Weaning or nursing strike?

ELauren88 · March 2014

I'm not sure what my 7-month-old is trying to tell me.

We EBF until about 5 months, when we started adding a few bottles here and there, and eventually a few formula bottles, too. (<-- I really hate to pump) LO has had no problems, even takes a pacifier at night. We've had a great BFing relationship, and I surprised myself by how much I love it.

Now at 7 months (on the 18th), she seems to be fussing more at the boob. She'll do a full feed (both sides, she dictates when she's done), but still seem fussy/hungry. She also has been getting SUPER excited when we make bottles or the sippy for her. Ex: Today she was so upset. Nothing would comfort her, even after letting her comfort nurse for about 20 minutes. I finally gave in and made her a sippy of formula, and she laid with it, drinking by herself, just giggling and smiling.

It's a little heartbreaking for me, because I don't feel like I'm ready for her to wean. I had no illusions of "extended" BFing, and have actually set really small goals from the get go (let's get to 1 week, ok, 1 month,. let's go 3 months! 6 months!, etc).

So, tell me, anyone with experience, does this sound like typical weaning? Or is this a nursing strike that we can push through?

TIA!

TL;DR

7 mo old is fussy at boob, but super happy with bottles/sippy cup. Could she be telling me it's time to wean, or are we dealing with a nursing strike?

ELauren88 · March 2014

casey78 said:

I'm new to this too (me LO is 8m), so Take my response with a grain of salt. Everything I've read says babies are highly unlikely to self-wean before a year. It sounds like perhaps your baby has developed a bottle preference. Maybe she doesn't want to work for the milk in the same way - or doesn't want to stop exploring her world long enough to get a good feeding. Have you tried feeding in quiet, still place? Or perhaps AF is involved and you taste different or have lower supply?

It's possible she just doesn't want to take the time to BF anymore...I try to not give bottles, ever. She never gets one at home, and if I'm with her when we're out and about, I NIP when/where ever. So, I don't know how she would have achieved a bottle preference. ??? I'm pretty confused by the whole thing.

Also, no AF or sickness here, yet. So there shouldn't be any change in my milk (knock on wood).

ELauren88 · March 2014

AmyG* said:
bottle preference or sipper cup preference can come up just from them wanting to be able to look around while they eat. But at this age, it's more likely to be teething related--some babies really want to nurse more with teething but others prefer a harder sipper cup or bottle nipple to kinda chew on while sucking to help with teething. also if the milk in the bottle/cup is a bit cooler temperature, they may find that soothing to the gums.

That makes a lot of sense! Thank you! She does tend to chew the nipples. So that could be it! Here's hoping she pops a tooth soon!

hollandmama · March 2014

I second what @casey78 said, I'm also FTM with an 8mo... we pushed through a nursing strike right at 7.5 months... I think you can push through but you definitely need to do something about it or your supply may drop.

What I did:

-Nurse in a quiet place until the strike is over

-Use a BF necklace so that LO will play while eating

-Rock her topless around the room until she gets interested

-Don't offer bottles if you are there

-If she gets fussy, stop for a bit, let her play with something and try again and again

I know it's very frustrating but it's worth it. I even pumped a few times during the strike to avoid losing my supply (I also effing hate pumping).

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