September 2015 Moms
LoveLee85
member
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UPDATE!!!!! Help, LO still can't eat!!!!!!
LoveLee85
member
Okay. Panicking is happening. Over 11 months old and can't handle anything that isn't apple sauce type thickness. He can't have stage 3 yet, he chokes and vomits instantly after no matter what! I have been trying since 8 months. I just don't know what to do?! Any STM have a older child with this issue. My mom thinks he has a 'serious problem' and everyone LOVES to bring up how 'he can't be ok that's not normal'. I try a few times a week, and have since 8 months. If I put anything no matter how small, a fingernails shavings worth of strawberry, he makes a sour face, chokes and vomits EVERY SINGLE TIME. Just a few days ago my DH gave him some sweet potato and instant choking for the longest 10 seconds of my life then vomit all over. HELP. This shit is so stressful. Also, he has pincher grasp perfect...he just doesn't ever put anything in his mouth! Plays with it and passes it from hand to hand only. At this rate he will be on formula several months after He's a year old because he has to get his nutrients some how?!
Re: UPDATE!!!!! Help, LO still can't eat!!!!!!
Keep offering but it might be a texture thing. Will LO eat puffs or cheerios? Does he put anything in his mouth when he is playing? What about touching? Have you noticed an aversion to touching things that are slimy or mushy? Have you tried foods that are a little harder and dryer? Toast cut into fingers (think french fries) are a good start because you can slowly change the texture by adding different spreads. For example you could start with regular toast and then add a tiny bit of butter once he gets used to that, then maybe some peanut butter etc. You can do the same thing with waffles. Some foods that the nutritionist told me to keep trying were ground beef, beans (try black beans-we would "dry" them off in a paper towel before giving them to him) and scrambled eggs. Do you ever try eating off of his tray? Even now my toddler if my toddler is struggling with eating a meal he does better if we share a plate rather than giving him his own.
BTW he never ate the chunkier purees. I think arrowroot cookies got him going and the Gerber crunchies. Babies are like us, they like what they like. There are foods I won't eat solely because of texture.
1. Offer long thin things to teeth on because this helps them desensitize their own gag reflex. Her suggestions were the banana tooth brush teether, a raw carrot stick that is too think to bit through, a round Nuk nubby toothbrush (she gets then on Amazon), a long baby spoon that has a rubbery handle. The idea is for them to chew using the backs and sides of their gums.
2. Brush teeth: start with fronts and then brush the gums along the side of the mouth and then the tongue. Sing a silly song or make funny faces or noises to help distract them.
3. Sensory bins: get items that have different textures for lo to touch like feathers, poms, pieces of different fabric, large beads, some squishy lizards or bugs. Obviously this is a supervised activity because these are choking hazards.
4. Finger paint on the high chair tray with different purees, mashed foods, pudding, small pieces of smushy fruits. Give a pile of soft fruits or veggies for them to play with.
5. offering small pieces of soft, dry, bland food like puffs, teething biscuits, start with things that melt in their mouth and work up to crackers, bits of bread, soft pasta ribgs, shredded mozerella cheese. My lo refuses the yogurt drops too. I think they are really tasty, but they do have a strong, tart, yoghurty taste. If lo does gag and vomit, it's very important not to make a big deal out of it (I know how hard that is since gagging and throwing up is so discouraging). Clean then up, offer a few sips of water to get the taste out of their mouth, and feed them something different or try a smaller piece.
I am not an expert in this area and genuinely don't know if this is still an age appropriate behavior or not. If YOU are worried, you can look into an eval at a feeding clinic. Most children's hospitals have them. It's usually a multidisciplinary clinic and OT may be involved (I like the suggestions from the poster above me) as well as speech to strengthen different muscles in the mouth. Good luck!
She's also giving us some tips for helping with gross motor skills like teaching then how to catch themselves when they fall and how to go up stairs, ect.
A feeding clinic is a medical clinic and goes through health insurance. Whether or not you need a referral from your pediatrician depends on your insurance plan. Here's an example:
https://www.kennedykrieger.org/patient-care/patient-care-programs/outpatient-programs/feeding-disorders-clinic
eta: quality of services provided through early intervention as well as the wait list and ability to get children qualified can vary GREATLY between geographic areas.