure you are not too tired when you are in there so you don't fall asleep in the tub -- maybe do it when someone else is in the house and can check up on you every few minutes.

Whatever you do, keep your milk flowing to maintain supply and prevent engorgement. Use the milk you pump with a feeding syringe, spoon, or cup to prevent nipple confusion or a bottle preference from occuring.

The following information is from the Kellymom.com site which has proven to be a very helpful and reliable website:

When babies abruptly stop nursing, it's a nursing strike - not weaning. Babies rarely wean on their own before 18-24 months, and self-weaning is almost never abrupt.

Will baby nurse while asleep or just waking up? This is usually one of the best times to try. You also might try nursing lying down or while walking around. See also the tips at the top of this page for persuading baby to nurse.

As long as baby is not nursing as often as before, you'll want to express milk to maintain your supply, stay comfortable, and reduce the risk of plugged ducts and mastitis.

Don't miss the great links below about nursing strikes.
Surviving A Nursing Strike by Becky Flora, IBCLC
Is Baby Weaning or Is It a Nursing Strike? by Nancy Mohrbacher
Nursing Strike FAQ from LLL
Nursing Strikes by Cheryl Taylor White
Nursing Strike FAQ from Misc.kids
Articles on Nursing Strikes from the LLL magazine New Beginnings
Chronicle of a 40-day Nursing Strike by Tane Tachyon. Also includes additional info and personal stories about nursing strikes.

I hope this helps. Good luck!
S. :)

RELAX!

Children need to be guided to learn about healthy eating. However, they come with their own personalities and eating styles. They haven't learned to eat with their head or their eyes yet. They still listen to their body. At her age she may need more than you an offer through nursing. She may also be wonderfully adventurous with her eating. If this is the case it is a trait worth fostering.

Seven months is too young to self-wean. It sounds to me like she's going through a nursing strike. Your milk probably has nothing to do with it. She might have been startled at the breast, she might be congested--put on your detective cap and try to figure out what it was that happened or is happening. In any case, keep offering the breast--she might take it if she's half asleep, or if you're holding her and moving around (like in a sling). Don't offer her a bottle, because that could easily make the nursing strike worse (the artificial nipple involves very little effort on her part, as opposed to the real one). Good luck!

It sounds like she is teething and breastfeeding is uncomfortable for her right now. I use Hyland's homeopathic teething tablets and teething gel to soothe my daughter's gums when she is teething. Once her little gums are soothed your little girl will probably go right back to breastfeeding. Some babies go on what's called a "breastfeeding strike" while they are teething due to the discomfort. Just keep offering her your breast - I'm sure that she will be back to avid breastfeeding in no time!

Hi Sara, I had a similar question with my son. He really took to solid foods and let go of the milk, quite quick. Because he was early we actually have a regular pediatrician and a developmental pediatrician and they both agreed that the main concern with him not drinking enough milk (formula in his case) was the lack of fat in solid foods. I actually have to supplement his solids with olive oil so he gets enough fat for brain development. He has also always been on a vitamin supplement. But I looked at it from the end result which is that he will eventually be eating only solids which is a good thing and the doctors agreed, we just needed to modify things so he gets what he needs. Might be worth running by your pediatrician.
Hope things work out.

Your daughter is fine. she is likely weaning herself from the breast. besides those guidelines are just that guides not set in stone. i wouldn't follow them, my daughter is 5 1/2 months eating pure since 3mmo 3weeks old and she's fine. She eats the same as your daughter. Remember every baby is unique and develops at their own pace and not according to a guideline.. So sit back and relax and just go with her flow and monitor what she eats.