Nursing Strike

K.,
The best advice I know is to call the La Leche League of ABQ. They are fabulous nursing mommies themselves and have lots of training and experience. They would certainly have some suggestions for you to try. ###-###-####
Good Luck, M.

I have a nine month old daughter and she did the exact same thing, several times actually! When she was first born, around three months and around six months, a little bit. I read all the advice, but it didn't work for me either. All I did was take a deep breath, if she didn't latch on, I would just let her be on her way and try to be patient and not get frustrated. She would refuse for a while, but then eventually she would start nursing again. I think it has a lot to do with teething (that can start early even if there are no signs) and also the fact that he can feel your frustration and doesn't want to nurse, so that is why its even more important to stay calm and relaxed even when you are frustrated. Just know that its a faze and every baby goes through it and IT WILL PASS! He won't starve, I promise.......when he gets hungry enough, HE WILL EAT!

I hope I helped! Take care!

Hi K. I have had this problem with a few of my six kids and it turned out to be something i ate in a few cases. I love garlic however my children do not LOL. Also I noticed when I ate certain green vegetables my kids would strike. Think about if you have eaten something different over the last few days. Maybe maybe not. Hope you figure it out because I didnt realize it until i stopped nursing one of mine and I was so sad I missed that closeness.
J.

K.,

A problem with nursing at daycare can be with too many distractions around. Try to nurse him at home in a quite surrounding. Pump during the day and give him a bottle with your milk to daycare. Babies become really distracted by the world around them just around six month old, and are not that interested in nursing. It will go away soon, and he will appreciate nursing again. Good luck!

Hi K.!
Bless your heart. I know EXACTLY what you're feeling. My son did the exact same thing when he was five months old. He would arch his back and scream when I would try to get him to nurse. However, there was a reason! My son had an ear infection and it was hurting him to nurse. When a baby is breastfeeding, they have to use their entire jaw line to get the milk. With a bottle, they only have to use their lips. He would drink out of a bottle fine, but he was associating the breast with pain. He thought that the breast was hurting him because it was painful to nurse. My story does not end happily, but I think if I had done things differently it might have. I was pumping for six more weeks and feeding it to him in bottles because I was worried about him not eating. Even after his ear infection was gone he only wanted the bottles after that. Eventually I dried up and had to do formula. However if i had stayed strong after his ear infection was treated and been patient with offering him the breast, he would have realized after a while that nursing didn't hurt anymore. It's just a suggestion... have him checked out. He may be in the same boat as my little guy. Good luck to you and keep us posted!

My daughter did this too, around 7-8 months I think, I pumped milk to make sure to keep my supply up for 1 and 2 to make sure she got 'the good stuff.' Over the weekend be sure to just nurse him, cut back on the amount of solid food you give (if he's on any) and then he'll be more hungry. That's what La Leche told me to do and it worked. best of luck to you. My daughter weaned herself at 10.5 months, I really wanted to nurse longer. This will pass and he'll nurse like a champ again. Juse be sure you keep him close this weekend and if he uses a binki, hide it for the weekend to make sure he nurses anytime he wants to suck. Love him up!

Hi my name is L.. My advice to you would be to get him over the cold because if he has a stuffy nose then he might be having a hard time nursing. He also might be ready to be weaned even though you may not be. Other children in the same environment might all be on a bottle. He might sense that the bottle is the way to go. That's just my advice. I hope it helps some.
L.

Just ride it out- he will eat again.. I wouldn't give him formula because that is the fastest way to end nursing.. if he refuses just let it go and try again later... hunger will win out and he will eat when he is feeling better. You could also put some teething stuff on his gums in case that is the problem- or give him a teather thats nice and cold so he can numb those gums before he latches on. Teething is one of those things that seems to go on and on.. until they are about two! If you do have to give him a bottle, give him breast milk so that your production doesn't slow down..

The other thing it could be.. and sorry this may sound personal, but has your period returned? When my daughter was six months old and I started menstruating again- it did seem to affect nursing at first, and then once my period past she was back to nursing no problem- hope this helps- good luck!

For all my girls teething symptoms began 2-4 weeks before any signs appeared in their mouths. If he won't nurse, pump during those times. Give the bottle to the daycare staff in case he's miserable while you're gone. This will help keep your supply up. I agree you want to limit formula. When he gets hungry, he'll nurse again and gladly!