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Babies: 6 - 9 Months
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need some advice!!

mnb311mnb311 member
in Babies: 6 - 9 Months

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.

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Re: need some advice!!

  • beany02beany02 member
    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!
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  • unaveragejaneunaveragejane member

    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.

                 

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  • JennyNHJennyNH
    I'd call your pediatrician and see if they have some advice.
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  • mnb311mnb311 member

    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!

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