Part IV -- TEETH?!!! But my boobs ... you have got to be kidding me!!!!!!!!!
Jul 03 '00
Part IV
Six months into my nursing partnership with my son, everything was going so smoothly. I was amazed at how easy it had become. No more wet spots on my shirt. No more annoying nursing pads in my bra. No more painful let down of milk. No more LOOOOOOOONG feedings. My son was nursing several times a day still, but with each nursing he was learning to empty the breast quicker and more efficiently. Which translates to -- FASTER feedings, and not having to sit down every 20 minutes for 40 minute intervals!!
We both were very comfortable with our nursing schedule. He was a great baby and continued to be healthy, all of which I OF COURSE feel was due to breastfeeding. Then suddenly he started gnawing on his fingers, drooling, and waking up at night. What the heck is going on?? TEETH!!
Oh my. I was a little nervous at first about the thought of having teeth in my child's mouth while he suckled on my boob for dinner. How in the world am I supposed to feel comfortable now?
At six months old my son popped through 2 teeth in a matter of days. Within another week the teeth were almost completely through the gumline. And my nervousness at mealtime continued. I would sit and hold him as he nursed and kind of cringe when he would shift. I pictured in my mind 2 teeth marks forever embedded in my nipple. It was not a pretty sight... And the thought of blood gushing from my precious flesh had me slightly queasy...
Time went by again, and I soon began to realize that nursing with teeth is not that horrible. He was fairly careful not to cut me with his 2 new pearly whites. And I was especially careful not to shift incorrectly while he nursed.
Although my cautiousness ceased, there were 2 incidents where tooth enamel met skin. He was nursing and looking up at me with his beautiful blue eyes (a wonderful feature he inherited from his mommy). I was gazing into his eyes so serenely, feeling like I was never happier. Suddenly, EEEEEYYYOOOOOWWWWW!!! Just a light graze of his tooth touched me. His face had turned more serious and his lips were more puckered. He was using me as a teething ring!!
I quickly had him unlatch his mouth (which wasn't hard since he had pretty much handled this himself after I scared him to death with my screaming), and I took my index finger and gently popped his lip and told him not to hurt me. He looked up at me as his eyes welled with tears. I felt horrible, but I would rather him have a stinging lip, than me have no nipple for the rest of my life. I put him down and explained gently that I did not want to be hurt and he would need to want until the next feeding to finish eating.
Only twice has his seriously bitten me. And neither of those times was skin broken. I was fortunate enough to have a baby that understood in the beginning that biting was a no-no when it came to eating.
Since his 6 month of life, my son has grown in 4 more teeth... all on the top gum. He is still nursing and has not tried out his top portion of pearlys on me yet. Well, unless you count my shoulder, feet and arms. But that is a whole other epinion....
To read my first article on breastfeeding please go to:
http://www.epinions.com/kifm-review-286E-E10570D-38EC9BA7-prod4
DISCLAIMER: This article is the fourth in a series that I plan to write. I want to write several articles on breastfeeding and my own personal experiences. My opinions and experiences will hopefully help others who have breastfed and bottlefed to understand more about breastfeeding from a more personal perspective. IN NO WAY DO I DISAGREE with bottlefeeding, however I am fortunate enough to have succeeded with breastfeeding and want to tell about my experiences. Thank you.
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Epinions.com ID:
pgsahm
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Member: Amanda Sykora
Location: Virginia
Reviews written: 94
Trusted by: 77 members
About Me:
As a SAHM I'm up to date on all kinds of mommy things!
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