8mo biting while nursing

[GreenGranolaMama]

DS has his two bottom teeth and has starting biting me SUPER hard... like last night I really thought I was going to look down and see that I no longer had a nipple.

So I've tried saying 'ouch' and 'no' and taking him off the breast... and then sometimes he laughs at me!

DH has tried tickling his cheek and sometimes this will cause him to stop or release the vice grip he has on my nipple... it's pretty funny, I'll be tearing up it hurts so bad and DH will be sitting there going "Tickle him, tickle him!" Um yeah, easy for him to say lol!

What do I do????? DS and I are totally not ready to wean, but his little chompers made me bleed last night...

[ThankfulMama]

I have read (here?) that when baby bites down, you can bring him/her close in to your breast --they will naturally want to release and pull back to clear their airway. I recently tried this with DD and she releases very quickly.

Best wishes!

[Norasmomma]

Originally Posted by ThankfulMama

I have read (here?) that when baby bites down, you can bring him/her close in to your breast --they will naturally want to release and pull back to clear their airway. I recently tried this with DD and she releases very quickly.

Best wishes!

I did this with my DD who was a big time biter(and she loved to hear me yelp). I basically smooshed my boob on her face, it taught her pretty quickly not to bite.

[blumooned]

I feel your pain!! DS was getting in 3 teeth at once and biting me so hard I was crying. I had read (Dr. Sears, I think) about bringing them in closer when they bite, to block their air supply like PPs said, so I tried it - nothing. He stayed latched on and kept biting. So I gently plugged his nose as I pulled him closer - I figured this was the same concept as burying his nose in my boob. That worked. Now, all I have to do is start pulling him closer & he stops. Also, as soon as the teeth broke through the gums he stopped biting so hard, so it is less of a problem now. It will get better!

[GreenGranolaMama]

Originally Posted by blumooned

I feel your pain!! DS was getting in 3 teeth at once and biting me so hard I was crying. I had read (Dr. Sears, I think) about bringing them in closer when they bite, to block their air supply like PPs said, so I tried it - nothing. He stayed latched on and kept biting. So I gently plugged his nose as I pulled him closer - I figured this was the same concept as burying his nose in my boob. That worked. Now, all I have to do is start pulling him closer & he stops. Also, as soon as the teeth broke through the gums he stopped biting so hard, so it is less of a problem now. It will get better!

So I am guessing that I wouldn't have to do this many times before he stops?

I mentioned it to DH and he is a little nervous only because he had a bad experience with a child whose nose was held shut- he is a special ed teacher and one of his co workers was being bitten and plugged the childs nose to try and get him to stop, only to have the child, after only a moment, pass out (this is NOT protocol and the appropriate actions were taken against the individual)

Any other ideas just in case? I am NAK and being bitten as we speak.....

[ThankfulMama]

Well, you could try to draw him in closer without plugging the nose first to see if that helps. So far it has for us.

Another option is to keep your finger close by and break suction as soon as he begins to bite.

I may be wrong here, but it seems that if you tickle him when he bites it may turn into a game at some point.

[kdtmom2be]

You need to sound angry and hurt and be LOUD when you say "HEY" or they don't get it. If he doesn't break into tears because of it you aren't doing it right. That might sound harsh, but it only takes a few times before they get it and then you can continue the nursing relationship, much better than the alternative. And, FWIW, I say "Don't bite". I said it loud and furiously the first two times and DS wailed and wailed (I held him and kissed him). Now I only have to say it gently sometimes and he looks up at me startled and lets go. He knows what it means and knows that it makes me unhappy and knows how to fix it.


and this probably should have been in the breastfeeding forum

[blumooned]

Originally Posted by GreenGranolaMama

So I am guessing that I wouldn't have to do this many times before he stops?

I mentioned it to DH and he is a little nervous only because he had a bad experience with a child whose nose was held shut- he is a special ed teacher and one of his co workers was being bitten and plugged the childs nose to try and get him to stop, only to have the child, after only a moment, pass out (this is NOT protocol and the appropriate actions were taken against the individual)

Any other ideas just in case? I am NAK and being bitten as we speak.....

I think I only had to do it maybe 4-5 times ever. And just once at a time. Since I was pulling him in at the same time, now I just have to pull him in & he stops. When I pulled him in the first few times (to bury his nose) his nose didn't get close enough to my chest. Maybe we just had a bad angle. His nose was plugged for less than a second - really! I meant no harm to my LO, just wanted him to un-latch. I also tried sticking my finger in there, but that caused him to lose suction but keep his teeth clamped on the nipple, so then he would pull the nipple with his teeth - ouch again! I do think this was a unique situation for us - he was getting 3 teeth all at once and one looked really swollen. I don't think we'll have to do it that way again. Try just pulling in your LO - hopefully that will work for you!!