Baby not feeding well

A

aussiegal

Registered User
Hi All, my 3 week old has suddenly started fussing when i breastfeed him. He latches himself on and off a lot, cries and complains a bit and in general doesnt' have a good feed finishing up after less than 10 minutes. he's of course hungry again soon after. He has a bit of a blocked nose but i also suspect reflux as he seems to hate being put on his back after a feed, good or bad. Has anyone got any suggestions? My nipples can't take the constant feeding and constant latching on and off!
 
Two possibles from me:

Could be a growth spurt. Feed often. If you're feeling pain, you may want to check your latch. Can be tiring and emotionally stressful but shouldn't be painful.

Could be wind. Be sure to burp your baby mid-feed and afterwards.

Often, fussing is unexplainable. Once you eliminate all the possibles and you are still left wondering, just take comfort in knowing that it will pass! Babies go through fussy periods - some are fussy 24/7!

HTH
 
Aussiegal, I experienced the same thing with my baby a few days ago. She is 4 weeks old today. She would latch on and off, grunt in frustration and then cry. I basically fed her every 1-2 hours! I thought my milk supply was dwindling but when I feel a few letdowns during a feed and I get relatively the same amount when I pump. She also sounded like she had a blocked nose as her breathing was noisy. After a feed, she would burp and fart, so I thought it was wind. Then a few days later she was back to normal again. Babies go through a growth spurt at around 3 weeks so I am suspecting that. Today we had a one month check up and he said shei s a bit gassy and for us to remember to burp her after every feed.
 
Thanks Mintycat and Kashismum, I think you are both right, it has to be a growth spurt he is feeding so much. Like you Mintycat I thought my supply was dwindling but I'm still pumping a good amount. I pump once or twice a day to give my nipples a break. i know breastfeeding is not supposed to hurt but we don't always get a perfect latch so i end up with a bit of pain every now and then.

He definitely needs to be burped during a feed and after or he won't be comfortable. The hardest thing is when he falls asleep at the breast and then i burp him but he wakes up and stays awake for ages! This sucks when it's the middle of the night.

Oh well, I'll just hang in there. I remember with my first son that things get better after 6 weeks...
 
aussiegal said:
The hardest thing is when he falls asleep at the breast and then i burp him but he wakes up and stays awake for ages! This sucks when it's the middle of the night.

Oh well, I'll just hang in there. I remember with my first son that things get better after 6 weeks...
Click to expand...

If he falls asleep on the breast, no need to wake him to burp!!
 
I've found that I need to burp my 3 month old quite a few times during a feed. She somehow takes in a lot of air and gets pretty fussy. After all the burps are out, she feeds really well.

And definitely check the latch as well. My baby wasn't latching on properly (even though the nurses at the hospital told me she was) and I had sore, cracked nipples for 6 weeks!! It was awful.

Good luck!
 
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