Breastfeeding Baby with Teeth

You can do it!It will pass:)It's just a fase but once she understands that she can't have milk if she bites you then it will be fine again.I breastfed my son untill he was 3.When he went through the teething fase and chew on my nipple I would pull him off and say no!Eventually he got it.Goodluck.You can do it!

Hang in there. I used a nipple shield before. I got them from the doctors at kaiser and maybe you can find them in Wal-mart or target.

Sometimes this late in the breastfeeding relationship, the baby's latch on the breast gets a bit "sloppy." Check to make sure your baby has enough breast tissue in her mouth to minimize the feeling of those sharp, little pearly whites resting on you while she feeds. I know it's uncomfortable...all of my boys (3) had teeth by that age too. You can do it and you will get used to it as time goes on too.

Hi, E.!

I am also a SAHM. I am six and a half months pregnant, have a twelve month old son and a nine year old daughter that I homeschool. I also love my husband, and I also love Jesus! ; ) Oh, and I'm also a doula.

I nursed my duaghter until she was eighteen months and my son until he weaned himself at eleven months, so I have definitely dealt with teeth and I feel your pain!

I have found that when teeth hurt, it's usually because baby is either teething or being "lazy" (if I could use that term loosely)... chances are, she's not latching on properly. My daughter did this, and I, out of desperation for her to relax/sleep, allowed her to do so "for sanity's sake." I found myself in so much pain from that! With my son, I decided that I would be more stubborn than he was to "do it properly." If he didn't latch on properly, I would separate him from the breast, using a finger in his mouth (I'm assuming you know how to do this) and would start all over again. I had a few times when he became annoyed and sometimes just downright angry, but I insisted on him doing it right... he eventually gave in so that he could nurse, and I was NEVER SORE!! = )

You may also want to visit a La Leche League meeting in your area to check your latch and get some extra pointers and encouragement!!

I hope this helps!! God bless you, sweetie!

In His Strength & Love,

C. <><

Hi, E..

As a mother to an almost 14-month-old daughter whom I breastfed from day one, I want to encourage you to continue what you're doing. My daughter currently has 12 teeth.

If you're starting to feel your daughter's teeth, chances are she's not latched on correctly. When you start to feel her teeth clamp down, try to readjust her. Sometimes, all it takes is for you to break the latch and reposition her until you feel comfortable. Her teeth shouldn't interfere with nursing and you really shouldn't feel them.

I have used a Boppy pillow the whole time I've nursed. I don't know if you're using a nursing pillow at all, but anything to help prop your baby in a more comfortable position will aid in you having a much more comfortable experience.

I am currently starting to wean my daughter and am down to two nursings a day. I haven't noticed her teeth clamping down at all except for a few times when she was laying awkwardly.

Just keep trying to find a position that's comfortable for the both of you and I guarantee you'll be able to keep breastfeeding for as long as you would like.

I hope this helps!

Good luck!

E.

You've gotten lots of excellent advice. I just wanted to add my encouragement and give you a pat on the back for doing such a great job! Breastfeeding can be hard and it's definitely a big adjustment, but the rewards far outweigh any suffering. :) Like other posters have said, she will learn to adjust her latch on (it will probably change several times as she gets more and more teeth). If it's uncomfortable to you, just pull her off and have her latch on again til it's comfortable (remember to stick your finger between her mouth and your breast to break the suction first so you don't cause yourself soreness). And if a baby bites, it's usually because their teeth hurt. So stop nursing and offer a cold teether, then nurse again, but keep stopping if she bites until she gets the message that it's not appropriate. Keep up the great work!

Dear E.:

I WANT you to feel encouraged although most people do NOT feel encouraged when I tell them I breastfed both children until the age of three! Actually, it was a wonderful experience and I'm so glad I stuck with it through the few, occasional rough spots.

What you are experiencing is that she needs to adjust her latch now that the shape of her mouth has changed. Angle her a bit differently and be sure to take her off breast if she does clamp down to show her that's not acceptable. All this should be done with a smile, gentleness and patience. Keep looking her in the eyes since it helps them focus on what they're doing (they become mindful that YOU are connected to the beloved breast!) and it seems to make the adjustments quicker (they learn to 'read' the signals in your eyes).

My son actually went through a period where he'd clamp suddenly so I started nursing him WITH my finger in his mouth (to prevent biting). This irritated him a lot and he started looking at me in frustration. I'd look right in his eyes and remove the finger and he'd begin to nurse and close his eyes and clamp! I'd take him off and restart with the finger back in. He realized things had changed and weren't going back! This trained him to keep his eyes on me ("If Mama ain't happy, nobody's happy!") and to stop clamping...THEN I removed my finger for good.

Just so you know, by the time they were three, they had tons of teeth and I never felt a thing...sometimes I'd have to look to see if they were even there and there would be those big eyes...watching me!

Best wishes,

M.

I dont actually have any advice, but the same question has crossed my mind. I am currently breast feeding my now 4 1/2 month old and fear the day that she gets teeth because she already bites me. I nursed my first daughter but stopped before she had any teeth. Good luck and I hope that someone will pass on some usefull advice!

Hi,
I nursed my son until 3 and obviously he had a full set of teeth by that time. I think that as soon as a few more teeth come in you won't feel them as much. Also if she bites remover her immediately and say "no" in a firm tone, then put her back on. If she bites a second time, remove her the same way and give her a teether and wait a bit before nursing again. She has to learn not to bite and it won't take long if you do that.
Enjoy nursing her, I always enjoyed nursing:)
H.

Hi E.,
My daughter did the same thing a few months ago. I discovered nursing hurt only two times (1) when she's doing a "snack and snooze", where she'd fall asleep and use me as her pacifier, or (2) at that age (7-8 months) when I was trying to use nursing to give me a break but she wasn't really interested. Hang in there, there was a two day period when I was really ready to give up because it hurt so badly. She has more teeth now (bottom 2 fully in, top 3 coming in), and it doesn't hurt at all. Make sure you're only nursing when she really wants to nurse, and try to have a pacifier nearby so if she does fall asleep, maybe you can sneak in the pacifier and give your boobies a break.

As long as she's not biting you, it's something that your breasts will adjust to;just make sure she's latched on properly. I nursed all three of my kids until they were more than 2 years old and had the majority of their teeth so it can be done. Hang in there! You're doing a wonderful thing for your daughter!

Don't worry - that phase is so quick..you can keep right on going, but let the baby know immediately if she "hurts" you by a little "ouch!" or something like that. I don't remember it taking long at all before she will know how to do it just fine.

Teeth are something you both will get used to! My daughter is 25 months old and still nurses before bed with a mouth full of teeth.

Before I had her I said "when my child can chew steak, they are done nursing"... I don't know where I came up with this but I didn't stick to it.

She did bite me once or twice and I remember being nervous... I read to plug their nose if they bite, that instantly makes them let go (they open their mouth for air).

We love that quiet time together and sometimes I feel the teeth more than others but as long as she's not biting, you will both get used to it and enjoy it again. It's a wonderful experience, you guys will be fine :)

Looks like you have already gotten abunch of great advice. I was going to say if it hurts it sounds like she might not be latched on correctly so mabey look into that. And id doesn't sound like bitting is a problem but in case it is I usually take them off right away and not let them nurse for a few min (it doesn't have to be long) I have also heard flicking their nose can get the message across (not to hard) Best of luck to you . YOU CAN DO IT!!!

In anticipation of such things we have taught our 8 month old the word, "Gentle." We show her what it means at different times in different ways. Ex: taking her flailing arms from hitting our faces/necks, etc. and caressing our cheeks with them saying, "Gentle, gentle, gentle." Or just barely biting down on her forearm and then repeating the word again. Or putting our finger in her mouth so that she will bite it and giving a "No, no," if she does bite or gently pushing our finger against her teeth and repeating the "Gentle" word. She really seems to understand. So far, with the two bottom teeth in and 4 coming in on top, she has only bit me about 2 two times, and those seemed to be in some sort of tired rage. It was also toward the beginning of getting the teeth. Sometimes when I can see she is a little ornery I will start repeating, "Gentle, gentle, gentle," before I even put her on me, just so I have that much less chance of being bitten. Hope this helps...

Just do it! I had a serious biter on my hands the second time around - he started getting teeth at 3mos and nursed until 3 years old (was still biting to the end) not on purpose though, he usually bit down as soon as he fell asleep. Sometimes I caught it, sometimes I didn't. Honestly, the worst pain I've ever felt. But... for whatever reason, I just lived with it. Most babies, especially if biting down awake/when they are aware - can be tamed. When she does it - give a firm no and turn her away from the breast. Then proceed to put her back on moments later/when you are ready. Usually this is all it takes. With my first, my daughter, I recall her biting down around this age too - when she was teething or just trying out her new teeth. The steps I recommended to you, worked for her.

Hope this helps!
M.

E.,

I breastfed both of my boys past one year. The only time I ever really felt their teeth was when they'd get a new one (and the front four were the worst). As a rule, breastfeeding shouldn't be painful or unpleasant (although when they are cutting teeth it can get a little dicey).

Check out www.kellymom.com It is the most awesome breastfeeding resourse.

If nursing suddenly becomes painful, I'd want to rule out 1. returning period, 2. pregnancy and 3. thrush (yeast infection). Kellymom likely has info on all of those.

Good luck,
T.

I agree with most of the advice. It's just a phase and they learn pretty quickly to stop. I must confess that I screamed the first time it happened (and so did he since I scared him), but it got better. My son had 7 teeth by 9 months and bit mostly when he was dozing, so I started watching for signs of his dozing or when his sucking began to slow and quickly inserted my finger to break the latch. He stopped pretty quickly and we are still successfully nursing with no more painful instances. Hang in there and good luck.

Great job breastfeeding, keep it up!!!!!!!!!! It shouldn't hurt at all. Unlatch her and take her off until she gets the right position. You want her to learn it correctly. We don't suck a straw... with teeth. If her teeth are just resting on top above your nipple that's ok, but don't be afraid to readjust her till it feels right. Sometimes their suction changes because their mouth hurts and it bothers them to suck.

Keep it up - you get used to the feeling, and I don't mean to just let her bite. My little ones only bit once or twice. I'd notice that my daughter would stop nursing, look up at me, and slowly bite down. I thought it was pretty amusing but I'd just say, "We don't bite" when I noticed her giving me that look. She'd smile and go back to nursing. (Around this same age.) I was able to nurse my children to 15 months comfortably.

Good luck.

My daughter is 10 months old with teeth and I still breast feed. I can only offer encouragement. I breastfed my son until he was almost 2. Hang in there if you love it that much.

To me, teeth is God's way of saying, "Time to eat regular food." I breast fed 13 months. Top teeth were fine, but as soon as the bottom teeth came and she chomped a few times, we stopped. Maybe set aside the rules and adapt to how her body is changing.

My daughter started biting during nursing around this age as well. I also wanted to nurse for a year, but was ready to give it up. I called my lacatation consultant and she told me not to give up. Instead, when my daughter bit I was to tell her firmly "no biting". I did this and the biting went away within a day or two (I don't remember...I only remember the biting lasting about a week total as it took me several days before calling my LC). So, hang in there. You're doing great!!!

go with michelles advise, and if your child wont let go hold her nose closed, she will release her grip better than pulling the nipple