Busy Breastfeeder Won't Finish

Hello K.,
I have had the exact same problem. My 8 month old does the same thing and I believe she started doing it around 7 months. She wants to play so badly when she should be eating. I wish I knew what to do. If anyone gives you any advice it would be great if you could pass it on. Good luck!

Hi K., I'm breastfeeding my third child and what you say is very common. Babies want to see what else is going on around the house so they eat fast and then look around. I'd say she's not hungry anymore and wait until the next feeding. I wouldn't pump and then give her the bottle. It's easier for children to drink from a bottle than it is to nurse, and you may be teaching her if she doesn't nurse you will give her a bottle. She will begin to breastfeed less and less and your milk will begin to dry up. Pumping usually doesn't stimulate the breast enough to get as much milk as nursing. What I would do when it was extremely too busy to nurse in the living room was to go into my bedroom or into the baby's room and nurse away from all the noise.
My first daughter was an extremely quick nurser(7 minutes max, usually 5 min) and she only nursed on one side at each feeding. So my body adjusted to only nursing one breast at a time. I asked the Dr. if this was ok and she said my baby was gaining weight normally and there's nothing wrong with the way we nursed. If your second breast can't wait, then you should pump, but only enough to feel comfortable, not to empty it. Your body will adjust to the new routine and when she has a growth spurt and wants to eat from both breasts you may have another adjustment phase, but hopefully it will be quick. If your daughter has any weight gain issues, then you may need to nurse more often, but I never nursed less than 2 hours apart. You are doing great.

Hello K.,
My thought on your problem: I think your little girl will eat as much as she needs from your breast if you alleviate the bottle..assuming that's what you want to do. Just give her a couple of feedings.. she will eat if she's hungry and the food is right in front of her! But i agree with you not making her finish.. The breastfeeding experience should be enjoyable for the both of you! Just be patient. But in my opinion, the more you pump and give her bottles instead, the more you're encouraging her to use the bottle... Hope this helped...
15 months of succesfull breastfeeding under my belt, but everyone is different! Good Luck! B.

Hi K.,
Hi I am a 47 year old mom and childcare provider. Don't stress yourself out about it. Let nature take it's course. You'll probably be weining her by 12 months anyway. She obviously had enough if she is interesed in other things. Taking it from a bottle, that's okay, at least she is getting the breast milk. Be glad she is not one of those children you have a hard time with getting to stop. As far as feeding from both breasts just switch her to the other breast sooner that you did before. Making sure you in a nice quiet room with no distractions is a great idea.
Lonie

Hi K.,

I had the same problem with both my kiddos at around that age, although I was nursing exclusively. They're just so interested in what's going on around them!! What I ended up doing with both was to move our nursing sessions into their room (or other quiet place) and close the door so that we had no distractions. I nursed both of mine until 16 mo old, and each little growth spurt in their little brains brought new nursing challenges!

I also have a really great book you might be interesed in getting: "The Nursing Mother's Companion". It has a section on nursing older babies and some of the issues that come with that.

Best of luck!

:-) H.

Nurse in a quiet, darkened room.

Hi K.! I was in that same position with my little boy, everything was more interesting than breastfeeding! I did not give him a bottle but just let him regulate himself (but I did not get uncomfortable often either so pumping wasn't really needed but every once in awhile)I asked my pediatrician and they said just keep at it, they won't starve themselves. My son was also more interested at night and early morning so I just didn't rush him during those times. During the day he would barely do anything so I also didn't push (for fear of total rejection of the breast) and waited till later. Doctor said it just means they are becoming more aware of the world and want to check it out instead of being pinned down to feed...exploring is more important to them now than feeding. I can't say it totally passed but his interest and patience came and went and he weaned himself by his first birthday. By the way no one told me of the emotional roller coaster I would feel when he completely quit b.feeding... I think the change/drop in my hormones after I quit led to another round of baby blues till I figured out what was making it happen. Nobody confirmed this medically to me but it made logical sense to me so I never asked. Good Luck, sorry this is long, Angela

I wonder if putting a breatheable blanket (like a crocheted blanket or afghan) over your shoulder and breast would help keep her from getting distracted?? Sometimes that helps them focus on the business at hand since there's nothing else to look at.

Hi K.,

You have a very normal breastfeeding baby. My baby became much more interested in everything besides breast feeding at that age, also. What I did was wear an interesting baby friendly necklace made out of big plastic beads or I would give her a baby safe object (like a block or lego) to hold onto and look at while she b-fed. This helped alot. For more info I would suggest going to lalecheleague.com they have alot of b-feeding info on their website.

Good Luck