Won't drink anything but breastmilk and water!!

[~ Vik ~]

Not sure if this belongs here or breastfeeding (though I'm sure some bottle feeding moms have experienced this also) so move me as needed!

D is just over 14mo and has breastmilk 3 times per day:  morning, after nap, and before bed.  My work schedule varies, so sometimes he bfs, sometimes he has ebm in a bottle, but doesn't seem to mind either way.

My problem is that I'm really, REALLY tired of pumping (especially at 530am before work) and would like to cut the midday breast/ebm feed, but he will not drink anything but breastmilk or water.  On the odd occasion he will drink some diluted grape juice, but even that is rare.  I'm concerned that if I simply cut out that midday milk feed he will miss out on all those nutrients.

He is allergic to dairy, which throws a wrench into things as I can't replace those nutrients by adding cheese or yogourt into his diet.  I have tried offering different brands of soy milk, different flavours (original, sweetened, vanilla, even chocolate ) in different ways (bottle, spouted sippy cup, straw sippy cup, drinking box) and he takes a sip and refuses to drink any more.  I don't know what else to do!

Anyone else dealt with this type of refusal?  Any tips or tricks to get him to drink other milk?

TIA

[~inbalance~]

Can you try mixing BM with the other milk you are offering and then slowly start reducing the BM until it's gone?  I'm sure you've thought of that already though, lol.

T never drank large amounts of regular milk to start, but he did start to take in more and more naturally as the breastfeeding got reduced.  It's almost like his body knew he needed it so he drank more as he felt necessary.  But it certainly didn't happen overnight.  I can say though that I noticed a large jump in milk intake when I started cutting feeds.

Good luck, I'm sure other moms will have some better ideas for you!! 

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Do you give the soy milk cold? if so, maybe he is used to room temp milk and that is turning him off? I know Spencer is very picky about the temp of her formula and we are going to try soy milk and I will be warming it up    That or gradually add a bit into the EBM and keep increasing it (if you can mix BM and soy milk...)

HTH 

[First Time Mom]

Can you offer him just water and then offer an extra bf in the evening when you're home? Back when my dd was 13 months I went back to work and I was worried about this as she had a really bad milk protein allergy (intestines would bleed) so I contacted Dr. Newman and he suggested the extra bf in the evening. I bf her before I left, let her have water throughout the day (I didn't want her having juice) then I bf her as soon as I came home before dinner and then again before bath and bed. We did this until she was 18 months. The soy and rice milk and such tend to be low in calories and some contain sugar so I wouldn't rush to sub them. Keep in mind there are lots of other foods (ie broccoli) for calcium so make sure he's getting those.

[~ Vik ~]

Thanks for the ideas ladies!

Martina - I've thought about mixing the milk with ebm, but I'm scared of wasting the ebm!  I have no stash at all, I literally pump for the next feed.  I know that's probably the best way to ease him into it, I'm just afraid that he'll refuse it and I'll have no ebm for him, kwim?

Heidi - I have tried room temp (refused) but not warming - will give it a try!

Marian - D gets hives on contact with dairy - so ikwym about the worry.  Unfortunately, my work schedule is variable (7am-4pm, 2pm-10pm and anything in between) so to keep him on any sort of routine I can't just do extra bfs.  Sometimes I don't see him from 10am one morning (the latest I can drop him off at daycare) until 430pm the following day!   I have heard about the soy/rice milks being very low fat, but our doctor has given me ideas to get more fats into him.  I will also seek out some other high calcium foods, thanks

[mmom]

About the rice milk being low fat, we add coconut milk to it. 

I was going to say what a PP said about warming the milk too.  When we switched to BM to formula, it had to be warmed.  Then when we first switched to rice milk/coconut milk, he wouldn't drink it unless it was warmed.  Now he will drink it cold, but he was slow to adjust.

[~inbalance~]

Coconut milk and coconut oil are both great ways to add fat. 

I think the transition will be rocky, but he will get there in small bits.  Even if for a little bit it seems like he's not getting enough 'milk' beverages, it's probably only temporary until he develops a taste for the new stuff and adjusts.