Nursing a Teething Baby

Video Transcript

"One question I get asked all the time is how you deal with a nursing baby who is teething. What do you do if they bite you? Now, they have razor sharp little teeth. So you want to make sure that, if they bite you, they really only do it once, maybe twice, and then that's it, because they can hurt you. So you want to make sure that you nip this one right in the bud. It's likely that the first time they ever bite you, you're going to be quite startled, and you'll probably naturally go, "Ow!" really loudly and jump. And this will probably startle the baby, and they might latch off and look at you and start to cry. If they do that, you can just say, "Oh, no bite Mommy. Ow. No bite." And then latch them back on once they've calmed down, and continue the feeding. If they bite you again, then you take them off immediately, and you say, "No bite!" very loud and very stern. And this might seem harsh, but it only just takes a couple times and they usually get the message. Because you don't want to say, "Don't bite Mommy," because then they're not going to hear what you're saying. They're just going to hear the little sing-song of your voice, and they're not going to know that they've done anything wrong. So, get ready to take them-if they bite you, "No bite!" And if they start to cry, calm them down, and say, "It's ok, honey. It's ok. Just no biting Mommy. No bite." And then put them back on. If they continue to bite, you need to step it up a notch. So, if they bite you a second or third time, you're going to want to take them off and say, "No bite!" And lay them down, or sit them on the floor, and walk out of the room for just a moment. Not for very long. And then you're going to come back in. Baby will likely be upset and crying. You're going to pick baby up and say, "It's ok. It's ok. No bite Mommy. No bite." And you're going to latch the baby back on and finish the feed. Common times that babies bite are at the beginning of the feed, while they're waiting for a let-down; at the end of the feed, when the flow starts to slow down; and when they start to get sleepy, or fall asleep. What you're going to do at these times is kind of keep your finger at the ready to latch them off if you think that they're-they kind of open their mouths differently. Get ready to latch them off, so that they don't bite you, and nip that in the bud. So, this was some-a technique that I was taught by my lactation consultant when my son was younger and starting to bite, and it worked. So, I've used this with many, many women over the last several years, and it's really helped them too. So, I wish you the best of luck, and enjoy your nursing. Enjoy taking care of your toddler's emerging teeth. And this is Laine Podell. Thanks for watching."