GruntyMcGruntling. 5 week old grunting throughout the night - how to respond?

[IdentityCrisisMama]

My little 5 week old DC grunts a lot.  It's a difficult thing to decode because I'm not even 100% sure she's even trying to communicate with me and, if she is, I'm not sure what she's trying to say.  She sleeps pretty well for the first part of the night but after the first feeding she is grunty almost every half hour for the rest of the night.  She does have a cold, which I'm sure doesn't help things but this has been her style since before the cold.  

What are your thoughts on grunting?  She's not hungry because she will start grunting very shortly after the first feed - plus I offer the breast and she's not into it.  

Any help would be appreciated!! 

[Super~Single~Mama]

I say don't worry.  My DS (now 2yo) did that at that age, and I just thought it was cute.  Enjoy it while it lasts, b/c the newborn noises don't last long!

[carmen358]

It could be the cold, or maybe gas. Try bicycling her legs and see if she passes gas and quiets down.

Or it could be "dino-baby"! My DD grunts and made LOUD noises for several weeks...we nicknamed her dino-baby because she sounded like a dinosaur. I had never been around a newborn while they slept before and my DP and I were shocked at how loud she was!!

[IdentityCrisisMama]

So with your gunting babies did you feel like your baby was trying to communicate with you or did you just feel like they were making noise?  I'm not worried about her health or anything but I'd like to figure out if there's something she wants when she is so vocal.  

[A-mac]

My DD was extremely grunty. Even very experienced parents said that she was the noisiest baby they had ever seen. She seemed very uncomfortable. We tried gripe water and gas remedies which helped but not for long. At about 5 weeks I had had enough and went off dairy. Within days it was like I had a different baby and she kept improving, along with sleeping more soundly she also started to have longer awake periods. I think she was just exhausted.

This is just my personal experience, but you might consider your diet. I started with dairy because it's the most likely to be the problem.

[wehrli]

carmen, LOL re "dino-baby"!! we totally have been calling DS that for a few weeks now! that or, because his name is Silas, we'll call him Silasaurus. i think it's so cute!

[csekywithlove]

My DSS made what we called "goose" sounds from the time he was born until he was about a year and a half old. No idea why.... But I enjoyed having a goose baby around. I wouldn't worry about it too much. 

[spipgras]

My two week old wakes me with a weird grunt sound if i need to burp him.