Okay, I need some support here. I am so discouraged about breastfeeding! I thought it was supposed to get easier around 6 weeks - the past few days have been so difficult.
Alex is so fussy now when he nurses. He'll latch for a few seconds and then unlatch and shake his head from side to side with his mouth wide open. He repeats this the entire nursing session. it's so frustrating, because not only do I constantly have to re-latch him, but I have no idea when he's done eating.
He has also been so fussy in general lately, so it's not a breastfeeding thing, really, just that nursing is a casualty of the fussiness. He seems to be gassy pretty much all the time. He spends so much time red in the face, trying to squeeze something out. It makes me feel so bad.
I don't think it's my diet, everything I read says that people unnecessarily blame themselves and change their diet for no reason. The pediatrician says the same thing. I've also read that they just get fussy around 5-6 weeks and it's normal. But we end up having these hour long nursing sessions because he just can't eat and by the end we're both so discouraged.
Does any of this sound familiar? I expect a baby to be fussy. It kills me that it seems like his tummy hurts, though, and that his latch has pretty much fallen apart.
8 comments:
I disagree completely with your pediatrician and would say it's 100% your diet. I've never heard of a woman eliminating common baby digestion problems from their diet and have it NOT work, it's a huge pain in the ass and most women just don't want to do it. Cut out the dairy, cut out the wheat, those are the easiest and see what happens. If all else fails I say elimination diet and slowly add food back in.
I disagree with the above commenter. There are plenty of other signs that might indicate a food intolerance such as black or bloody stool etc. I wouldn't go cutting out tons of stuff immediately either. Babies get gas--that's what babies do. Is your letdown quite strong or do you have a lot of milk? That might be why he's popping off or is feeling gassy.
And yah, I wish they wouldn't tell people it takes 6 weeks to feel comfortable. It took me four months. It could take longer but that doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong. Breastfeeing is hard! But it DOES get easier. Hang in there.
Get yourself to a lactation consultant - ASAP. Or find your nearest La Leche League and call one of their leaders. Pediatricians are really the worst in my opinion when it comes to breastfeeding. I think it's best to have someone who knows a ton about breastfeeding (lactation consultant or LLL leader) watch Alex eat. My Alex was doing the open mouth shaking thing, but it was when she was less than a week old. A nurse told me it was because she was frustrated that she wasn't getting milk. Does Alex do it when he's drinking from a bottle? It's so hard, I know, to know what to do right now.
Regarding the gas thing, babies have gas - that's just the deal. But yes, I think your diet affect it. Yes, babies get fussy around 5-6 weeks and it's normal - they're starting to wake up and see the world, and maybe things piss him off!
But make sure that he's getting enough milk during those nursing sessions. I remember that shaking thing very well, and it was not good... Talk to a consultant, and have them do a weighed feeding. It might help you ease your concerns as well. Hang in there!!!
I agree completely with you and your pediatrician. When a baby gets less fussy a few weeks later it's not because the mother's diet has changed, but because the baby is a few weeks older. But besides agreeing with you, I don't have any useful tips. This too shall pass, but in the meantime it's miserable.
I agree with Jesica about the dairy. It was like my son changed within 48 hours of me eliminating anything dairy. Only other thing I can think of is there's not enough milk and he's getting frustrated. How much do you pump at one sitting?
My baby boy does that with his mouth sometimes when he's very hungry and desperate to get the boob. He's only 9days old though. Try to hold his head firmly so he stays latched and doesn't let go.Also the problem is that i have a lot of milk and he chokes a lot. I need to express milk a lot so he can drink calmly. The gases comes from that too perhaps. I put him down sideways and massage his back and he calms down usually. I don't eat dairy or anything that could produce him gases. So yes, I changed my diet for his sake. But he is worth it.
Do you think the bcp's reduced your milk supply? I've known a few people this has happened too. I see some people have mentioned dairy. My son had huge issues with me consuming dairy, which I denied for a long time because it didn't seem related to how much dairy I consumed that day. I didn't realize that dairy builds up in your system over time and takes from 5 to 30 days to completely leave the system. That being said, it doesn't mean that's the issue with your son. Baby's only have so many ways to express themselves so it's reasonable that babies with different problems might react to them in the same way. Breastfeeding is really hard, but you're doing a great job!
My son has (what I think is a crazy amount) of gas and pain from time to time. He is 9 weeks and it is better. We use little tummy gas drops and it seems to help. As for diet, I do believe there is some truth there, I decreased my amounts of dairy and some veggies in hopes that it would help.
I also have a child that will get frustrated from time to time when eating. We call him the lazy latcher. I have seen the LC a few times and completely recommend seeing one. For us, reposition when he is frustrated about latching (he sometimes likes to lay on his back and only turn his head to nurse). The other thing we do to help him during a gassy spell is give him very closely supervised tummy time.
I hope this helps a little and you both find it easier.
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