Sudden Nursing strike/Teething Tablets

he may like his sippy cup and be thankful he is weaning himself easily. My youngest weaned himself from the bottle before he was 12 months and weaned himself from b/f around 5 months and pacifier around 5 months. He was totally content with his sippy cup and kept throwing his bottles and cracking them so we just quit the bottle and he didn't fuss at all.

I agree with ruling out an ear infection. Sounds like the most likely cause. But I have heard many stories of milk changing once pregnant so I guess I would rule that out too.

Both my kids did something similar, my son more insistent than my daughter. He would scream and cry at a very young age. My daughter was older and would just look at me like I was a idiot for wanting her to nurse. Since you've said your son will take a sippy I'm wondering if it's nipple confusion. My kids wanted to stop nursing because it was easier to use the bottle, or in your case the sippy. I would consult a lactation consultant. I did with my son and he went on to nurse till he was 2 with no other problems. Good luck.

First, feel free to nurse as long as you and your son want to and enjoy it. My first nursed for three years, next I had twins (one quit abruptly at 15 months because I got mastitis and he and his twin refused the "sore breast" and despite pumping, I could not make the breast produce enough milk. Since he didn't want to take turns with his twin on the one "working breast" he just gave up. The twin nursed until almost 3 and weaned by his own choice). My last son loved nursing and gave it up when he was three or so because no matter what I tried, I could not produce enough to keep him happy (partly because he only wanted to nurse once a day every three or so days) and he started "tugging on the nipple" with frustration before just giving up and saying 'milk is all gone." He willingly cuddled with me and let me read him books and he fell asleep peacefully and soon this was our new routine.
Well, sorry for being so lond winded. In your case, I would agree it sounds like an ear infection or tooth discomfort. He is awfully young to "suddenly wean." Check with La Leche League for some suggestions.
If for some reason, he is done, create a new special "one on one" time for the two of you. It is especially hard since he is your last baby. I am so glad that my youngest and I created the reading to sleep alternative. (and yes he can fall asleep on his own. In fact, one day when he was four, he said, "I am ready to go to sleep. You can leave now" and he has fallen asleep on his own ever since!)Children will give you cues when they are ready for change. Best of luck!

What about an ear infection? Laying on one side to nurse might be hurting his ears, and the extra sucking that nursing requires might also hurt his ears. Just a thought.

I never liked those tablets. I don't think they work all that well, but some swear by them. Also, the fact that they contain belladonna freaks me out.

I had better luck with a very cold & wet washcloth. We also used frozen blueberries to help with teething - delicious and super cold to help the gums.

He might just be getting ready to wean. My 2.5 year old weaned herself at 13 months. It was so bittersweet. Keep up the pumping though! You're doing a great job, mama!

J.,

Look up La Leche League in the phonebook and call for help with this. You'll be able to talk to an experienced nursing mom who has been trained by the most knowledgable organization in the world when it comes to successfully breastfeeding.

Blessings,
M.

first off, dont isten to the peole who scolded u for ur son nursing at 1 year. nursing is healthy for u and the baby as long as u both want to do it. i nursed my daughter until she was 2 and i was pregnant with my second. and my son suddenly decided he was more interested in the rest of the world and didnt want to slow down to take the time to nurse at 11 months. take himm to the doctor ( who is supportive of u) and make sure he isnt sick, after that contact the la leche league. worst coe to worst and he is no longer intersetd in the breast, you can still cuddle to get the closeness with hi. good luck to u mamma!!

Keep at it. People who study this sort of thing estimate that humans would naturally wean between 2 and 5 years, I believe it is (depending on the evidence what sorts of characteristics you compare). I recommend going to www.llli.org and searching "nursing strike" there will be all sorts of great suggestions for getting him back and probably some possible reasons. If you feel done, I don't think it would be wrong to stop, but if you think you two should keep going, it's worth the fight. Also, calling your local La Leche League leader might give you someone to talk these things through with and some ideas too. You can find numbers on the same website. You're doing great, mama.

K.

It sounds like he is ready to quit breastfeeding to me. At least he is still taking the pumped milk though. Good luck. B.

If it is teething, the teething tablets are great. I have used them a lot with my son and they have worked miracles. Our Ped told us not to bother with oragel or any of the other topical stuff. Most of the time the tablets work great, but sometimes we do have to get the motrin. If you use tylenol you might want to make sure it isn't tylenol that is part of the recall...

My son did the exact same thing about 11 months- just decided one day that he was done. The dr said not to worry about too much since he was almost 1 yr old- we ended up using the frozen breast milk 1/2 and 1/2 with whole milk ands slowly decreased the breast milk untill he was on just whole milk

Hope this Helps :)

I know this scenario all to well. He's ready to be done. It's heartbreaking when it is sudden and when you are not necessarily ready. I would keep offering it for a few more days to make sure it isn't something you ate or some environmental factor for him, but it sounds like he's just ready to be done. Thankfully, he's a year old and you can be proud that you nursed through one year. It's just his way of telling you that he's growing up.

I would add one thing. I am an avid believer in breast feeding, but this exact thing happened to me and I knew it was my daughter's way of telling me she was ready to move on. That doesn't mean that breast feeding for as long as you want and your baby wants isn't a wonderful thing. I think it is--I just think sometimes our ideas and our babies' ideas of how long we want to nurse are not the same. Good luck!

Hi JB. I just read your post as I was looking on the internet as I am going through the exact same thing with my 11 month old. I'm really upset as this was so sudden. I've jut expressed again to try and keep my milk up - but it's been days now and I can't imagine her coming back to me. What happened to you guys? Thanks for your time, S., Northumberland, UK.

Teething tablets are AMAZING. It's the only thing that soothed my son when he was teething...not even Tylenol worked.

It could quite possibly be just teething, and that having to work harder to nurse than drink from a bottle makes his teeth/gums hurt. Good luck!

My son did the exact same thing around 13months. He was just done! It was sad for me, but I realized that he liked other foods and maybe figured out that the milk in his sippy comes out faster. He was ready to be independent! He did the same with his paci. I know you are sad, but my son is now 10 and has a mind of his own and does not follow the crowd :0)

Dear J.,

My last of 5 kids did the same thing at 11 months. He was ready to wean, but I wasn't. I tried for two days and just gave in to his refusal as proof that he didn't need that anymore. It was sudden, complete and he never turned back. It wasn't that way for any of my others, so I just figured he knew what he needed. I didn't force it, and he is just about the most well-adjusted 9 year old I know. Go figure. Maybe your almost 1 year old is just ready?

my vote is for ear infection OR it's time to let him grow up.

Could you be pregnant? Your milk could taste different. Other than that, I'd rule out an ear infection. A lot of times my son got one a week after having a cold so he wouldn't appear sick except for his waking frequently or having nursing difficulties.

Good luck finding the cause!

J.

Hi J., my girls wern't breast fed, but they did the same things with their bottles at about 1 year. My doctor told me to run with it, if they didn't want the bottle to let them give it up. They were done with their bottles. I'm not sure how long you planned on nursing, but he's ready to be weaned, maybe you should think about letting him. Good luck and God Bless!

I would suggest checking with your ped before getting teething tablets. Ours told us not to use them because the herb in them is actually not safe for infants.

Not sure why the strike. Sorry to hear that. Good luck!

Have you ever considered that your son is getting to old for breast feedding. I'm not trying to chatise you but he's a toddler now.Its hard enough to keep them still to do anything. Most doctors prefer them to transition in to eating how can i say more "grown up things". Maybe its time to transition him into drinking the type of milk you would give your older children.

He may just be done, sad as it seems. My first baby had to be weaned as I was pregnant and about to deliver with my middle daughter, and the doctor forced me to. But, my middle daughter just up and decided one day that she was done. She had absolutely no interest anymore and wanted nothing to do with it and would push it away when offered. I too was very sad. My 3rd one also weaned herself, but she was considerably older. I too, was not ready, as she was the last, but when they are ready, they are ready, sad as it is for us. Good luck luck!