Bottle Rejection
Okay all of you experienced mothers out there, I need some help. Minnow no longer wants the bottle on a regular basis. He use to have 4-5 bottle during the day and then was down to just one in the middle of the night. Well, for the past week and a half he pretty much flat out refuses the bottle during the day. He will drink bits of formula from a sippy cup--of course he can't/won't hold the cup himself. He will drink a bottle 5-8oz at night before bed and now is waking up 2x a night for a bottle. He takes about 4oz the first time he wakes--about 12:30am and then takes about 6-7oz again around 3:30am. He goes to bed at 8:30 and wakes for the day about 6:30am. He eats quite a bit during the day. He has 3 full on meal--fruit, grain, protein and veggie--well he usually only gets veggies at lunch and dinner. Plus he snacks throughout the day.
I am assuming that bottle rejection is quite normal? I don't know as I haven't ever been a parent before. So, any hints, tips, etc? I worry that he isn't getting all the calories and nutrition he needs since he isn't taking as much formula as he use to. Should I be worried?
4 comments:
I seem to remember Supergirl going through this same thing. Her growth slowed a little around that time, but then she really got the hang of the cup and caught right up. We need to meet for lunch or something soon...
I would keep working on formula (and water) from the cup, and try to up the protein at lunch and dinner. That's the part of the meal that stays with us for a while and gives a feeling of fullness. One other thing just came to mind. A yogurt at bedtime helped my son (now 4) sleep longer during the worst of his growth spurts. In his case, he was lactose intolerant, so we gave him soy yogurt. I don't know if they have stores in your area, but we liked the stuff from Trader Joe's.
You probably aren't going to like my advice, but you can't start feeding him more at night or it will become his pattern. I know it sucks. And he probably is hungry when he wants the bottle in the middle of the night, but he doesn't need it. And if you give it to him, he'll keep demanding it.
My son refused to give up his bottle, and when I finally took it away at 18 mos. he stopped drinking milk. Completely. My daughter (now 14 mos) gets plenty of dairy from her sippy (though I still do a 4am bottle feed and one before bed because she's only been with our family for a few months and I'm not ready for her to give it up!).
Hang in there. You can always call your pediatrician's nurse line and ask. I always forget to do that-- and I wish I did it more. . .
Karen in San Diego
http://bsinchina.blogspot
best advice I ever got from my pediatrician when my concern over my finnicky-eater's diet got all-consuming:
"Relax. The kid will not starve (him)self to death."
Don't sweat it. He'll get the calories he needs. In the meantime, he's going through an adjustment. It sounds like he eats quite well, so you shouldn't worry. And I agree with KHS' comment. DO NOT reinforce the night time feeding thing, or you will have a monster on your hands very soon! If you have to give him bottles at night, start watering them down and ween him off of them. Otherwise, you'll be making middle of the night feedings a regular habit.
Hang in there. He'll adjust at his own pace. And in the meantime, "He won't starve himself to death."
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