need some advice!!

mnb311

So my LO has pretty much always hated his bottles, I attribute it to having severe acid reflux, I think it made him associate bottles with pain but anyways we have been working with a specialist for about 5 months and we have tried everything under the sun and nothing has helped nor have we found a real reason why he hates drinking (other than my suspicion). At this point the only way I can get him to drink a bottle is if he's super sleepy/nap time.  He is absolutely refusing his morning wake up bottle.  I fight him for 45 min just to get him to drink 2 oz.  I'm at my wits end!!  He does love solids however and he gets 3 meals a day currently but I am thinking of adding a 4th meal in the morning, replacing his wake up bottle that he never wants to drink because I really need him to gain weight. And then just do bottles at nap and bed time since I know he will drink them.  So my dilemma is, I'm worried that if I give him bottles only at sleepy times that they will become a crutch and he will never be able to fall asleep without one. I'm thinking 4 months down the road when we start to phase out bottles that it will be a horrible nightmare having to start from scratch with sleep training.  So do I do this temporary fix and screw myself down the road or keep doing what we're doing which is not working.  ahh help!!

sorry so long.

beany02

my DD started refusing bottles around 6 months. She loves to drink from a straw so whenever she drinks pumped BM we use a kiddie cup with a straw. it takes some practice but she is a pro now, i would give that a try!

unaveragejane

If it's an issue of getting him to ingest enough calories to maintain a healthy weight and continue growing, I would do whatever I had to, including giving bottles when he is sleepy. It may be painful to sleep train later, but then again, it might not.

I know it would take a long time to get several ounces in him, but could you possibly spoon feed him the morning ounces? Or even use a syringe? From what I have read, formula and BM have a lot more calories in them than solids, if you're trying to get him to gain weight.

Edit: Have you ever tried a Podee bottle? It doesn't look like a regular bottle, so if it is a visual association causing him to reject bottles, this might help. It also allows the baby to eat sitting straight up which is supposed to help with reflux.

JennyNH

I'd call your pediatrician and see if they have some advice.

mnb311

Thanks ladies.  On very desperate days I have tried syringes and spoon feeding the formula but it just makes it easier for him to push it away and get more all over us then in his tummy

Just bought a straw sippy cup so hopefully that will help!