I Need Your Expertise.. Pls. Help

Hi Bernadette,

1:) When you go to nurse him, take him in a quiet DARK room where there will be no distrations. IF that doesn't work, try wearing some beads around your neck for him to play with while nursing. That helped when my son was in a hitting phase. He was about 8 months old and would hit me when he would nurse and that stopped when he had the beads to look and play with.

2:) NEVER let him watch TV anymore. They say kids should watch NO TV till they are 2. TV is probably making him more wild. It is too stimulating for small children to watch. Try leaving the tv off for a week or two and see if that helps.

3:) When he bites, unlatch him and tell him biting hurts mommy, we don't bite. Then try again. If he bites again, stop the nursing session and try again later.

4:) Have you tried Hylands' Teething Tablets? They helped our daughter a ton when she was teething. She would spike fevers and get sick every time she was getting a new tooth.

5:) Baby Orajel also works well for teething children. Just don't over use these types of products.

6:) Give him a week ot two to heal and then make sure to get him indoors at the time of night when the misquitos are out. PREVENTION would be the key to the bite/ scar problem.

7:) At 7 months old I'm not sure what you mean by wild.... But if he is acting out it is probably because of something in his life that is affecting him. Babies are VERY sensitive and can feel when there is stress around them. Again, cutting out the tv may help with this issue. And any other trama that is near him should be worked on as well. Relationships, etc.

8:) Going for daily walks may help with his eating habbits and with his acting out. Also make sure to get down on the ground and play with your baby. Read stories to him. Talk to him throughout the day about what you are doing as you do it. Babies need to be stimulated.

9:) As for formula, by this age you might have to just give up. Our son REFUSED to even drink out of a bottle!!! I nured him for 18 months. We introduced the WATER cup at about 7 months and would give him water periodically throughout the day but he PREFERRED breastfeeding. So that's what we did.

PLEASE stop giving your baby juice. My husband's nephew had to have surgery and have 2 fake teeth (front 2) put in at age TWO because of having juice so often as a baby. And in a bottle too! I refused to let our kids have any juice until AFTER they turned 2. And even now they only get it as a rare treat. A glass every week or two...... At 7 months old there is NO NUTRITIONAL value in juice. BREASTMILK is what your baby needs.!!! Even when ME OR MY BABY was sick I would still breastfeed. That is what they need. God made momma milk PERFECT!!!

GOOD LUCK!

Hi Bernadette,

I am so glad you are asking for help! A lot of people, especially new moms (including me)have been afraid to ask about things that seem so easy for others.

I agree with what everyone has suggested to you so far and thought about my daughter's first year. Something that helped me a lot is going to Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) classes in my community. Every county has one and they run on a sliding scale-meaning you only pay what you can (sometimes nothing). The ladies that run our center are very caring and VERY helpful.

We met once a week for an hour and talked about our concerns for our children and any other topic that seemed helpful. They also taught us some cute little songs to sing to our babies. My daughter LOVED going. She got to play with her little friends, even if all they did was crawl around together.

I think ECFE classes would give you additional support for your baby and your life. I've met some great moms and they have become great friends...and occasional babysitters.

Thanks for asking your questions! You obviously care about your baby. And as for your other post, get rid of him! You are a woman...therefore, you are stronger than any man.

Good luck to you sweetie!

Bernadette,

As the other lady's have said, stop giving juice and I wouldn't even give him water until after he has started to eat consistently again. Maybe getting a baby Mozart CD and play that quietly through out the day instead of the TV. And start a half hour before its time to eat, clean up all the toys put them into a closet or somewhere out of site, turn down the shades, make the room quieter and then try to fed him. Also stop giving him milk, breast milk is best for him. I have three boys and non of them would take a bottle, with Alex my oldest we breast fed for 18 months, with Michael we breast fed for two years, and with Nicholas my youngest we stopped somewhere between 18 months and two years. I was also lucky enough to be a stay at home mom, so that helped. If he bites you again, do what one of the lady's suggested, pull away and say no bite, try again and if he bites again stop feeding and try again in 15 to 30 minutes. Maybe he is going through a low feeding period, he will eat again soon, Some children will eat like there is no tomorrow and then slow down for a day or two and then pick back up to their normal eating habits. Michael did that a lot here, and my husband and I would say its time to go shopping he is on a growth spurt and he would need more bigger clothes.

Anyway, keep us posted. Just relax, being a parent is hard enough without adding anything to our daily issues. You are a great mother sit back and see what he has to teach you. If you need additional reassurances you could always email any of us privately or you could also call your doctors office they are there to help you as well.

Good Luck,

G.

Mother of three boys and a family day care provider

The other posters have great advice. Really the only thing I wanted to say that no one mentioned is the mosquito bites...at 7 months old he is probably not coordinated enough to scratch them, at least not all of them and not efficiently. You said they are red and then turn to scars [I'm assuming you mean scabs and then scars?]. If they were mosquito bites they would not all scab because he certainly can't scratch them all- have you seen him scratching? Are there bumps that are red but haven't been scratched and therefore are not scabbed? I would ask a doctor about that because it could possibly be scabies or bed bugs or some kind of bug/fungus/virus/or other condition causing it

Hi Bernadette
He may be over stimulated by the movies shut it off and try to remove anything else that may be distracting before you feed him. If you are feeding him baby food my kids always ate better when I gave them a spoon to hold well I feed them if you are bottle feeding I would not offer anything else in the bottle except his milk. I personally would cut out the juice and water for a few days and see if he then would start to drink.if you only offer him milk for a few days and it dosen't get better I would take him to the doctor to make sure he is not allergic to something otherwise he is old enough for a sippy cup which may be easier for him. Good Luck T.

Honey, cut out the juice and the TV. Neither one of them are good for babies. Use juice only when they are sick and need clear liquids and then make sure it's diluted. If your little guy is getting all his calories from juice, he isn't going to eat. I know you said he has a tooth. You might try putting something on his tray that he can eat himself and then sneak bights of baby food in while he puts his bites in. Don't nurse him before feeding him a meal. If he is full he won't want what you have to offer. I always let my little ones have a lid or a spoon while I feed them. Give him water in a sippy. My five month old loves to play with that. She drinks some and some she just lets run out of her mouth.

Keep us informed!