Hi ladies

I really wanted to do BLW but 2 Drs and my HV have said they strongly advise we do a mixture of Purees and BLW/finger foods because of some health problems I'm having. Won't go into full story again - some of you may have seen my previous posts - but basically they want Lyvi to be getting some calories from solids sooner rather than later, which can often take a while with BLW, especially as Lyvi is so small.

Anyway, I'm feeling really confused and don't know what to do. I'm hyper aware of eating problems as I used to suffer from Anorexia myself and I'm really worried that if we do some purees/sppon feeding that it'll be like 'force feeding' her and might lead to eating problems :\? :cry: I know that sounds really stupid and crazy but I am so determined that she has a healthy attitude to eating that I'm so scared of messing it up! That's one of the reasons why BLW really appealed to me - so she has control.

And the whole point of BLW is that they feed themselves so can it even work if we mix and match with purees?

I'm worried about being pushed into doing something that I later regret but don't know if I should follow their advice or not?

Any help much appreciated :cry:

P.S - feel like I'm running out of time in making a decision as she's 6 months on Monday.

Hi NN, how is Lyvie's hand eye co-ordination? Maybe you can do purees and hand her a loaded spoon so she can then feed herself and so still has the control. Even if she just gets a few spoons into her then at least she will be getting some more calories.
hope it goes well for you.
xx

it really doesnt take much more than 2ish weeks for food to go down with blw - however - i started the puree route with toby at 5 months and then changed to bl at 6 months so to cut purees totally would have been unfair- so i pre loaded the spoon and handed it to him - it took literally days for him to get used to it so maybe that is an option. The thing is as lopng as they are getting the correct quota of milk - so as long as livvi isnt going off feeds and gaining weight steadily then i cant see why spoon feeding would be pushed.

I think you need to do what you want as you know what is best for you beautiful little lady.

I wanted to do babyled as we were bought up listening to my mum vomiting after every meal which has lead to eatting issues with me my sister and my brother - i was determined that Toby was going to have a much healthier approach to food.

I hope this has helped but any questions just ask x x x

Summer is right if she's getting enough milk then any extra from food will be a bonus.

Like summer we started with purees then switched and we are now completely baby led, mainly as thats what he wants. It didn't take him long at all to feed himself plenty of food, so dont panic if you want to go down the baby led route why not try her on it. If she's not progressing after a couple of weeks you could always try purees.

You know Livi better than anyone, listen to your instincts if you want to blw do it. If your trying to give her purees and you dont want to she will probably pick up on your anxiety and not eat anyway.

You do what YOU want for your little girl, you have got this far and she's brill

xxxx

Hmmm, tricky one. I have gone down the traditional weaning route (purees and finger foods) and now at 9 months I'm glad I did as Sam is a good eater and likes everything. I have to be honest though - I have never had any issues with eating or body image, yet at times did find it quite stressful at the start when he didn't want to be fed, and yes, it did feel like I was force feeding him at times. However, I think this is because I'm an 'in control' person (control enthusiast!) and also a real foodie, so everytime he didn't want something I panicked that it meant he would become a fussy child, which is not something I want.


I definitely don't think spoon feeding purees leads to issues with food, BUT you HAVE to go into it with as relaxed an attitude as possible. This applies to BLW too. If Olyvia doesn't like something or refuses the spoon one week, don't stress - next week she probably will! (All advice I should have taken myself...)

Good luck whatever you decide. xxx

mrs my ds1 was spoon fed etc tnh id never heard of blw until i seen iy on this site any way he took to it great loves his food is a brilliant eater and willl even turn downchocolate in favour of a banana, he eats every thing under the sun from spinach to curry, fish to beef, spoon fedbabies will let you know whrn they've had enough they'll close their mouths lol good luck xx

Hi sweety im sorry you feel pressured into doing something you dont want to do but to be honest, I think that your doctors and hv are just trying to make sure your little one gets what they need esp since she was born so prem (I remember you from DID09)

I do a mixture of BLW and purees but I beleive that the only reason they say to introduce fingers foods later with puree fed babies is that puree fed babies are usually weaned earlier than BLWs. By the time DS was 5 and a half months he was putting everything in his mouth anyway so its never been an issue. This is what he has had today:

Breakfast: Baby Porridge and Bottle
Midmorning bottle
Lunch: Half a jar of Organix carrot and sweetpotato (spoonfed) half a jar of pears (spoonfed) and a few rice cakes (BLW)
Afternoon Snack: A few rice cakes
Afternoon Bottle
Dinner: Half a jar of Organix butternut squash and root veg (spoonfed) Three orange segments (BLW) and a little stars peach fromage frais (spoonfed) with a bottle of water for gulps.

And he will get a bedtime bottle too

The last thing Id like to say and I really do not mean to offend however, as you have mentioned that you have suffered eating disorders and are terrified your little girl will be the same, I would be more inclined to tell you to relax and go with what she wants and what the doctors say. She will tell you what she needs and as long as you offer her as many things as you can theres no need to fret. There will be mistakes, she will hate some things, she will spit stuff out and gag and when shes teething shell probably go right off her grub but please do not worry! Id be more inclinced to say the more you worry the more you will make an issue out of it and she will pick up on your anxiety and it may become an issue for her iyswim?

Best of luck for Monday! xxx

We've gone the traditional route too - purees and finger foods although I tend to use the finger food as a guide - if he's still happily munching on what's in his hand he tends to also open his mouth for whatever I'm giving him. But if he loses interest in what he's holding it's usually a good sign he's had enough so we stop. If he's really hungry he can't be bothered with finger food to start with - it's not fast enough for him but after a couple of mins he settles into it

Not sure if any of that even made sense sorry... just trying to say that the 2 can work and baby will let you know when they're done so you don't have to feel you're force feeding xx