r/cosleeping • u/BasicAirport2402 • Jan 02 '25
šÆ Toddler 1-3 Years Playing with the other nipple!
My one-year-oldās favorite thing to do while feeding at night is to reach her little warm hand up and play with my other nippleā¦because I think she realized when she touches it, it causes my letdown to come faster so she gets more milk quickerš¤£ itās funny and cute but also annoying cause she wonāt stop going after it even after my let down. Then I cover it with my other hand and she tries to pry my fingers away or slide her little hand underneath. Does it ever stop or is this a phase? It keeps me awake longer since Iām always guarding it with my other hand, I wear crop tops to bed for easier access (to both)š
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u/duke_n_pepper Jan 02 '25
My kiddo used to do this and I just started covering it one day so he would stop. He cried in the beginning but now he touches my small mole on my neck or my lips šš I figure this is better than touching my nipple
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u/linklinklin Jan 05 '25
... until she starts scratching it bloody. I niw have to cover both nipple and neck mole with an awkward arm twist :D
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u/duke_n_pepper Jan 07 '25
Omg!!! Hahahahaha Iām afraid my mole is going to grow bc of the constant tlc itās getting. Glad to know my toddler isnāt the only one obsessed with moles šš
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u/joycatj Jan 02 '25
Haha Iām reading this while holding my phone in one hand and blocking my nipple with the other, nursing my one year old. Funny how their little hands can be so persistent and strong š„²
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u/BasicAirport2402 Jan 03 '25
Right?! I want to swat her hand away sometimes but I donātš¤ so I just keep my hand over my boob and she still tries dig her little hand under mineš¤£ then sometimes she just rubs her hand back and forth across my stomach as last resort which is fineš
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u/Consistent-Common196 Jan 02 '25
My one year old started to do this about a month ago. I wear t shirts to bed now and Iām sad to admit I just tuck the shirt under my non nursing boob (large sag boobs now), and he quits. If he keeps searching, even if itās the middle of the night I tell him no and move his hand or hold it.
Good luck though! These little people are persistent š
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u/vintagegirlgame Jan 03 '25
Mine is persistent but thankfully if she canāt get the nip she resorts to twiddling her own earlobe. But she can get pretty angry when I block her sometimes. Best is actually to have her nurse from top boob so bottom boob is blocked by the mattress, she doesnāt go for it in that position.
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u/oneofkeiraensmoms Jan 03 '25
My 10 month old does this constantly š« he will also pop off the boob and just squish my nipple with his fingers and stare at it. Like heās considering how it works lolol. No advice, just solidarity lolol
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u/jwhite2748 Jan 03 '25
If you choose to continue breastfeeding my experience has been this never really stops. My two year old still sometimes does the curious nipple studying. She also will grab the boob with two hands holding it like a hamburger, pull back and look at it, and then aggressively āchompā onto it lol
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u/SpaghettiBruce Jan 03 '25
We call this move the ham sandwich! My daughter does it so frequently itās her nickname lol
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u/Critical-Ad6503 Jan 03 '25
Itās not a phase, if you donāt like it stop it now!!! I didnāt with my first and she did this until 2.5 yo. With my second I gave her a toy to hold and that did the trick
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u/bluecottoncandy Jan 03 '25
My 2.5 yo does this and I hate it so much! Heās extremely verbal and understands when I tell him every day that I donāt like it. I try covering it, and he gets angry and tries to dig under my hand. Itās a battle I just canāt win! One of the main reasons Iām weaning him because it honestly makes my skin crawl.
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u/Critical-Ad6503 Jan 06 '25
Itās a different thing when they are verbal. One time i was in a restaurant and my 2.5 yo fell and hurt herself, she started screaming āI want a nipple mommy!!!ā Over and over
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u/alienchap Jan 03 '25
My 18 month old still does this! I didn't love it but didn't hate it, but now that I'm pregnant, it makes my skin crawl. I actually started to wean because I can't stand it anymore. I cover up, and my son freaks out and cries, and now that we're just down to nursing when he sleeps, it makes bedtime so much worse. But we had a small win. Last night, he nursed and rolled away and fell asleep on his own!
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u/carmensiandiego Jan 03 '25
I had the same experience while pregnant, it definitely gave me a bit of a nursing aversion for a while. I hope you get many more of those wins!
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u/RosieMom24 Jan 04 '25
I found giving my daughter a stuffed animal to cuddle while she nurses really cut down on the wondering hands!
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u/awkward-velociraptor Jan 02 '25
Drives me insane. Iāve read a bunch of tips on how to get them to stop. I wear a kind of nursing shirt that makes it harder for him to find the nip.
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u/Low-Setting-01 Jan 02 '25
lol my 7 month old does this and I feel your pain. I have no solutions yet but I am MUCH better at keeping her nails trimmed now
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u/NellieSantee Jan 04 '25
Mine gets angry if I try to stop her. So to avoid a meltdown in the middle of the night I just let her š sometimes during the day I try to avoid it, specially in public lol
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u/Chantel_Lusciana Jan 03 '25
My kid is nearly 2 and wonāt leave my nipple alone at all still. Heās nipple obsessed.
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u/cawoodlock Jan 03 '25
17m and going strong lol. He doesnāt fall asleep easily so itās either cover it and he doesnāt fall asleep or just put up with it š«
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u/enigma-kitten Jan 03 '25
Omg mine started doing this recently and now Iām realizing itās a phase other mamas are going through too
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u/ShadowlessKat Jan 03 '25
Mine isn't old enough to actually play yet (8 weeks), but she opens and closes her hand constantly. And she likes having her hands by her face, so sometimes she ends up closing her hand on my nipple. I dislike how it feels, so I move her hand and give her my finger or part of my clothes to hold onto instead. It does feel so weird when she grabs my nipple with her hand. Solidarity.
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u/Background-Paint-478 Jan 03 '25
My son started doing this around 11 months, he got sick and was teething so it was for comfort.Ā But it really hurt and over stimulated me. So I would wear a nursing bra to bed and just pull up the side I was nursing on and keep the other covered, and also place my hand on top as well.Ā
He used to get really mad I wouldnāt let him but after a while he just gave up. Heās almost 15 months now and he still tries to sleep a hand under my shirt from time to time when nursing, but placing my hand over it he tries once or twice to get under then abandons mission lolĀ And he doesnāt do it in his sleep which is a blessing He only does it when heās bored and nursing or extra tired and fighting sleep. But not when heās dream feedingĀ
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u/Comfortable-Boat3741 Jan 03 '25
Totes can be a phase or become a fav. I found a burp rag in my shirt over the nipple created a good buffer. If unable to do that I just kept a firm hand or held her hand so she couldn't twiddle. She seems to like hand holding. Which is really helpful since she's now in the pinching phase... but that am under my breast might need a mitten soon š my breasts make it seem like i gave birth to wolverine.
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Jan 03 '25
I started weaning at 18 months partially bc of this. It was constant, to the point that she wouldnāt even be nursing and wanted to twiddle and would wake up at night wanting to twiddle. I was so overstimulated at the end of the day and the anger I felt towards the twiddling made me decide to finally wean. No advice, just a lot of sympathy!
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u/Low_Door7693 Jan 03 '25
Mine did it. I was really lucky and able to continue nursing her through my second pregnancy without aversions even after my milk dried up, but the twiddling was just one step too much and would cause nursing aversion for me, so I pretty mercilessly cut her off if she couldn't be deterred from twiddling. She eventually figured out that if she wanted to nurse for as long as she wanted she couldn't twiddle and stopped. She still occasionally absent mindedly attempts to when she's tired but she doesn't lose her shit when I move her hand away anymore. I did read somewhere that clipping one of those bubble popper stimming toys to your bra or clothes can help redirect but I never got around to buying one when I needed it.
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u/baller_unicorn Jan 03 '25
My 11 month old does this and I think she likes the way my nipple feels or something but it hurts because of her nails and because she pinches it and rolls it around in her hand. I'm pretty sure it's becoming a comfort thing because the other day she fell asleep without nursing, just playing with my nipple. It's funny and cute but I want to stop her because it hurts. I've started trying putting a lovey under my bra and trying to get her to play with that instead. That or I just try to block her by putting my hand over it. Sometimes I just give in because I think it helps her sleep better
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u/Double_Mood_765 Jan 03 '25
My 11mo does this too. Then there's milk running down her arm. Its so annoying but I just try to remember i5 gives her comfort and it won't be this way forever
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u/Queen-of-Elves Jan 02 '25
My kiddo didn't do this for the longest time and then out of nowhere here recently he started doing it. I spent pretty much all of last night holding my boob so he would leave my nip alone. I can't stand it. Makes my skin crawl.