7 Month Old not wanting to nurse?

Natalie - posted on 07/01/2011

My daughter did the same thing at that age. she was just distracted or too busy. I always had to nurse her in the bedroom where it was quiet and NO one else could be in the room. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but ut ended up being our time out together. Hope this helps.

Monica - posted on 06/28/2011

Pumping saves time and you can save (freeze) the excess milk that you pump. I love it, I save so much time I have a newborn so I have to wake up every 2, 3, 4 hours but she eats burps and goes back to sleep I pump and do the same. Hope this helps, good luck!!!!

Didi - posted on 06/27/2011

My son did the very same thing at this age! He was super distracted because he could crawl and investigate our house :) he got over it in about a month but in the mean time I nursed like crazy at night and nap time to keep my supply up.

Carly - posted on 06/27/2011

I found that by this age, 5 mins was all it took for them to finish a boob! They become very efficient at BF, so as long as he is having 4 feeds a day with a good 3 hours between feeds and not 'snacking' then he had probably just gottn quicker at getting the same amount.

Kristin - posted on 06/27/2011

He is teething, so I think that might be the real problem. Hopefully it gets better once the tooth or teeth come in!!!! Thank you for all of the words of encouragement!!!!

MOmMy LoVe U - posted on 06/26/2011

I would say to pump in a quite place somewhere comfortable. Or u could pump in a bottle n just feed him from da bottle.

Virginia - posted on 06/26/2011

try nursing in a quiet place with no distractions. Babies that age are very prone to being distracted and may not nurse as well when there are interesting things happening.

Erin - posted on 06/26/2011

Your baby is on a nursing strike! Try looking at the foods and drinks you eat during the week, see if youve introduced anything new, or strong. Are you using any new type of soap or lotion?
Are you going regularily anywhere new, where the smells in the air might get into your system? (Like when I switched from one job to another, the smokers corner was right close to the building and I always smelled it and came home smelling like it. for example)

Mia - posted on 06/26/2011

When my daughter was that age she did the same as other posters children. She was distracted and teething. She started nursing during the night more when there was less distractions. Now a few months later she has 2 more teeth and is still distracted and getting up in the middle of the night. She generally nursed first thing in the morning, once maybe twice in the middle of the day and before bed. Yes, and almost every 3 hours during the night. Often she is too busy to nurse before bed, but too sleepy to stay up. I put her in bed, she is sleeping in minutes and wakes in an hour to nurse.

You just need to figure out what will work for you and your LO.

Heidi - posted on 06/25/2011

I go to the breastfeeding association meetings and they have said that a baby does not self wean until past 2. My bub has had 5 min feeds since about 6 months of age and is still in the 75% for weight and height, he is nearly 2 and only has one feed a day which is about 5 mins. If your boobs are soft at the end fair chance your bub is an expert feeder and has got it all out in that time. Enjoy!

Kerri - posted on 06/25/2011

Try to nurse before offering solid food. Babies do not self-wean at 7 mos without having an alternative (food, formula, cow's milk). It is possible for an efficient nurser to drain a breast in 5 minutes. I had one of those babies too! I stuck to breastfeeding first, then solids, did not offer her any other liquid other then a bit of water in a cup with her meals....NO bottles & NO soothers. She weaned at almost 2 years. My son (#7) went through this as well and I just followed his lead & he tended to nurse more often around then (teething) so he nursed less time wise but more often. He nursed well past toddler-hood! He was definitely NOT self weaning.

Jackie - posted on 06/25/2011

A doctor would say that. I think there is more going on. He's either more efficient at nursing OR he's distracted. I always had to nurse in a quiet room otherwise, my daughter just would not do it. We sat in a rocking chair in the same room every time or we found a quiet place in public, like our car. lol I doubt he's weaning himself because he's probably not consuming much solids and needs those milk fats and calories from mommy. I would say, that as long as he's satisfied, just keep offering as much as you can. Kids go through strange phases and this might just be one of them. Good luck.

Lise - posted on 06/24/2011

My daughter can empty me in 2 minutes flat. :) How are your lo's wet diapers?

Candace - posted on 06/24/2011

Do you feel empty when he is done? When my son was around that age, he could be done in 5-10 minutes because he was very efficient at emptying my breast. As long as his weight gain is appropriate and the is having dirty diapers, it might be ok. You get so used to sitting there for a half an hour when they are younger. Maybe he would prefer to eat more often is shorter periods because he is getting more active. I agree with the other moms, I don't think he would be self-weaning yet but every baby is different. Good luck!

Elizabeth - posted on 06/24/2011

One other possibility no one else has mentioned is teething. My daughter went on nursing strikes when she was teething with her front teeth. She wouldn't nurse at all, but she would take a bottle. Some kids won't nurse at all, others will nurse just enough to not be so hungry and then stop because it hurts. Orajel may or may not help, my daughter was super sensitive so even with orajel, she still fought nursing at times.



If you don't think it's teething, it's likely to either be just too distracting to stop and eat or self weaning. Watch your son for a bit and see what's causing him to stop nursing. Did something interesting just happen? Or did he have to stop something fun in order to nurse? Are you nursing on a schedule or on demand? If none of that seems to fit, then maybe he's just self weaning.

Melissa - posted on 06/24/2011

Well this question definitely caught my attention, but I have a different perspective than previous respondants. My daughter did the very same thing at 7 months and I continued to struggle with feeding her. At 9 months, the doctor said she was not gaining enough weight. I was persistant and with the help of my doctor, continued to breast feed until 11 1/2 months. In retrospect, it was torture for both of us. She was such a busy body and was so anxious to get on to other things. Once I introduced a bottle with a fast flow nipple, I could see that she just downed it in 5 minutes or less and she was off ready to play!

I believe my milk wouldn't express fast enough for her and she was too disinterested in waiting around to finish. Now that she is 2 years old, and I am pregnant again, I am rethinking my original goal to breast feed for a year. If my 2nd child is ready to wean, I will NOT hestitate to give it up. My sanity was at stake before and the solution was so simple! And by the way, my 2 year old is still as energetic and busy-bodied as at 7 months. Eating is so low on her priority list, it's ridiculous. But she is within her normal growth range so I just say that's the way she rolls!

Lori - posted on 06/23/2011

At 7 months old, I would say he is likely more interested in what is going on around him than staying still to nurse. You've gotten a lot of good advice, so I won't repeat it. All three of mine went through that phase about that age. My oldest weaned at 22 months, my 2nd at 24 months and at 23 months my third son shows no signs of being ready to wean. ;)

*Fluffy Bunnies - posted on 06/23/2011

Yes, I agree with Kathy and that link from kellymom is great. Don't stress. He's not self-weaning. If you introduce bottles of pumped milk or formula then he may begin to prefer the bottle (due to faster flow). If you don't want to wean then just keep offering the breast. If he's eating solids always offer the breast first and make sure that solids don't replace nursing. They're simply for fun until after a year. Keep an eye on his diapers and as long as he's having plenty of wets then you don't need to worry.

Caithlin - posted on 06/23/2011

Dont worry as long as he is gaining okay and he gets enough wet and dirty diapers. My daughter did the same thing, he will probably continue to change his eating pattern. My daughter now 21 months nurses for longer periods than she did around 7 months lol, she is just at a point where she wants to nurse longer and focuses on it more than she did when she she was 7 months instead of getting distracted. Ur milk supply will also continue to change with the way he feeds. So don't worry too much!

Elizabeth - posted on 06/23/2011

This sight might help. http://www.kellymom.com/bf/weaning/babys...

Kathy - posted on 06/22/2011

I think he might be too young to be self-weaning. As Sara says, he's probably very efficient and very interested in what's going on round him.
If you're really concerned, contact a lactation consultant rather than a doctor. Lactation Consultants know far more about lactation than doctors do.

Kristin - posted on 06/22/2011

I called the doctor just to make sure and they said he could be self-weaning right now :(

*Fluffy Bunnies - posted on 06/22/2011

How often does he nurse? Some babies become very efficient at getting the milk out. He could also be at a distractable age. You could try taking him into a dark, quiet room to nurse. Offer the breast frequently. If he's having 5-6+ wet diapers in a day then he's getting enough milk so you don't have to stress too much about it. He's probably just curious about the things going on around him.