Teething, tantrum or food behavior?

[toffer]

My 16 mth old LO is all of a sudden going thru a weird patch. He is a big eater normally and loves his veggies and is very even tempered. I have been thinking about stopping breastfeeding soon, still do 3 x a day. Now he is not eating, or only wanting fruit and milk in a cup and is also trying to nurse to sleep and asking for more nursing at BT. He is throwing hysterical fits if I say no more milk, and try to get him to eat food. At BT we nurse then storytime then sleep, now wants nurse, storytime, nurse and nurse more, then sleep. I don't know if it is teeth, a phase to ride out or toddler tantrums or a combo of all above!!! He is clinging to me instead of wanting to sit in booster seat, throwing spoon and cup on floor and if I say no to anything he freaks. Rigid body, gasping for air and wailing as if its the end of the world. I could use some sage advice or maybe just some moral support! It does seem a bit better if I give pain meds...but no teeth are near to popping out and he can't live on the stuff. Teething is painful for him though and I do have to give frequent meds when teeth are erupting.

[deb]

The 16-18-month stretch was miserable for us. That was when J's eyeteeth/canines came through. One. At. A. Time. Over all three months.

There really was a fair amount of pain meds involved or we would not have survived that patch.

Might also want to think about having doc check his ears. Pain isn't always teeth, especially as you say he doesn't appear to be cutting any ATM.

[Lemonthyme]

"Rigid body, gasping for air and wailing as if its the end of the world."  Ah, yes.  Our son started this at around 12 months and is still going strong at 18 months.  It's an age of him exerting his independence and I just figure his language skills (although they're good) aren't as good as he needs to make himself understood all of the time, or I just don't seem to be able to explain why he can't have something in a way he understands (or wants to understand.)

Today it was holding onto toys and random objects.  He insisted on carrying a plastic teapot home from nursery.  He insisted on holding my PJs at bedtime and sitting on our bed and screamed when I took him off it (as I couldn't leave him there to run the bath, he's still at the stage where he doesn't really understand that flinging himself off the bed hurts.)  It's the same every time, goes bolt straight, screaming.

I often find tantrums are worse when he's tired, perhaps that's part of it? 

Probably worth visiting the doc though just to rule everything else out.  It's so difficult with teeth too.  Our dentist said his last set of molars would be through "any day soon" and over a month later, still no sign.  I had pain with my wisdom teeth on and off years before they properly came through though so maybe you do get pain before they erupt?

[toffer]

I guess I was wrong about teething...2 molars have started poking through and the other plus his eye teeth are bulging his gums. Poor kiddo! He is doing better though with no more hysterical fits after that week but boy oh boy is he testings boundaries! He is eating better again also, though I am feeding puree again because some meals he won't chew at all. If I didn't have some puree ready to go he would go without food even though he is hungry. I make sure to offer the solids first and wait to see what happens before spoon feeding. What a bloomin mess at dinner though-he used his loaded spoon as a phone and was talking into it while puree ran through his hair and down his neck!