Freaking before feeding

[blue_eyed_babe]

Okay - so my 3 mth old is eating every 3 1/2 to 5 hours. when I go to feed him (he is usually showing signs of hunger, i.e. rooting, sucking on hands), I lie him down on the pillow and try to nurse in the cradle position and he completely FREAKS out. Crying as loud as he can?? Sometimes he cries so hard that once I get him to calm down he falls asleep so has a little nap, then we try again. Or, he will be lying there, stop crying for a sec. start rooting again, so I will try to get him to latch and he will freak again. It sometimes works if I let him lie on the pillow crying and hold my nipple in his mouth and he will stop and latch on after a few minutes... He is obviously hungry and once he gets going he is fine. But then he stops for burps, and does it all again before latching again, but again, once he gets going he will nurse for another 5-10 min or so. Any suggestions?

[woodchick]

It sounds like he might be too hungry... I know my girls were eating much more frequently than that at 3 mos. DD2 is almost 6mos now and rarely goes that long. Maybe try putting him to the breast a little before he seems hungry?

The other thought I had was that if you have an overactive let down he might be reacting to too much milk all at once. Expressing a little into a cup or cloth diaper might slow the flow down for him and make it easier to latch on.

I hope others respond, there's got to be a good solution for you!

[itsajenism]

Originally Posted by woodchick

It sounds like he might be too hungry... I know my girls were eating much more frequently than that at 3 mos. DD2 is almost 6mos now and rarely goes that long. Maybe try putting him to the breast a little before he seems hungry?

The other thought I had was that if you have an overactive let down he might be reacting to too much milk all at once. Expressing a little into a cup or cloth diaper might slow the flow down for him and make it easier to latch on.

These were my suggestions, too.

The only other thing I can think of at the moment is trying a different position. For example, if you are always trying the cradle hold, try changing to a football hold (or a different position you can think of). There were definitely some positions my DS favored over others and would sometimes cry if I tried one he wasn't all that fond of.

[averlee]

I agree with both previous posts, it sounds like he is way over hungry. Well, at 3 months, my daughter was still nursing more like every 1-3 hours. But some mellow babies don't complain untill they are very hungry. I'd suggest offering to nurse more frequently, like every couple hours- or any time baby indicates any interest or willingness to nurse.

[PatioGardener]

I agree with all above too. Offering earlier, and feeding in a more upright position may help

[mariekitt24]

Im no expert, but maybe hes just getting overexcited because he sees it coming and is soo hungry. I feed my 3 month old about every two hours, and he makes noises when I lay him down like If I dont move fast enough he's going to start crying. He gets very excited and makes whining noises because he's a baby and babies have very little patience. So, I agree with the PP's advice.. feeding more often, and changing positions. maybe not because he doesnt like that position, but just because he wont see whats coming so it will break the habit of his reaction, you know?

[blue_eyed_babe]

Thanks for the info. DS had been doing this feeding routine for a month or so now, and all of sudden he got freaky - maybe the 3 mth growth spurt?? Anyway, this morning I fed him first thing when he woke up, whereas normally we would do his bath first, and it went much better. The rest of today he has ate every 4 hours and is doing great - much happier!! I had been feeding him every 2-3 hours before, but he was getting really gassy and upset. He is a big boy, 16lbs, and I think I was feeding him too much before. now he is doing fine!!

[PatioGardener]

Glad to hear that you guys are doing better now

I worry that by nursing only 6 times a day (in 24 hours) you may be down-regulating your milk supply as baby is only 3 months old. Most breastfed babies will eat 8-12 times a day at that age.

You don't have to worry about feeding him too much - if he asks to be fed, and you are breastfeeding, then you can't feed him too much. Breastfed babies don't 'get fat' - no matter what your health care providers say! He'll self regulate. Don't worry - breastfeeding is helping him to develop normal feeding cues and will actually protect him from getting too fat. That chunky baby fat will melt right off him when he's a toddler

Sometimes babies like to feed and then just hang out and suck for a while. If Mama has lots of milk, this can make them fuss - because they want to suck and not the milk. If this is the case with you guys, you may want to search the forum for some "comfort nursing" threads that may give you some ideas.

[HappyMommy2]

I agree. My DD would do one extended 4-5 hr period like that per day. usually it was 2 hrs. during evening cluster feeding, every 45 min!!

nak

that is surprising you can do something else after waking up! my 23mo DD still wants milkies first thing upon waking from nap or night!

[Anastasiya]

Breastmilk is digested very quickly, and most babies his age eat more than that...and just curious, but why are you scheduling his feedings?

It also could be the case that he's going through a growth spurt and he is frustrated because he is hungry for more milk (because he's older and bigger) but your supply isn't increasing fast enough for him. If you want to increase your supply, let him nurse more and stay at the breast as long as he desires.

[alegna]

I agree- don't schedule. Answer any whimper with a boob They won't over-nurse.

-Angela

[karika]

My 9 mo was the same way when younger. We always nursed in the side lying position. When I tried to do any other position like cradle or football, she would not nurse. Perhaps it is related to strong letdown, as I do have that as well. I would try every position you can think of, starting with side lying since that is what worked for us.

with love,
carrie
2 daughters 6yo 9mo

[blue_eyed_babe]

Okay, so Sunday he was an angel again with his feedings, but yesterday and today he is back to freaking out again before he eats - no matter how often I feed him. He is fine and happy right until I try to get him to latch on. He is fine when he wakes up first thing in the morning...but then after that...ah..I have tried different positions, but not side-lying. I will try that and hopefully things will go better.

[CookAMH]

na

My 4mo DS did/does that if he's too tired. He'll gobble up a bottle but will refuse the breast. oo much work I guess. I'll usually just put him down for a nap and he takes a short one and happily eats after. He eats every 2 hrs during he day sothe nap only stretces it s little more.

3 1/2 - 5hrs is a long time between feedings imo...

so he does that if he's really hungry and let down is too slow. He was doing that a lot for his bedtime feeding so i'd pump to get milk flowing while DH got him ready for bed. That helped.

[LadyCatherine185]

My first thought was silent reflux, because my DS would scream at the sight of the boob everytime I'd feed him from about 1-4 months of age (until we got him some medication). He would also pop off and scream during feeds, at least 5-10 times.

My second thought, and it could be a combo of both of these, is that you are spacing feedings WAY too far, and have started to lose some of your milk supply. And your baby is so hungry and not getting enough milk.

Check out www.kellymom.com for great breastfeeding advice. Here is a page on spitting up and reflux.

I would work on increasing milk supply and look into the reflux issues as well.

good luck!