Help - Clarksville,TN

Get them all out of his sight. I boxed up all the bottles when my boys were around 13 months and put them in the garage. When they wanted something, I offered the sippy cup or a regular cup. Out of sight, out of mind.

When I was weaning my daughter off the bottle I used the soft spout sippy cups for a little while then every once in a while I would throw in the regular sippies then finally she was just on the regular sippies...

problem is you broke down! You need to stay strong. Have him help you round up ALL the bottles. Tell him that the bottle fairy needs to give them to the new babies at the hospital. ANd leave them by his bed. IN the morning the fairy has taken all the bottles "to the hospital" (trash or salvation army) and left him with a basket of big boy sippy cups and a new toy. Just make sure the bottles are OUT OF THE HOUSE!

My pediatrician told me that the age for giving up the bottle depends on the culture--in Europe, it's apparently more like preschool age. If you think about it, in some parts of the world, babies are breastfed for years, so it's not such a big leap to let a child have a bottle.

My son is 4, and he still likes his bottle about 3 times a day. He can and does drink from a regular cup too. If you're worried about tooth decay, put water in the bottle.

I really think that when people talk about controlling this situation, it seems a teensy bit cruel. How would any of us like it if someone decided it was time we gave up our coffee, tea, chocolate, favorite jeans, etc?

Get them away from him. Let him see you throw them away. When he fusses for one go to the cabinet and say - "gone, gone". Then if he keeps screaming tell him he can have a sippy cup with water (or whatever you prefer him to have). Most of this is just habit and not anything he needs. After a few days he will get over it. If all else fails, let him scream it out - he will eventually stop screaming and go to sleep. Be strong and stick to your guns.

Hi K. - I found that each child is different. I would not get too crazy about this. Your baby will stop one day and that will be the end of the bottle. I remember my mother telling me that my brother (who is now 51) was still asking for a bottle when he was just about to start school. Trying to discourage him, she would tell him to go fix it himself that he was entirely too old to have a bottle. He turned out fine. My son stopped pretty much all at once one day - I think he was around 15 to 24 months. I believe my brother holds the record! Take care and let him stay a baby for a while longer, they grow up so fast. Cindi

Hello

I know it's hard but the only thing you can do is be strong and hold out. They will only cry a day or two. My friend is going through it to. The husband keeps trying and wife keeps giving in. It only makes it harder for the child. We all go through it. I have a 2 and 12 year old. Lil secret is to introduce a cup early. I started when they were six months old. I would use regular cups or a cup with straws. Made the transition easier. Just fyi. Or for future reference :). Good luck you can do it.

Oh, K., you poor thing! I've had three children and have to say my husband had to physically hold me down for the first one when we were getting her off the bottle! I've tried the nice mommy approach and even with my last child, who vomited everytime he cried, had to be stern and do it the old fashioned way. I'm thankful I did, my sister did not and has been in the dentists with problems for all four of her daughters! You have to be strong, as hard as it is, and just throw them all away. Tell him the bottle is gone because he's a big boy now, and do it! Throw them out! Give them to a friend with a baby, so not only will you not be able to give in, but he will get the message. After a few nights of screaming fits, and yes it will be all night, he'll get the picture. Offer him a drink of water, with the sippy cup and if he says no, say ok, goodnight and walk out. It will be so difficult for you but after dealing with my 13 and 10 yr old daughters today....will seem so much easier to you in 10 years!! LOL! I wish you the very best and suggest a weekend or couple of days that you'll have off from work so you can be exhausted all day.....it's going to have to happen! Good luck and hope this helps! As an added note, my son had medical issues and problems gaining weight so I let him have the bottle until he was almost 26 months....he did not wean himself...I had to, again, do it the old fashioned way, even with the vomiting, and be strong. It will pay off I promise you.

Get rid of all your bottles- all of them. Next time he has a meltdown, just explain that big boys don't need bottles- bottles are for babies. Tell him that other babies need bottles, and since he is a big boy, it's time to give them to the babies that don't have any. He will kick a fuss, but without the bottles sitting around, you won't have any bottles around to give in to his demands. He will eventually tire out of the kicking and screaming. Be strong and know that this will pass.

With my little boy, I started giving him a sippy cup instead of a bottle a couple or few times a day & I just started replacing the bottle more & more until I just didn't give him the bottle at all anymore.

Keep in mind, using a bottle and/or pacifier while your little one's teeth are coming in can cause them to move into the wrong positions & cause things like overbite. Thumbsucking can cause the same problems.

I know that it may be hard, but you really can't give in if you are going to break the bottle. There are sippy cups with a soft spout that could help in the transition.

What worked on my kids was to dilute the bottle with water, so it became less desirable. Eventually it was just water in the bottle, and if they just had to suck on something, then at least it was just water, so they still had to eat if they were hungry. I would put the good stuff (milk or whatever) in a sippy cup, and let them choose.

My 22 month old son still uses his bottle to drink milk from. He uses a sippy cup for other liquids. Personally, I don't see what the big deal is. We are the only country who stresses over taking the bottle away at a year old. European and other countries let them have it til 2 to 3 years old. I will try and take my sons bottle away again at 2, but if he's not ready, I'll wait for a few months and try again. There will come a point when I'll tell him he's a big boy and I'll make him be done with it, but I don't feel like that time's come yet. Do what you feel is right for your little one, and don't worry about other people's opinions!

My daughter was 2 before I said enough was enough. She never took a pacifier so I let her keep her bottle a little longer. When she was 2 I decided ok pick a day and that is it. I took all the bottles and bagged them and tossed them in the trash. She was upset a little for a few days but got over it. It is a tolerance game. Can you tolerate the screaming so that they know you are not going to give them their way. Also I did provide a leak proof cup that she could have a drink of water in at night. Only water. Still to this day she wants a glass of water by her bed.

K., Don't give up. He will get there. If he is throwing such a fit, he is not ready completely to let it go. With my son, bed-time was the hardest and last bottle to go. I started a new bed-time routine with him. I explained that instead of his bottle we were going to make up stories to tell each other. I would lay with him in my bed to start, and I would begin to make up stories that I new would catch his interest fast. He would add bits and pieces. As he got sleepier, we would move to his room, he would be in the crib and I in the chair next to him. He quickly began to enjoy this much more than having the bottle and after about 3 nights did not ask fot it again. I soon was able to put him straight in his bed and I would simply let him pick a couple of his short story books for me to read from. He would always fall asleep before I finished the second book. I should add that he took the bottle much longer than my other two kids. Some just have different needs. Good luck, M.

Let your child see their bottle "accidentally" get ruined. It might fall in the toilet where you can make a big deal about the germs hurting us. It could get a nipple stuck in the garbage disposal. You could "accidentally" melt part of the bottle on the burner (don't actually ruin your burner, melt the bottle off to the side beforehand and let the little one only see the performance of a fake melting). Let it "fall out of your diaper bag" and run over it with the car. Accidentally throw it away at a restaurant etc. Have a supercool sippy cups waiting in the wings or make it a point to say that you'll have to have help picking out the super cool sippy cup. Get them involved in the change over and they might be more excited about the next stage.

I agree with Jancey, I did it the same way. You have to be stern and consistent. If you give in he will think that when he cries he gets his bottle/way. Throw them all out, matter of fact let him throw them out and use a lot of praise and tell him he is a big boy. Sippy cups in bed should only contain water not juice. I also did the same thing with both my girls pacifier, I only kept one and let it get all sticky. Once they where at that state I let my girls throw them away and never looked back. Hope this helps and good luck. :-)

you answered your own question. you gave in he knows that you will do this. DONT!! no matter how long he screams. do it on a weekend or a day when you can afford to loose a little sleep. the crying will stop. he wont go to college crying for his bottle i promise!

I recommend a very slow, gentle approach. The bottle represents a certain security. Let him give it up easily rather than you forcing the issue and turning it all into a control issue between the two of you.
You don't necessarily have to offer it, but if he wants the bottle, give it to him without fussing or debating. You don't necessarily have to fill it up to full, either, when you give it to him.
Have cups of milk, juice, and water available to him at every opportunity. But, when he asks for the bottle, give it to him. You can "forget" to pack it, if you're in the car, but have one ready for him when he asks for it at home.
Maintaining his trust and security are more important than weaning him from the bottle on a certain day and at a certain age.

Don't ever let him fuss for it. He'll wean himself if it's not turned into a power struggle.
Good luck!
PS- My 24 year-old niece is working on dual Masters' degrees and carries a piece of her baby blanket in her purse.

the worst thing you can do is give in to his demands. i know it will be hard, but it is the best way to do it. he knows that if he screams for it for awhile you will give in. i went through the same thing , it still applys in teenage years too. you have to stick with your decision. good luck!

Did you break down as in melt down or did you break down as in give in to him? You can't give into him. What you decide you have to stick with it.
I would take it away gradually. It may work out better that way. Also, I let mine have hers till she told me that she was through with it. There was no breaking, she just didn't want it before bed. I started letting her have chocolate milk in a sippy cup and never put anything else but reg milk in her bottle. She liked the chocolate so much that she preferred that and didn't want the bottle. I let her chose. She broke herself about 24 or 25 months. The drs had told me to take it away from her at a yr but she enjoyed it at bedtime and I enjoyed her being still, laying in my arms taking her bottle so I did what I wanted. I think the choice of chocolate or bottle was an easy choice for her plus it gave her a sense of control and choice in her life.
Good luck.

Put the nipples in lemon or lime juice (pure) and let the taste permeate them. Then, only put stuff in the bottles that taste absolutely horrible! EXAMPLE: warm water with lemon & lime juice in it; ketchup and mustard mixed together in a water & juice. I know how that sounds,but he will begin to associate the bottle with bad tasting things and will no longer want it. Trust me, it works!
M.Massie,
Elkton,KY

Get backbone! "I had to break down.....he screamed and kicked...." He does that because it works. Stop it from working anymore. It sounds harsh, but you need to do it, because he has already learned that he can get what he wants from you if he only causes enough ruckus. That's a lesson he needs to unlearn, FAST. The rest of the world doesn't work that way, and your world will be miserable if it keeps working for him. Good luck.

Babies have a great need to suck. It is a survival instinct. When this need is met during infancy, most will give up the habit when this need is filled. When they are forced to wean early, they have a greater chance of having oral gratification habits as an adult. This could take the form of smoking, or eating for comfort. But when artificial formulas (as opposed to breastmilk)are used, the baby can get used to the "easy calories" and become in a sense, "addicted" to the bottle of sweet stuff in it. Try gradually adding a little more water to the formula every week. Really slow, so he doesn't notice a change in taste from bottle to bottle, but consistantly weaken the formula (or cows milk, if that's what he's on by now.) Eventually he will begin to think he really doesn't need that bottle so badly after all, or if he continues to want a plain bottle of water, thats okay too. Caution, during this time of withdrawal, offer the same strength formula in a sippy cup, so that he doesn't sense a different taste between the bottle & the cup. But also during this time, he needs the nutrients he would be getting from the regular strength formula, so you need to sneak scoops of the formula into his other foods. It is easy to mix it into hamburgers, mashed potatoes, even ice cream or just about any baby food!