New here - need support re: nursing strike

[kbam]

My 9 month old was basically exclusively breastfed. She has some trouble with reflux and has just been slow to try and like any solid foods. She was nursing several times at night and then every 3 hours or so during the day with a bit of cluster feeding before bed.
A week ago sunday she came down with a fever. She nursed about every hour on monday, then tuesday the fever went higher and she was also seeming fussy/uncomfortable. She only nursed a few times during the day. She nursed at 6pm that day and then refused to nurse again until 6pm on thursday - 48 hours between. We were trying to keep up her hydration with sryinges, cups, droppers, whatever we could but she must have been having stomach cramps because she screamed and writhed in pain whenever she took in more than a couple cc's of water or breastmilk.
She we treated for dehydration in the ER on wednesday night and then again on thursday and admitted to the hospital on thursday.
We stayed in the hospital until yesterday. She was still in pain until saturday morning and then seemed to perk up and be able to take in more fluids on her own.
She has yet to breastfeed again since last wednesday.
I am pumping, however she has never taken a bottle and also seems to have a negative association with my breastmilk in addition to nursing. She will take small amounts but refuses any significant amount of breastmilk regardless of how we try and give it to her.

I have been told that nursing strikes can last even 2 weeks and everyone seems confident that she will go back to nursing again. It's just so hard to wait and such an emotional thing.
She seems to want to nurse but then gets to the breast, hesitates and backs off.
We are having a very hard time at bedtime and naptimes as she has always nursed to sleep and now does not know what to do with herself.
Thank God for babywearing for sure.

I would love to hear from anyone who has made it through something similar.

[oregonmama79]

I am an EPer so I won't be too much help but I did want to encourage you to hang in there! Keep pumping and offering the breast. DD will come around. Do you have a lactation consltant you can talk to? Maybe consider that if the strike last too long or you can't bare it anymore. Hang in there mama!

[mytwogirls]

Oh hon, I am so sorry to hear about your nursing strike. I encountered a LONG nursing strike from my little girl not too long ago. She was 10 1/2 months and bit me one day and I yelped and she would not go back to nursing. I spoke with lactation consultants, nurses, my ped. my OB/GYN and anyone who would help me basically. I pumped and after four weeks she still had no interest in the breast. I pumped for about a month and gave in and gave her a bottle with breast milk. Some would say NOT to under any circumstance give a child on strike a bottle, but she WOULD not take a syringe, cup, spoon and I did not want her to go without fluids. I finally gave up on pumping as it was too emotionally painful to keep going and she is doing just fine on whole milk as she will be one next week. However, do NOT give up hon. Your little one may go back to nursing. Try bathing together, walking around topless, nursing in different positions that are new, express a little in her mouth and see if she will lick it off (mine did that and I got way excited, but she never latched on though) and baby wear her too. Try waking her to nurse her, nurse her while she is sleeping, co-sleep if possible and try sneaking it in then. I hope this works for you. Please PM if you need to talk, as I have been there and it is heart breaking watch your LO go through this and YOU go through it emotionally. You want so badly to nourish your child yet they won't. Very frustrating and sad. Hang in there, keep your head up and stay positive please!

[mytwogirls]

Bumping your post so hopefully someone else can give you advice. How is it going by the way???

[ReginaHS]

Can it be teething related? Painful to nurse? Maybe keep trying but offer spoonfuls of milk as well. My son likes to nurse more with teething pain but my friend's won't.
Good luck!

[kbam]

Originally Posted by mytwogirls

Bumping your post so hopefully someone else can give you advice. How is it going by the way???

Thank you.
It's going.....she's taking pumped breastmilk now from a cup which is certainly easier than feeding with a syringe! She also let me put her to the breast 4 times today and didn't push away. She put her mouth on and just kind of sat there for a bit. No sucking though. But I am a little encouraged by that.
I started a tincture of herbs today for milk production because she is taking more than I can pump and I will soon run out of the milk in the freezer from while we were in the hospital.

[mytwogirls]

Originally Posted by kbam

Thank you.
It's going.....she's taking pumped breastmilk now from a cup which is certainly easier than feeding with a syringe! She also let me put her to the breast 4 times today and didn't push away. She put her mouth on and just kind of sat there for a bit. No sucking though. But I am a little encouraged by that.
I started a tincture of herbs today for milk production because she is taking more than I can pump and I will soon run out of the milk in the freezer from while we were in the hospital.

Oh that sounds very hopeful mama! Congrats on the progress. Any progress like that is great. Mine never made it that far I wish you the best of luck and keep us updated on the progress.