My 9 month old hardly eats & sleeps little! Help!!!

[stressed out]

My 9 and a half month old hates eating, i've tried lots of different baby foods, different brands, i found 1 that he likes, a puree that's made for 4 month old's but how can i feed him this for breakfast, lunch and dinner?! Even when i do feed him this he eats very little, about 3 teaspoons!!! I've been told at my clinic that he seems healthy and he is a little underweight for his age but not low enough to worry about. He only ever wants breast milk, and won't drink formula! I wanted to stop breastfeeding at 6 months but it was impossible. I've noticed though, he only wants to breastfeed if he wants to sleep and if i can't do this, ie; im in public, then he pulls at his hair and screams! I cannot lave him with anyone for this reason. Also he hardly sleeps, in the day he'll have 2 half hour naps and only if you hold him this whole time! At night he won't go to sleep till 1 or 2 in the morning, and he still sleeps with me, otherwise he won't sleep!!! Iv'e recently been put on anti depressants because i just thought i as going to crack and wondered why i could'nt have a normal baby, as it seems every other baby i see when i'm out or even my friends' babies always seem well behaved, in the buggy doing their own thing while mine screams in the buggy and i find myself walking round the shops holding my son and pushing his empy buggy!!! What can i do to break this cycle?!

[banana]

Poor you and babe. I know of a wonderful site where you can pour your problems out and loads of other Mums will tell youo what they did that worked.Much better than the 'experts'. http://www.badmothersclub.co.uk/jsp/index.jsp?lnk=308 Tell them Una sent you .

[Philtaz]

Be mindful of the fact that now you are on anti-depressants they may be passed on in minute quantities to you child via the breast milk(my wife stopped breast feeding for the same reason after being prescribed such pills for PND). As for the food, try and move away from the baby foods and try things like proper home made mashed potato(in small quantities, obviously) with a bit of gravy, pureed/mashed raspberries and banana, that sort of thing. I know it's easy to say but it will pass and things will improve for you. Best of luck.

[mainegirl11]

The World Health Organization recommends weaning a child between 16-18 months. The average age for weaning in the world is three years old. Do not worry that you are still breast feeding a 9 month old. My only concerns are with the specificity of food and the tantrums that follow. Make sure your doctor keeps an eye on your child for any illnesses within the Pervasive Developmental Disorder spectrum, which includes illnesses such as Autism and Aspergers, as sensory issues often keep children from eating certain foods like you have described. I have worked with children with PDDs for six years and just keep an eye out for signs such as hand flapping and walking on his toes, rather than his whole foot. While 9 months is rather young to be making any diagnosis, early detection is very helpful. Good luck and be carefull with antidepressants, they can be as harmfull as helpfull sometimes.

[Yinzer]

Hey, a kindred soul!! My 9.5 month old son will eat only bananas and breast milk. For the past few weeks he was barely eating at all, but yesterday his appetite picked up. They say babies know how much sleep they need, but perhaps you kid's "need-sleep-o-meter" is broken and this contributes to his crankiness. Whatever happens don't let people convince you he's "spoiled", just love him and know that things change. Mine sleeps around midnight, wakes up every 1-2 hours, and only sleeps on the floor! All kids have their quirks, just talk to a doctor like mainegirl suggested to keep an eye out for anything serious and unless you get the bad news just be patient and know that this is just his developmental phase. Surely things will straighten out more with time. Check out the www.askdrsears.com and read about high-need babies. I love this website. Best wishes!

[Yinzer]

Sorry about that link, if their website is down then there is the book by him called The Baby Book by Martha and William Sears. Check it out.

[christie]

My son was exactly the same he would just not eat its a total nightmare i fed him desert for breakfast dinner and tea and his bottles it got so bad that i went to my doctor who surprisingly told me it was normal and he,d grow out of it but i was so stressed i kept on trying he could have had anything he wanted but he refused point blank would not even open his mouth my doctor then told me he,d grow out of it i was at my wits end it seemed nobody was taking me seriously but then finally he did grow out of it and no harm was done to his health,he,s eight now and still a fussy eater but he,s the right weight and build for his age and although he,s eight i still remember like it was yesterday how stress full it was trying to get him to eat.good luck i hope this storey was usefull.

[zgma]

Hi Stressed out, I'm sorry you're having such a tough time. I want to reassure you that he sounds fairly normal to me. We had periods with my now-2-year-old son where he would only eat very specific things, and it's really frustrating, but totally normal. At 9 months old, my son was eating some pureed food, but mostly breastmilk... my memory is that he was only eating a few spoonfuls here and there of pureed food, and didn't want anything more solid at all. If your son is not losing weight, just give him what he'll eat, keep trying to introduce other foods to him, but don't worry too much about it. About the tantrums while out... have you tried using a sling? This may be helpful for you in many ways. I found (and still find) that my son was much calmer in a sling than in other carriers or strollers... being next to his mom and the movement is very comforting. Also, it's really easy to breastfeed in a sling, while out, and be completely discreet about it. If you get the slings with a long tail (I'm thinking of Maya Wrap), you can drape it over your shoulder and no one can see anything.

[zgma]

About the sleeping - this also sounds within the bounds of normal to me... my son wasn't much of a napper at that age, and a lot of babies don't sleep through the night for the first few years. It sounds really frustrating though - my heart goes out to you.

[tiredmomma]

you are not alone. I too have a 9 month old that will not eat food. He eats all night long lying in the bed next to me. I am so tired. I have asked everyone I know and also total stangers for advice and they all say..If he is hungry enough he will eat, but I am a momma that will not let my babies cry...this is my 4th boy and not one of them slept thru the night until they were 2 yrs old. So I guess I tell myself it will get better...hang in there.

[Nikeeta]

I couldn't believe it that there is someone out there facing exactlly what i am at exactly the same time. I am in tears right now from exhaustion of not getting uninteruppted sleep, a hyper active baby, who whines a lot if left on his own, who barely eats , he has not been sleep for 15-20 min at a streach for past 4 nights. i am near a nervous breakdown.I haven't yet taken anti-depressants, but I will try anything to stay sane. BTW are you asian? it seems to me more asians babeies ( mine included) are more prone to act this way...shrug!

Hope there is light at the end of this tunnel for both of us.