Help - BLS & Gagging

[thepixie]

Hello
I have been doing a combo of BLS and mushed up food for my DD who is just under six months. I have started to freak out about her gagging/ choking on food and it seems to happen pretty regularly, especially with bread which she loves. Although she gagged on some mushed up avocado the other day too so Can anyone help or suggest something because anxiety about the gagging is putting me off to the point of nearly making me want to give up on BLS.

[Arimeh]

Hey pixie chick - i think the gagging is normal - its something totally different than liquid going down the back of their throat. Miss M gags - so at the moment, its more about tasting stuff, gumming it to death - not actually eating. I'm just sorta going with the flow ......

[The[cookie]Doctor]

Gagging is normal.
You need to realise that babies don't know how to eat yet.
When we eat, we chew, chew, chew and we know how to push it to the back of our throats.
Babies don't - it takes time before they will learn to. My DS had been on solids for almost two months before he started swallowing food and not gagging.

And bread just sogs up in their mouth in balls, so most babies will gag on bread until they chew properly

[thepixie]

cookiemonster I realise that she is learning a new skill, it's more that I find it distressing and I start to panic that she is choking. Then I am patting her on the back and trying to get her to spit out whatever she is gagging/ choking on and I'm worried the whole experience is becoming less than enjoyable for both of us. I'm certainly finding it more nerve racking than I thought I would.

[Arimeh]

Pixie chick - its not nice to see them gagging and their eyes watering and looking distressed.

If it makes you more comfy - just puree the foods until she gets the idea that when it goes down the back of the throat its OK to swallow (but don't let her husband know that when she's older )

*mwah*

[The[cookie]Doctor]

If you're finding it distressing, then BLS may not be for you; as a key element of BLS is trust. Trusting that your baby can choose what she wants to eat, trust that she can work it out for herself etc... If you're worried and anxious, this may not be enjoyable for you -so maybe go with the mashed foods instead.

BLS is centred around the ideas that even though we hold off solids until six months, we're still introducing purees and mash - something suitable for a three-four month old. Your baby may not be yet ready to handle going straight to BLS - but FWIW my DS gagged more often on mushy food than on the food he had control of, and I have heard many other BLS mums say the same!
It will take time for her to get the hang of it. If you are following the food is fun until i am one mantra, then gagging is a 'good' thing - it is her learning how to control her food. DS would gag, spit it out and try something new. Taste and texture, not eating. If you do go down the route of a more pureed consistency - try mashed instead of pureed, as it is still giving her some texture to work with.

Sorry for ramble, very late and tired/!

[Arimeh]

AJ - thats what has been happening here - she's not consuming any food (we've been doing it since Sunday) but she just sucks it and gums it a bit, if she does get any in her mouth, she gags, spits it out and then goes back to sucking on something.

She loves the rockmelon I gave her today - not so much the pear.. LOL.. so far she has been fine with bread, and has only choked on carrot..

[The[cookie]Doctor]

Carrots I didn't give until he could chew... i can never cook them right, either too soggy or too hard so i was paranoid.

I started off with pear and umm toast mostly. Lots of avocado on toast. Creamed corn too. He would mostly lick the avocado off, gum the bread and spit it out, but he really enjoyed it. Banana and Kiwi Fruit is good because it is solid but they can mush it and gum it enough to make it a consistency for them to swallow. However I think nanas can make them a bit constipated. We did BLS with porridge too, which was hilarious (series of photos on FB), ummm also he always loved pasta. He now has the dexterity to eat a cob of corn on his own too, which is very cute.

I think the most enjoyable part of BLS, is that he enjoys it so much more when he is in control, and he eats far better then too. After maybe two months or so he would just eat off my plate... cheese, crackers, watermelon, vegemite sandwiches. It's hard to adjust to the thought of they're not "eating" but patience pays off. DS is so much better eater than my sisters, and they were pureed fed from 4 months... maybe coincidence, but who knows.

[jackrose]

Its so hard to battle your primal fear isn' t it!!!

As the other wise women have suggested above, it is entirely normal and is not a concern to your DD. I would suggest repeating that to yourself as a mantra to help you get through the moment!

Keep in mind that she can most possibly sense your ugency and panic when she does gag so it may influence the way she reacts to it, so trrryyy (I know its hard) to remain as calm as you can.

What I did that really helped me was to go and read up on what to do with a choking infant and I practiced (crazy maybe!) on a doll so that I really felt I would know what to do if my DD got into a real choke. I wanted to know I had 'procedural knowledge' of what to do so would be automatic. Once I was armed with that knowledge, I felt so much calmer when I was feeding her. Maybe that will help you too, try doing a google image search for some good pics of what to do in a choking infant scenario.

Lastly, remember

• babies do grow out of this gagging phase
• DD is learning how to eat in a safe environment
• babies can gag on soft mushy food, not just finger foods
  And most importantly:
• if it makes you feel really really uncomfortable, you are entirely justified in backing off BLS for the moment and possibly trying again later.

You have to feel good about what you are doing and at 6 months you have plenty of time to get into the finger foods

ETA:
Oh and Arimeh, glad to hear things are going so well at your house! Excellent!

[thepixie]

Thanks for your comments guys.... I have done a childsafe first aid course so I kind of know what to do for choking. I just worry that every meal is going to end up with me grabbing her out of the chair and smacking her on the back!
I think I'm going to go with the bit-of-both approach I have been using so far, bit of BLS and some fork-mashed stuff. fortunately she is a bit of a pro with a spoon and can grab it and feed herself so I don't feel like I'm shoveling. I guess it's just a matter of being a little anxious until she has it worked out.

[Jahzara]

Hi,

My 19 month old still gags on his food. Hates anything with lumps - still on mushed food. Little bugger is just fussy i think.

Good luck !

[The[cookie]Doctor]

WTG Beth! My DS is umm, useless with a spoon LOL!! If she is still feeding herself, it is still BLS anyway
Good luck!!

[Frangipani]

I can totally understand your aniexty...I was like that too. So I ended up just sticking to the puree'd/mashed foods at the beginning, and the only finger foods DS got was teething rusks (as he never really got to the point to need to swallow it, but at least he was learning the chewing action). Oh and I also was given one of those chewy sacks (not sure how to explain it, but you can get them in the baby isle at the supermarkets, its kinda a netting with a little handle for them to hold).

Then about 1 month ago I started to give him steamed vegies, soft fruits, BBQ and only a couple of days of toast, where I would sit and watch. He would occassionally gag, which I went into a panic and usually ended the session after 3 gags (couldn't handle it much longer then that). But 2 weeks ago he has all of a sudden started to swallow it alot better, with less gagging and even though I panic a little - I know he is getting the idea (I now cheer him after a gag, as i find it better then showing the worried look on my face). I also now don't watch his face directly, i kind look behind him and listen because if I watch I worry more.

Good luck with it all, I'm sure it will all feel better in time.

[beckoes]

Pixie: we are trying the same sort of thing as you, a bit of both, its my instinct to panic and wip her out the chair and hold her up by her ankles (lol) but i fight it...i didnt want to scare her off, especially as she looks right in to my eyes when she is gagging, eyes watering, cheeks going pink, but after a few seconds she is fine and sucking on the piece she just gagged on! Meantime, my heart is going a thousand miles an hour and ive broken out into a cold sweet!! like the others said , if its not enjoyable for both..dont worry about not doing it!!!

She grabs the spoon and guides it to her mouth most the time and is eating lots of mushed foods, not pured just lumpy mush., i havent tried bread yet, just some steamed veggie sticks and avo and banana, which she couldnt get hold of, and was like a comedy sketch watching her trying to keep the banana in her hands, in the end i mushed it and she gobbled it up!lol I imagine within month or so she will be eating just finger food.

Good luck

[onthefly]

It is a worry the first few times they do it - I jumped to grab DS quite a few times when we first started on solids too. But I agree, if it's doing your head in then maybe ease off. They do get better though, and quickly. i would say too the more practice they have the quicker they'd get better at it, most probably.
But wow on her using a spoon pixie! I'm impressed. DS still can't do that...

[thepixie]

yeah banana and avocado are pretty funny when you just give them cut up pieces... they are a bit slippery! Tried her on banana and yogurt which she loves, and giving her smaller pieces of bread.

If she is still feeding herself, it is still BLS anyway

Thanks Cookiemonster, I didn't realise this! I am just going to keep taking it slow... and try not to panic when she gags!
Thanks to everyone for your comments mwah!

[Ezz]

I did purees for 1 month until he had the idea, then started on soft finger foods. I would steam vegies until they could be mushed between the roof of my mouth & tongue without chewing. He would gag sometimes & occassionaly I pulled the food out of his mouth with my finger - but generally he would just bring it back up & chew it better. It wasn't until he genuinely choked (when he was a few months older & much more competant with eating) that I realised how different choking is to gagging - his face changed colour & he was genuinely distressed, I pulled him out of the pram & slapped his back & he vomitted everything up - including the biscuit that had been lodged in his throat. You will know when your DD is *really* choking.

[thepixie]

Thanks ezz... she's got the hang of it now!