Help...7 week old still feeding every hour!!!

[Mum22GTTC]

Hoping someone can tell me this won't last forever!

My 7 week old feeds every hour from around 10am until between 7pm-10pm. Unless we are out shopping/walking where he will go up to 2 hours if I'm lucky(I guess the fresh air makes him sleep a little better!) - but at home/indoors I just cannot put him down!

During the night he will feed between every 2 - 5 hours.

This feeding pattern has been going on since birth - so please don't tell me it's the 6 week growth spurt

As soon as I put him down during the day he screams for the boob! A lot of the time he will feed for a couple of mins then comfort sucks. I've tried a dummy, but he won't take it.

I'm dreading christmas day - being out of the house for the whole day, sitting with family with a baby that seems hungry all of the time (que the just give him a bottle comments! )!

I don't think I have any supply problems as he has gained over 3 pounds in 7 weeks and as I said some nights he will go up to 5 hours without a feed.

Has anyone else experienced a baby like this? He so different from my FF children!!!!! I just don't know what to do to make life easier for me & my family?

Any advice gratefully received

 

[gemabee]

are u sure its definately boob he wants?
if he's only comfort sucklin most of the time then he can't be hungry.
i went through this nd at 4 weeks - when i came to stay with my mum for the holidays... she told me to wind him a bit more... so i did... he got some wind up nd was more settled... nd i genuinly thought i'd winded him ample.
literally ever since i started doin this he's gone 4 hours durin the day nd upto 8 on a night!!
nd i was 100% in exactly the same position u are now.

also... finn wouldn't take a dummy AT ALL... but i persevered with different makes nd types nd now he takes one nd its made him a much more settled baby.

i always assumed when he cried asnd / or started rootin... that he was hungry... sooooo not the case.

hope u get some respite hun.

oh nd if it is wind - i put 5ml of gripe water into 1oz of cooled boiled water - sorts finn right out!

xx

 

[MelanieAnn]

Could it be reflux? Sometimes these babies like to suck as it helps keep the acid down. Silent reflux occurs with no vomiting.

Sometimes cranio osteopathy can really help with this - or other problems, too, as jaw aches and headaches and ear ache are all connected, and swallowing helps with these.

It's OK to offer really frequently. And if baby is in a sling, it can be really easy too. In the first six weeks, most babies feed 10 -12 times a day, which is incredibly frequently.

 

[kaylz]

I agree with the winding comment above. I now breastfeed every 3-4 hours and only if my LO is showing hunger cues. Before that I would just offer him the breast every 60-90 minutes whenever he cried and it actually made him quite ill with gassiness and digestion problems (green frothy poos etc). I realise now that I was misreading some of his cries as hunger when they were probably wind/tiredness/boredom etc. Could this apply to your LO? My baby would always eat if offered, whether hungry or not....

 

[Mum22GTTC]

Thank you ladies,

TBH I don't *think* it's wind. DH and I do try winding, changing, playing before offering the breast. I *think* he brings up his wind ok. He does constantly seem to be hungry; routing, sucking fists, etc. But I am certainly going to be more vigilent with the winding to see if that helps. And try another brand of dummy - he could just be a sucky baby I guess?

MelanieAnn - I've just looked up the symptoms of silent reflux and a lot of them sound familiar, I hadn't thought of that. I think am going to keep a record of his feeds/symptoms/sleeping and if things don't improve over the next week I will visit the GP.

 

[MrsMouse]

i had the same thing with my little one - only thing that helped for a bit was gripe water - just a little bit from a syringe! But also lots of walks round the park with dog (got me a bit of piece and quiet) and helped shift baby weight!

To be truthful I felt like bf took over my life by 3 months in - but it has settled down as Jamie got older!

I heard about something called a "high needs baby" and put it down to jamie being like that - now he's such a social baby but definately lets people know when only mummy will do! I had a sling in the early weeks and wouldn't have been without it!

Don't know if any of that helps or not but thought id chip in!

Good luck honey - it does get better - and your little one is worth it all!

 

[MelanieAnn]

I agree with the winding comment above. I now breastfeed every 3-4 hours and only if my LO is showing hunger cues. Before that I would just offer him the breast every 60-90 minutes whenever he cried and it actually made him quite ill with gassiness and digestion problems (green frothy poos etc). I realise now that I was misreading some of his cries as hunger when they were probably wind/tiredness/boredom etc. Could this apply to your LO? My baby would always eat if offered, whether hungry or not....

This sounds like oversupply.... https://www.normalfed.com/Continuing/gulping.html