6 Month Old with First Tooth Biting While Breastfeeding

Hi,
I did was Kim and Dana did (push her head onto the breast with a firm "NO"). It was taught at a Breastfeeding Class at Kaiser. It made it so that she automatically HAD to release her grip so that she can breathe again. It worked with my first one...we'll see how it works with my second one.

Dear C.,

Many years ago when I was breast feeding my little daughter she started biting down when her first teeth came in. I gently squeezed her nostrels shut; she had to open her mouth to breathe. At the same time as I squeezed her nose I said, "NO BITING!" She finally stopped.

Best to you
Merylyn (aka M.)

I have had the same problem with my daughter who is 8 months. What I did was keep a cold teether with me when I breastfeed. When I felt she would start to bite I would stop breastfeeding and put the teether in her mouth. She would chew on that for a little while and then go back to eating. It seems she just needed to release a little of the pain in her gums before she could continue eating.

If this tactic didn't work I would stop feeding her and move on to something else. Eventually she got the idea that she can't teeth and eat at the same time.

If this happened for more than one feeding in a row I would give her teething tablets and a little motrin, then try again.

She would only laugh at me when I told her to stop. It made it seem like a game.

Hope this helps,

J.

My daughter bit me so hard a few times (before I got her to stop by tapping and removing the breast) that she drew blood. Nursing became really painful, and even breast pads rubbed and hurt. To give my nipples a break, I found the Medela TheraShells. They create an air pocket between nipples and bra/pad/shirt to allow sore nipples to heal.

http://www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/products/breast-care...

Take them both off to nurse, though, or the one you're not nursing off of fills with milk !

She isn't old enough to understand the stern voice or the no just yet.... Do you best not to respond with either as that may appear funny to her (I know it's hard when it hurts...)

Just stick your little finger in her mouth and break the suction... Repeat 3 times in a feeding and then stop the feeding if she bites again. After a few days she will learn to associate her bite with the food going away..

Good Luck - my baby's all did this for a few weeks with their first teeth and stopped - breast fed all 5 beyond 1 year.

I know this may sound harsh but I taught La Maze for years while breast feeding my three sons, all different ages, and this is was they were advising at the time. Put a rubber band around your baby's wrist. When he bites you give the elastic a GENTLE snap. On the second bite snap slightly harder. My son never bit again nor did the other two ever bite me! Behavior modification works!

If my daughter bites, I immediately take her away from the breast while talking in a stern voice about how biting hurts mommy and I don't like it.

I sit her firmly a few feet away from me for 30-45 seconds.

She looks a little stunned and sometimes cries a bit. She doesn't want to be separated from her mommy or the breast. After she's had a moment to get the message, I will hug her and perhaps continue the feeding.

I have used a nipple shield the one time she bit me and broke the skin.

I don't think she is intentionally biting you or understands that she is biting you. I breastfed both of my kids but always said I was done when they got teeth. My daughter didn't want to take a bottle at first but eventually did. It was the Playtex with the bags because the nipples are soft like ours. Just keep trying the bottles and grin and bear it. The latch on itself is enough discomfort without them having teeth.

C.,
If she starts to bite during nursing I would pull her off and put it (breast) away for a few minutes. Then try again and do this each time she starts to bite. She will eventually realize that when she does this she will not get what she wants. This worked for me with my son who just turned 15 months.
Remember when a baby is actively nursing, the tongue gets in the way and they can't bite. So either she is not really hungry and just needs something to chew on or if it is after nursing, she is done.

Good luck, and stick with it. It will get better. Trish

My son did this about that time, but it didn't last long and he stopped. I didn't really think he got "no" that young. I would stop nursing and tried holding his face in so his nose was blocked (it does sound awful, doesn't it?), and either those things worked or he just stopped.

Try taking her off or away from the breast when she bites. And just keep up the No biting in the stern voice and hopefully she will catch on. (o:

My pediatrician suggested that as soon as my son bit me I plopped him on the floor and said "no bite" very firmly, even walking away for a sec if I needed to. I just did it once and he got upset but never bit me again. Just let her know that it won't be tolerated and it's not a game.
Good luck!

Both of my children tried biting the breast -- I think this is completely expected, since they also tried to bite everything else they came in contact with! I would keep any words to her very short -- at 6 months, more than a stern "no" is a lecture that they are not going to comprehend. At this point, consistent behavior will get the point across best.

In my case, I said no, and took them off the breast. I would then END the nursing session, nicely but firmly. It made it absolutely clear to them -- bite Mom, and num-nums are over. Biting ended very quickly with both children, and we returned to our biteless nursing routine.

J.

I am still breastfeeding a 2.5year old who did bite a little when she was small. I thought she was too young to really understand "no" and when she would bite me I would push her face into my breast so she could not breath. This forced her to let go in order to breath. (I know it sounds terrible, but it was a brief push of her head so her nose pushed into my breast.) At the same time I would calmly say to her "Don't bite mommy. It is Ouchie (this is her way to describe when things hurt) for Mommy." She learnt very quickly not to bite as it was an immediate consequence which ended when she let go the nipple. It was very effective with the biting stoping after a couple of bites.

Good luck and I hope you can stop it soon as I know how sore it is.

way to go for commiting to breastfeeding no matter what! :) it really takes dedication and is worth every bit of effort. my son is almost 18 months and still nurses...sometimes 20 times a day/night! we love our nursing relationship, but he has bitten me before too. i did what you said you did the first time it happened and when it kept happening i would actually say "no bite" in a stern voice and take him off the breast. if he got upset at that i would just hold him but make sure that there was at least a short bit of time before letting him back on. repitition really seemed key. also, if she's in pain and wants to "teeth" on something...maybe you could massage her gums with your finger and have a teething toy nearby. hope it helps!

Oh boy.
I think all moms go through this when their kids are teething. They want to bite on something and your boobs are not the right thing to bite on.
What I did for both of my children when they started biting and didn't get the no-no part of it.....I took the breast away. I gave them a teething ring to chew on. If they just wanted to chomp, they were going to have to chomp on something else. Of course, if they were truly hungry, they weren't happy chomping on something that no milk came out of.
So, that's what worked for me. Everytime they bit, they lost the booby. They got it figured out.
You need to do something now though because believe me, you WILL quit nursing when your daughter has enough sharp little teeth to make you bleed.
Boobies are for eating and not for biting.

Good luck and hang in there.

I know your frustration, my 10 month old has 4 teeth, she used to bite me, either she stopped or I got used to the pressure. I think she was getting used to having teeth and she was using them to hold on to my nipple (ouch). My pediatrician says to stop feeding when she bites, so tell her no and take her off your breast. Hopefully she will learn not to bite you.

Hi C.,
I have not encountered this yet but at my La Leche League meetings this question comes up a lot. One leader suggested after you say no and they do it again you end the nursing session. Immediately after she bites down you lovingly and firmly remove her from your breast and end the nursing session. This sends a clear message that she cannot bite mommy. Although we put our children first, not at the sacrifice of ourselves. Our children need us to take care of ourselves so we are at our best for them.
That is what I plan to do. I am sure after 10 minutes or so if she is hungry you can go back to feeding. But according to these veteren mommies, that works really well.
Good luck!

C., You need to find another way to get her to stop biting you and fast, before you get too sore or inflamed to nurse. A sound that will startle her or taking her off the breast when she bites are two other techniques that often work. To get her off the breast without pulling on the breast and hurting you just put a finger in between the breast and her mouth and push down on the breast until you break the seal/suction. That way you can take her off the breast without any pain. I had to deal with my daughter biting for a week or two when she was nursing and I've had many friends with the same issues. Find whatever works and don't feel guilty about it, it is the best thing for her in the long run because you will nurse for a longer time if you not being chewed on! It doesn't usually take long to stop the habit once you find what works, just be consistent and do it every time she bites. Best of luck to you!

Hi C.,
Both of my girls started to bite when teething and the La Leche League taught me to gently insert a clean finger in between nipple and their teeth as soon as they bite. This will interrupt the lock that the mouth creates and they look up at you. This will take about a week for your child to learn this new behavior. My gals also refused anything but the breast and I nursed one for 18 months and the other for three years. In hindsight, I wish that I had taken the time to get them to take the bottle to give me a break. Eventually I was able to give them water in a bottle with a soft silicone nipple when they were about 8 months old for hydration. The biting will reoccur every once in awhile, howeve, just keep inserting your finger and they remember quickly.

let out a SCREAM...that'll do it.

The tapping on the mouth or cheek, telling her NO, NO, That hurts in a strong voice with a frown is a great first step. Now you need to let her know that you are serious by setting her down for a few minutes before continuing to breastfeed. When you start again remind her not to bite mommy. If she continues biting, set her down again then have daddy or someone else offer her the bottle. Since she hasn't taken the bottle yet, she probably will not want it and you can remind her and try again. This is advice I received from a Lactation Specialist. You might try calling one in your area or contacting the La Leche League to see if they have any different ideas for you.

Good luck!

Hey Candance,
What a good mom you are to do what's best for your little girl, even if it isn't most comfortable for you. My son started getting teeth around 5 months and I continued to nurse until he was almost 2. So I had a similar experience.

What ended up working for us was that I decided if he bit, we were finished nursing... not forever, but for that session. I would just say "Ouch! that hurts. no biting!" Take him off the breast and pull my shirt down. If he asked to nurse again later, I'd of course give him a clean slate to try again, but if he bit, that session ended. It actually only took it happening twice before he stopped completely.

By the time I finished nursing him he had all 20 teeth and had not bitten be since he was 5 months old... so there is hope.

Good luck. HTH

T.

What works for us is something a lactation consultant shared with me... it is counter intuitive but really worked. When you feel her start to clamp down push her head into your breast so that she has to release to breathe.

I was told by my lactation consultant that you should look away (don't give eye contact) and say calmly "no biting". The looking away is a form of "punishment" to the baby. I was bitten a bunch of times when my daughter was teething and had a headcold at the same time. I used this technique and haven't been bitten since. It may take a few times for her to get the idea but stick with it.
Good luck!

I breastfed both of my girls (3 yrs & 18 Mos.) for a year & both of them had their first tooth at 3 1/2 mos....with that said, I went thru the biting dilemma also! The girls pediatrician recommended pushing their faces into my breast and saying "ouch" at the same time, loudly. What happens, is that they automatically release from your breast because they need to catch their breath...it worked for me! They release & you get their attention...they normally just want to go back to eating promplty after! GOOD LUCK!

THE SAME thing happened to me and I thought I would never be able to take it!!!

However, I continued with tapping my sons face and saying no, firmly. If he continued after that, I would say no and not let him nurse for the moment. If he cried or looked at me hurt, I would say, "don't bite mama". Then, asked if he was ready to nurse without biting - eventually he got it -

R.