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Help with eating and drinking-12 month old

Boo0512Boo0512 member
in Toddlers: 12 - 24 Months
Hello everyone, I'm new to this board. I mainly post on May 2013 but I thought I'd check this one out.

My DD just turned 1 and I'm having a hell of a time getting her to eat and drink from a sippy cup.

She is EBF and still nurses about 10x/day. I really thought she'd be weaned/weaning by now but she barely eats any solids and won't drink almost anything from her sippy cup.

I've tried everything I can think of. I've left her with my MIL for 5-7 hours and she won't touch the sippy cup. I've tried WCM warm and cold, Coconut/Almond milk blend warm and cold, toddler formula warm and cold and BM. She won't drink any of it. Against my better judgement I've even tried adding a tiny bit of sugar to the WCM and formula because I know BM is sweeter. Nothing.

I'm so frustrated and I don't know what else to do. We've talked to her pedi and at 9 months she wasn't concerned. She did say at 12 months we'd discuss sending her to an SLP. Has anyone had experience with that? Did it help your LO?

Thanks, I really appreciate any feedback/advice.


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Re: Help with eating and drinking-12 month old

  • LisaLisa1980LisaLisa1980 member
    Have you tried different cups?? Will she take water? DS won't drink cows milk either.

    As for BF, DS would bf every 2 hrs if I offered it to him. I just stopped offering it to him and now I do it once a day, if not 2 or 3.
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  • Jeanne93Jeanne93 member
    My son wasn't EBF but he did have trouble switching to sippy cup. A friend suggested the kind with the straw so we tried that and it worked pretty well after a couple days of practice. Good luck.
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  • CrequitoCrequito member
    DD is 14 months old and still uses a bottle for milk.  She does drink a lot of water during the day from a sippy or straw cup (she just started getting the hang of straw cups).  We need to wean her from the bottle but she was sick the last 2 weeks so I didn't want to add to her stress level.  I'll be happy if she's weaned from the bottle by her 15 month appointment.

    If you're still nursing then I would think your LO doesn't need the WCM.  I nursed for 2 months and due to supply issues had to start formula so changing to WCM in a bottle vs formula didn't seem to be a big deal to DD - her real attachment is to the bottle I think.  Maybe cut back on nursing sessions first and replace those sessions with a small sippy or straw cup of WCM or water?  Also, have the sippy or straw cup with water always available.  In the first few days of introducing it I offered it to DD a million times.  At first she would just carry it around but then she started drinking from it and now she asks for it (by reaching or saying ga for agua).

    You will get there - just have patience and be persistent.
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  • SLGILL1978SLGILL1978 member
    I agree! Maybe try a different sippy. I stopped nursing at 4 months but my daughter refused to drink milk or formula out of a sippy. She would only drink it out of the bottle. And both had to be warm. I am not sure if that makes a difference for you regarding the milk. After her 15 month appt a couple weeks ago we just weaned from the bottle cold turkey. Start with water or juice in the sippy to see if she'll take that. You don't necessarily need milk but make sure she is eating plenty of other diary rich products like cheese, yogurt, ice cream etc. SHe needs at 12-16 oz for brain development.
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  • loeroamloeroam member

    For the drinking, my LO never liked the regualr sippy cup.  Like others have mentioned, we went straight to the straw-cup at 11 months (when I started weaning) and he loved it!

    For feeding, does your LO have teeth?  Once my LO got his first tooth, he decided that he no longer liked pureed food and perferred his cereal kinda of thick and lumpy.  Maybe try some simple finger foods - yogurt melts, etc...things that don't require a full set of teeth.  It could be a consistancy thing.

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  • Boo0512Boo0512 member
    Thanks for the feedback. I probably should've been more clear that I want to wean. I was supposed to go back to work May 1st but wasn't able to because DD isn't eating or drinking. Luckily I work for my father and he has been very understanding but I need to go back asap. I get basically nothing when I pump and also my job requires lots of time in my car so pumping will be almost impossible. I assume that once I go back to work I'll dry up.

    We tried the straw cup a few months ago and it didn't work, I'll maybe have to try that again. She will take a tiny bit of water from the sippy cup (maybe an ounce or 2 a day) but she spits out WCM and toddler formula.

    @Nicb13 our pedi knew at 9 months and today we go in for her 1 year check up. I've tried so many different foods and she either refuses, eats a very small amount or chews on it and then spits it out.

    @loeroam she has 4 teeth and I did notice that we made slight headway with solids once all 4 were through.

    I'm at my wits end with this and on top of it, she still wakes up every 2-3 hours every single night. I'm sure that's partly because she is hungry.
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  • loeroamloeroam member
    When you re-try the straw cup, get one that doesn't require them to pinch the straw with their lips when they suck.  I accidentally bought one of those and when I tried drinking out of it and even I couldn't get anything!  We use the Munchkin brand staw cups and they are non-spill.  I get them at Target and they are pretty inexpensive.
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  • Boo0512Boo0512 member


    Well, our pedi basically told me that she thinks given my DD's very stubborn personality, that I should probably quit nursing cold turkey. I think she may be right but I'm going to think about it some more because that is definitely not what I wanted to do. Currently, DD is waking up about 4 times every night and refuses to go back down unless I nurse her. I've tried letting her cry for 20 mins and I've tried just cuddling/rocking. I've tried sending H in. Nope, she must be fed. I know she is genuinely hungry, she drinks a lot overnight. I'm sure this is partly because she isn't eating enough solids.

    Our doctor encouraged us to switch completely over to toddler formula until she is eating solids consistently. I'm guessing if I decide to go cold turkey, it's going to be pure hell in this house for about 3-4 days. I really wish there was a better way. My (and my doctor's) thoughts are that if I do put DD in daycare a few days a week, she will continue to not drink anything during the day and will be up all night nursing.

    I feel like in many ways this is a lose-lose situation. I'd love to be able to leave the house and know that DD will get enough to eat/drink. I'd also really like to get more than a 3 hour stretch at night, especially since I'm going to be driving constantly. On the flip side, I'm going to be incredibly guilt-ridden when DD is crying because she wants to nurse and I won't let her.

    @theresat858 I have not tried smoothies, I will definitely look into that. What do you usually put in yours? Just milk and fruit? Anything else?


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  • honeydew01honeydew01 member
    edited June 2014

    OP, I was in a very similar situation as yours and when my ped told me that because of my DD's stubborn nature I should stop breastfeeding cold turkey, I took her to a different doctor and that person also said the same thing basically. I then saw a lactation nurse and she basically said that nursing isn't working and I should stop. (I posted about it back when this was happening because I was so worried and stressed out like you)

    My DD absolutely refused any bottles and such as a baby and then wasn't (and still isn't) good at eating solids. Thankfully she doesn't nurse in the MOTN anymore but she stopped that on her own at 9 months. Anyway, they told me to not give her the boob and wait until she takes a bottle/sippy cup/straw cup. Well given her stubborn nature she went for hours and hours and just didn't given in. I remember I had to run to the hospital one day unexpectedly because my dad had gotten in an accident and I was gone for 12 hours and she did not eat/drink and my husband, nor anyone else could comfort her (she was 6 months at the time). It was heartbreaking.

    Anyway, I just couldn't stop cold turkey. We continued nursing, I tried to space it out so that she'd have an appetite for meals...she slowly started drinking cow milk from the straw cup (she took water fine from the straw cup since 5 months..) and now she drinks fine if she wants to. There are days she barely drinks and days she is thirstier..She is definitely not one of those kids that chug down a 6 oz cup of milk in a setting though and I don't know if she'll ever be like that..but for now as long as she is not dehydrated I am good with whatever amount of milk she takes in..I offer it 3 times a day with meals.

    My husband and I talked and decided that I defer going back to work and stay at home with her for a while given the situation. Your situation might be a little different if you have to go back to work. Children are resilient and they will adapt, it's probably harder on us moms because we don't want to see them in distress when it's easy to just give them the boob.

    Let me know if you have any specific questions...we have gone through a lot with DD in regards to her eating/drinking.


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  • Boo0512Boo0512 member
    Thank you all so much for the feedback and support! I am going to try another kind of sippy cup and also a vanilla flavored toddler formula (it's worth a shot at least). If we don't make any headway in the next 1-2 weeks I think we'll be going cold turkey unfortunately.

    And I'm definitely going to try the smoothie idea!
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  • ashiscuteashiscute member
    theresat858 said:
    I would NOT quit nursing cold turkey.  I mean, even if you do decide to cut your baby off from the boob cold turkey, DO NOT go cold turkey on your breasts --- you will have serious issues with engorgement and likely clogged ducts and mastitis if you go from 10 nursing sessions/day to zero in a time frame of 3-4 days.

    It is ideal for MOM to drop no more than 1 nursing/pumping session every 3-4 days. You can wean more gradually than that, too, but weaning more quickly than that can lead to both discomfort and problems.

    If you do want to cut your LO off cold-turkey, I suggest replacing nursing sessions with pumping sessions for at least a day or two before cutting them completely.  You can either offer this milk to LO in a cup or you could donate it if you don't want to throw it out (I would offer it to LO). 

    For smoothies, we usually do a banana, some yogurt, some milk, a bit of ice, and sometimes other fruits, depending on what we have on hand.
    All of this.  You cannot quit nursing cold turkey if you are still at 10 nursing sessions each day.  You need to do it gradually.  I would try the take and toss straw cups.  The straws are incredibly easy to drink out of whereas some take too much work.  Do not bother with actual sippies as they are not good for LOs.  And honestly I wouldn't push milk or toddler formula.  Just offer water.  Or smoothies.  

    Is she being offered 3 solid meals plus two snacks each day?  I would make sure that she is being offered the same food you are eating and seeing you eat it.  

    As far as middle of the night feedings she has learned to eat all night but she doesn't need to be.  If you do not want her to then you need to put your foot down.  Letting her cry for 20 mins here or there or sending daddy in occasionally will not help.  You have to be consistent.  I know you are stressed out but she will start eating/drinking if not offered the alternative.  Has she seen a food therapist to determine if there is an underlying issue?  
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  • Boo0512Boo0512 member
    @theresat858‌ I was planning to pump a few times a day because I have dealt with clogged ducts multiple times.

    @ashiscute‌ I offer her yogurt (with cereal), cheese, fruit, meat, crackers etc. about 3-4x/day. Depending on what we're eating I typically offer her our food as well.

    We discussed sending her to the SLP but we haven't yet.

    Also, I was told to offer water sparingly as they will lose out on too many calories by not drinking milk or formula. She'll drink a tiny bit of water out of a sippy cup but no more than an 1.5oz in a day.

    I'm definitely going to try the smoothies. Hopefully she likes them!
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  • ashiscuteashiscute member
    Boo0512 said:
    @theresat858‌ I was planning to pump a few times a day because I have dealt with clogged ducts multiple times. @ashiscute‌ I offer her yogurt (with cereal), cheese, fruit, meat, crackers etc. about 3-4x/day. Depending on what we're eating I typically offer her our food as well. We discussed sending her to the SLP but we haven't yet. Also, I was told to offer water sparingly as they will lose out on too many calories by not drinking milk or formula. She'll drink a tiny bit of water out of a sippy cup but no more than an 1.5oz in a day. I'm definitely going to try the smoothies. Hopefully she likes them!
    I'm a bit confused.  Both of my kids by 12 months were eating just like me.  Which means breakfast, lunch, dinner at the same time every day as well as 2-3 snacks.  And they were almost always eating what I was unless it's something they truly couldn't eat or didn't like.  Is she being offered a routine for all of her meals like that?  I'm not trying to be snarky I just wasn't sure.  

    I would check with a feeding specialist ASAP to determine if there is any issue.  My DD has oral sensory disorder and we have issues where she craves oral sensory to the point where she stores food in her mouth.  Your LO could have the opposite where she is put off by textures.  

    I'm honestly baffled by the water comment.  By 12 mos they should (in theory) be getting the majority of their calories from food.  At that point milk and formula are not necessary. Is her weight a serious issue?   
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  • Boo0512Boo0512 member
    @ashiscute yes we have a routine, I offer her meals 2-3 times a day and 2-3 snacks a day. I offer her a combination of "baby/toddler" foods and also whatever we're eating unless its too spicy. She's not very interested in any of it.

    My doc and most other information I have read states that at 12 months they should be drinking 16-24oz of WCM (or another milk alternative) or toddler formula.

    There's a few new things I plan to try over the next 1-2 weeks and if that doesn't work we'll most likely see the SLP.
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