To All Parents- Please Help!

[kah]

When your kids were teething, did they ever refuse the bottle? This is the second feeding today where he ate food, but pushed the bottle away. He puts it in his mouth, then makes a horrible face and pushes it away, screaming bloody murder the whole time. He's got a new tooth peeking and I was wondering if that could be causing his behavior? Please help. He hasn't had any formula today and it's already 12:30.

[Jakester]

How old is your son?
Maybe he just doesn't want formula anymore? My wife had to stop nursing our daughter at 15 months because she had to go on some high octane antibiotics, and our daughter couldn't have missed it less.

[kah]

He's 6 months. I don't have a choice right now.

[Jakester]

Erm...yeah. How about no food and all formula next time around? When he gets hungry, he'll take the formula.

Maybe you should've stuck with breastfeeding...'cuz us boys are all about thie tits. :)

[kah]

I tried that this time. No dice. I had to stop bf him because he wasn't getting enough nutrition. I stopped and the boy gained 12 oz in 5 days! He's sleeping again. ~sigh~ He did this last night, too, but he eventually took the bottle.

[neglet]

Yeah, it sounds like the sucking motion is causing his gums/teeth to hurt. If you're feeding him baby cereal, mix it up with formula instead of water, he'll get more nutrients that way.

Six months old .... <memory whirs and clunks> ... is he sitting up? If he is, you might be able to try a sippy cup, maybe that involves less sucking and won't hurt his teeth. Or give him a cold teething ring right before the feeding, maybe it will numb his gums enough to let him suck.

And if he just doesn't want formula, it won't kill him to miss a bottle. Just as long as he stays hydrated, he should be okay. When's he's hungry, he'll go at it again. Good luck with that.

<so glad mine is now twelve years, not twelve months!>

[kah]

I don't know. He's missed two bottles now, and he doesn't know how to drink from a sippy cup. He is still taking the pacifier, though, so I don't think it is the sucking. My mom didn't have any ideas, either. He's usually a little glutton, so I haven't had to deal with this yet.

[kah]

Well, he's finally given in, but he's not very happy about it. I was worried because he hadn't had any formula since 8:30 last night. Thanks for the advice Jake and Neg.:)

[Jakester]

Negs is right on about mixing the formula into the cereal -- and the teething ring thing. Julia wasn't too bad with teething, so we didn't have any major issues. Still, kids do go through phases where they don't want to eat a lot. Don't panic about it. If it continues and you're still worried, call his pediatrician for more guidance.