Kaitlyn who is currently 4 months was diagnosed with GER just after 3 months of age and has always taken the bottle as well the breast but since being diagnosed refuses a bottle. I feel like i'm now tied to her and can't go anywhere because she'll only nurse now.

I don't know if she's refusing the bottle because of the GER or if something else is going on. Any suggestions? I've tried allowing my husband to give her the bottle and she even protests even louder at the bottle.

I've tried the sippy cup but she refuses that once milk comes out of it.

I have a wedding to go to next month and i'd like to be able to stay for the whole thing.

Any suggestions??

Mary Jane

How often was she taking a bottle when she was taking them? What kind of bottle(s) have you tried w/her?
I'm not too sure as I didn't have any issues w/my son taking my milk from the bottles. I used playtex premium nursers. However, if she WAS taking teh bottle and now is not...I question that aswell. Was there a day or two, or a period of time where she didn't get a bottle? What does she do when y ou attempt the bottle? Does she drink any of it and eventually scream, or scream just from the nipple insertion into the mouth?
I'm asking a lot of questions because I'm just not sure where/how to pinpoint this just yet. I can definitely relate to the feeling of being tied down to them.

Thanks for the quick reply...
She was going back and forth between bottle and breast since day one without any problem. We're using Avent Bottles, #2 nipples but we increased it to #3 nipples and she still refuses the bottle.

The last time she took a bottle was about 3-4 days prior to her refusal to eat all together and hasn't taken one since even though we try.

When we give her a bottle she pushes it off to the side of her mouth or spits it out with her tongue she never used to do this. She won't scream but she will start crying the more you try to persist at giving her the bottle so i end up putting it away when she starts crying.

...btw..i accidently stumbled across this term tonight while at the baby whisperer boards...dysphagia...and now i'm concerned that maybe that's why shes' refusing a bottle? Any suggestions or am i just being a worry wart??

MJ

I'm sorry, I have not heard of tha term, dysphagia. If she was taking the bottles with no problem up until now, it does lead me to think that she's got some kind of aversion [due to pain, perhaps] going on with it. I'm really not certain.
Is she refusing the breast aswell or more than usual?

This happens to a lot of nursing babies regardless of the existence of reflux. It's just something that goes with the territory of nursing. You might try searching the www.kellymom.com website. It's a great nursing resource. Also, consider getting i touch with a lactation consultant. :)

Hi I would say that it is the wong type of bottle, we use the avent bottles as well and he didn't do very well on them either when I was breastfeeding. A lot of mums here have had a lot of success with the playtex nursers and also the Dr browns bottles.

Another thing I can suggest is trying to hold as upright as possible when feeding it may help with the reflux.

I had a very hard time feeding my baby as he would fuss all the time on both the bottle and the breast but I can tell you that he stopped feeding when I stopped breastfeeding so before stopping make sure that he is taking a bottle well.

Her refusal of the bottle did come when she was refusing the breast as well before she was diagnosed with reflux. She doesn't refuse the breast as much anymore just the bottle and based on how she refuses the bottle is the same thing as described with dysphagia and she does choke and gag while feeding but i always thought that was because she was an over zealous eater now i'm wondering if its that medical term meaning that she has difficult swallowing because she has some of the other symptoms including rejecting the bottle in the same way.

I've always fed Kaitlyn in an upright manner so i know that isn't the issue.

I did consult a lactation consultant who indicated to try a sippy cup or adult cup.

I really don't want to go buy different bottles if she still refuses it but i may try that..

MJ

I know it is a problem I have so may different bottles and stuff. We are actually back on the avent and he is doing well now, 21 months though, but he still will only have one bottle a day since 9 months.

Maybe the resfusal is a reflux thing, but does better with the breast becasue of the comfort?

I will go and have a look at the dysphagia.

I know that it's common for babies who are BF to refuse the bottle at some point. My son, who is now 6 months old, will no longer take the bottle. One thing came to mind when you mentioned you were using #2 and #3 nipples...it might be too fast of a flow for a baby with reflux. It's been recommended to me by several people to use the newborn nipples for BF babies, especially those who are having trouble with the bottle. Hope this helps!

Sue, mom to C born 6/06 on prevacid 15 mg

Thanks for that. I posted that quite awhile ago and for the longest time now i've given up on the bottle and allowed Kaitlyn to drink from a regular cup (with lots of help) and using a straw and she does both wonderfully. As for nipple sizes we had tried them all, from 1 right up to 3 and she didn't take to either one of them after 3 months of age, but thanks so much for your post. I think it might have been a combination of the reflux causing her to refuse the bottle and a combination of she just wanted to drink from my glass because she constantly took to my cup when i offered it to her even back then. She's now 11 months and enjoys using a straw and a regular cup and its been like that for quite some time.

MJ