Cupcake has two bottom teeth. And yes, they are adorable, and we are in awe of how well she's growing. She's eating food, getting teeth, trying to stand, babbling left and right, and still seems to have absolutely no interest in tummy time or crawling.
So what's the problem? She's started to bite. Hard. When I'm nursing her.
I always told myself I would breastfeed for 6 months, and if everything was going well we would continue to a year, at which point she would wean to cow's milk. (Dont tell the La Leche people! They'll tell me to not wean so early). So the question is, would biting be considered "not going well"? Because it hurts. Really, it does.
She'll usually suck normally, but sometimes she just chomps down, and I pull her off the boob and try for my most authoritarian "no!" like the books say to do. And she just finds this hilarious. I don't think 7 month-olds understand the concept of consequences yet.
I like my boobies. I want to preserve them. So Nate and I have decided to give it a week. Cupcake has 'till this Saturday to get used to her new teeth and stop biting the boob that feeds her. Otherwise, I think we're gonna have to start weaning to formula. I want to keep breastfeeding, but enough is enough.
Contact an IBCLC certified lactation consultant for more tips. You might be surprised by the support you can get. Yes, the LLL would be a good resource lol. You don't have to mention formula...
ReplyDeleteHave you considered pumping? I had to wean Klaw because the fats in breastmilk are the wrong fats for VLCADD (our babies pretty much have the exact opposite fat needs). I had to pump a lot during the weaning process.
That way you could still give Cupcake the benefits of breastmilk but save your boobies if she continues to bite them.