Will my child eventually eat? - Infant Care (up to 18 months old) Message Board

dina08 · 11-06-2008, 07:49 AM

I am so concerned about my daughters feeding issues. She has reflux and a small hole in her heart. She is on Prevacid for the reflux. She has never been a good eater. We were told that she does not latch onto the bottle properly. She is almost 10 months old now. I have started the sippy cup and she can take a few ounces at a time from it. She has had to drink her bottles asleep for a very long time now because she would thrash and scream to get away from it before. She has just started recently taking them a little more awake. She then came down with pink eye, cold, cough, and an ear infection all at once! She is over all of it except for the cold and she is still congested. However, she is so hard to feed solids to. We are seeing a speech therapist for this and after the first appointment, it was amazingly different and better. She just didn't like the spoon. I could now feed her. I was thrilled. She was happy. This didn't last long. She is back and has been several times to where she won't eat. She will throw the food, scream at the sight of her highchair, etc. What do I do? I have tried finger foods. She does this a little; however, definately not enough for good nutrition. She takes 3 bites of the baby food and gets mad and screams. I have tried everything I can think of and nothing. I've had my husband feed her because I am so stressed out and I'm afraid that stresses her out too. It goes a little better with him doing it. So, then I try to sing and dance and tickle her and nothing. She throws it and screams. She is drinking a lot of formula now - about 30-40 ounces a day. Our doctor would like her to lower her formula intake. However, I feed her solids before the bottle, she refuses them and then cries until she eats her bottle.

Seriously, I don't know what to do to make this better anymore. I am to the point of trying to buy a new highchair today; however, I know that it probably won't make a difference since she won't eat in her booster that has a great toy tray on it either.

I know that part of this is the cold; however, she can be feeling perfectly fine and not eat either. What to do?

doodlebugsmom · 11-06-2008, 07:16 PM

I know some people who've been dealing with feeding issues with their kids. What they all recommend is to keep it fun. Get some special toy that is for mealtime ONLY. Whenever she takes a bite of the food, make a BIG deal out of it, give her a hug and then give her the toy to play with for a minute. Then, set the toy aside and give her another bite. Try for about 5 bites per meal. Start out by just rewarding accepting food into her mouth, even if she spits it out. After she's accepting food into her mouth on a regular basis start rewarding for her actually chewing and swallowing it. Over time slowly increase the number of bites you strive for. It will take time and patience but its best to keep it upbeat and happy. You are very right that kids pick up on our emotions so its important to stay calm and worth with her in a happy setting. Good luck.

mjbrandon · 11-07-2008, 08:24 PM

I wanted to let you know, that I totally understand how you feel.

My DD was diagnosed with reflux and put on prevacid at about 3 months old. Up until we put her on prevacid, she would SCREAM every time we fed her. I would be trying to feed her and sobbing at the same time. It was terrible.

My doctor ended up prescribing her Prevacid, and it helped a little, so they increased the dosage, and then it got better. So, if your little girl is still in pain, then maybe it is time for her dosage to increase. A lot of times doctors do this as the child gets older anyway.

As far as suggestions, I don't have many. Maybe you can see if you can feed your daughter a few ounces of formula, then try her solids, then the rest of her formula.

The only other thing I can suggest is that if your daughter likes finger foods better than baby foods, maybe you should try and run with that. I would try some really soft things and just let her have at them. Maybe because being fed has always cause discomfort, she would rather try and feed herself.

I totally understand how you feel. Please know that you are doing a great job, and yes, your daughter will eventually eat!