3 mnth rejecting bottle desperate for some advice as to why ??????

[kelandjim]

Hello everyone, I NEED some advice , my 3 month old DD has suddenly decided she no longer wants to take the bottle , If i even attempt to put it near her i get massive tantrums. This has being going on since Friday and it has been a struggle all weekend ( have been bf to replace bottle while this has been going on ). I'm at my wits end as before she had no problem with the bottle and has been taking it since day 1 ( so partner could feed ).

PLEASE help as i have NO idea why DD has decided to reject it.

Thanks in advance.
Kelly
xxx

[tylersmommy]

I went through the same thing a couple of times with Mackenzie. I think the first time was around that age, and she resisted again about a month later (though not as strongly). I still don't know why it happened. It wasn't fun, but we did get through it. I only pumped and gave bottles for a couple of days until we sorted it out. Some things I did to get her to stop screaming and eat:
- Hold her facing away from me
- Sing and be silly
- Bounce her (this is what ended up working)
- Walk with her
- Make sure ebm is plenty warm, not just room temp
- Let her start on the boob and give her the bottle after a couple min (this did NOT make her happy)

We'd try all kinds of combinations of the above for a few min, and if she wasn't having it, we'd take a break and try again. She did end up going 6 hrs between feeds (during the day!) on the first day before giving in, but she did give in!

It's tough, but stick it out...she WILL get through it with some persistence and patience on your part!

[kelandjim]

Thanks for the response, She has just had a bath and is now taking the bottle after a brisk walk round the lounge. Do you have any ideas why she has gone from a brilliant two month old to a nightmare 3 month old in a matter of days?? Could it be due to the phasing out of breast feeding?

[jennyh]

could she need a bigger teat or be an early teether?just some thoughts...jenny

[taygensmom]

This is actually a pretty common age for bottle refusal. They are starting to be more aware, more awake, and also their "suck reflex" starts to diminish around 4 months (meaning that they con't suck on anything touching their lips anymore and feeding is therefore becoming more volitional and less reflexive). So your LO is prefectly normal. When my LO went through the refusals I just kept offering. If he refused I gave a break and offered again. He did hold out for a while, but eventually it became easier and then he fell back into a pattern.

[kelandjim]

Its really odd how quickly these things happen , DD is taking the bottle with a big struggle now but only choosing to take 2 ounces a go !! why would she do that? DD is definitely more alert and aware of everything , she has almost mastered how to roll over completely as well  as blowing raspberries at me when she has a mouth full of milk so she doesn't have to swallow it !!

[kelandjim]

I have been reading more posts and was wondering if maybe she could be teething ? the fussing over the bottle/ the crying, salivating/ sucking on fists Is it too early or am on the wrong track completely. Thinking about it now she has been pretty grumpy and crying alot this weekend.

Any advice would be so much appreciated.

[matthewsmama]

My ds got his first 2 teeth at almost 4 months, and some kids get them around that time as well.  Hopefully she will get over this soon and go bakc to your good eater.  It is hard, I found that with my son he would change in a mattr of hours and it would take a couple of weeks to get him back on a schedule of good eating and sleeping.  They are all soooo different. Have you tried diferent types of bottles?? MAybe she is getting too much or too little, and it is hurting her tummy? Good luck, CHristie

[kelandjim]

I am using the tommee tippee bottles flow 1 , tried her on the stronger flow 2 and she didn't like it coughed alot as it was to fast. I dint think the bottles are a problem to be honest, as when i do get her to take it she is fine but is only taking up to 2 ounces a go . Her tummy is hurting either she brings up wind almost immediately after eating ( when she does eat at the mo !! ) she is soo irritable at the moment crying when i lie her down , she is usually such a happy baby and has always taken to a bottle, just cant get my head around it.

[tylersmommy]

She could be teething. Even if her first tooth is months away, her teeth are still moving under her gums as they make their way to the surface. It's normal to see symptoms of teething for a few days, then they disappear with no tooth to show for it!

Glad she's at least started taking the bottle again!