help frazzled mum of nearly 4 week old sucking/feeding constantly!

[marina294]

hiya my lo struggled to latch the first three days after birth so i expressed colustrum and topped up with formula till my milk came in and a midwife finnally got her latched on-i went through the sore blistered nipples and thought we had cracked it comfortable feeding. Now she is sleeping at night if i am lucky 3-4 hours then every 2-3 but will not settle during the day she wants to nurse constantly i offer her both boobs but she has started pulling away whilst still having my nipple and now they are so sore!! when she finally comes off i wind her but she is still rooting to suck then screaming and wont settle till back on the boob where she eventually falls into a light sleep but wakes as soon as she is put down and im getting so fustrated because im not getting anything done around the house.
. She wont take a dummy either.
Tonight has been non stop on boobs again but crying inbetween and wanting to suck even though she has her fill!! OH saying i must not have enough milk as he just had to give her 2 oz i expressed this morning just so i could shower and that we should give her formula.

Sorry if i rambled im just so tired and sore this breastfeeding malarkey is draining and even though im so determined to BF even i have found myself thinking would formula be easier

 

[angel_annie07]

My son has been the same and he is 4.5 weeks. Its so hard isn't it? I must admit he has been having the odd bit of formula and expressed milk for a few days and I do find it helps. Keep your chin up though, just remember that this soon will pass

 

[punk_pig]

There is a huge growth spurt around three weeks, unfortunately the more formula you give the longer it could last as the never being satisfied sucking is what tells your body how much milk to make. Breastfeeding is supply and demand and unfortunately the demanding comes way before the supplying.

Cluster feeding is also normal (this is constant feeding for hours or feeding with only small break in between- usually an exhausted sleep during which you can't move or they'll wake starving!) and often happens early evening and lasts in to the small hours. If your LO is going to sleep earlier than 1am for a good 3-4hr stretch she may just be cluster feeding earlier in the day to allow her to do this.

IF (and it's a big if) there is a problem it might be that LO's latch isn't perfect so it takes a long time to get enough milk by which time she has digested a lot of what she took at the beginning so she's hungry again.

Hang in there as once you get past the six week growth spurt it all gets so much easier. There are other growth spurts but 6wks is the last one that is about increasing your supply and it's that that causes the screaming. I can't imagine the hassle of fixing formula in the middle of the night with a screaming child!

Other issues to bear in mind - babies can't tell the diff between hunger and wind. Also v young babies like yours will root at the smell of milk even if not that hungry, I got OH to hold her if I wasn't sure and if she rooted on him I'd feed her if she seemed happy just being cuddles I wouldn't.

Good luck!

 

[Sarah lo]

My LO had a growth spurt at that age, it lasted about 4 days then she got loads better. She's now going through her 6 week growth spurt which is a nightmare but i have high hopes that its all going to slot into place soon. So what I'm trying to say is just try and focus on getting through the next couple of weeks and keep telling yourself it will get easier very soon xx

 

[satine51]

It's very difficult, isn't it! But don't give up, it's just a growth spurt and it will pass. Don't think you haven't got enough milk, they never seem to be satisfied during growth spurt and suckling constantly. I have just started 6 week growth spurt, usually lasts 2 days in my case. I know how frustrating it is, but the more your LO sucks, even if your boobs may feel 'empty', the more you will produce. There is always some milk in a boob, it never dries up completely. I wouldn't supplement with formula, it may make it worse. Just try to relax, get some magazines or dvds, snacks, relax and just think all you are going to do is just feed for a day. I found it helped a lot not to put pressure on myself to do anything else but feed during growth spurt. HUGS Hun xx

 

[babypowder]

I have to say that my LO did the same, but he did it for nearly 9 weeks and then it fell into place slightly more (and I fell asleep slightly more!). It's really tough, I feel for you, but if you can keep going it's so much easier the older they get. I occasionally feel jealous of my FF friends who can pass their baby to anyone for a feed but they say they feel jealous of me a lot more which is a nice ego boost x

 

[ashley2pink]

Thats normal, especially the first couple months. Newborns can cluster feed like crazy or just want to suck all day long. I wouldnt give formula. Many women worry they dont have enough milk because baby is nursing like crazy, but thats rarely the case. Supplementing with formula will just reduce your milk supply.

 

[angel_annie07]

I get really annoyed when people say don't worry just sit and feed for the day, I for one can't. I have a 5 year old who needs to get to and from school I have an open uni course and a house to maintain a husband to look after and the normal other everyday stuff. So if I need to supplement with formula I will and I don't feel bad about it

 

[Luzelle]

I get really annoyed when people say don't worry just sit and feed for the day, I for one can't. I have a 5 year old who needs to get to and from school I have an open uni course and a house to maintain a husband to look after and the normal other everyday stuff. So if I need to supplement with formula I will and I don't feel bad about it

I must admit that I agree a bit with Angel Annie. Sometimes a new mom (actually any mom) needs a bit of a break, and if the baby has a full tummy then hopefully he/she will sleep a bit, give mom a badly needed break and rest, and then you can go back to the constant nursing. It is absolutely draining to sit with a baby who is sucking sucking sucking, it feels like life is draining from you. Not a very popular point of view. But you know what, I've realised that we each do our very best for our babies, and we need to be a bit easier on ourselves sometimes, since we have to keep on going day after day, often without much support.
To the OP (marina294), if you can give your baby a good feed of expressed milk or formula, and try to sleep a bit as soon as the baby falls asleep, things might look a bit brighter and tomorrow you'll have the 'reserves' for the growth spurt feeding again. Good luck!

 

[punk_pig]

I get really annoyed when people say don't worry just sit and feed for the day, I for one can't. I have a 5 year old who needs to get to and from school I have an open uni course and a house to maintain a husband to look after and the normal other everyday stuff. So if I need to supplement with formula I will and I don't feel bad about it

I agree no-one should feel bad about choosing formula but I gave the advice I did because the OP sounded like she was being pressured in to FF by her OH who was suggesting she didn't have enough milk because LO was crying. I just wanted to explain why it can seem like there isn't milk but actually it is a normal part of breatfeeding experienced by most new mothers. (I myself supplemented at 6wks due to growth issues and LO even now still has a bit of formula so I'm not anti formula).

 

[SackBoy]

I get really annoyed when people say don't worry just sit and feed for the day, I for one can't. I have a 5 year old who needs to get to and from school I have an open uni course and a house to maintain a husband to look after and the normal other everyday stuff. So if I need to supplement with formula I will and I don't feel bad about it

Don't feel bad about supplementing. That's your choice but dont get annoyed about people giving sound advice. We all have houses to look after and partners. Tbh though your partner is an adult so can look after himself, it's only a relatively short time that it is that bad.

 

[Elmo5]

From my point of view, feeding my baby in the early days was more important than maintaining the house and any day to day stuff. It was only such a small time in her life. I did have a supportive OH though who kept me topped up with food n drink in the evenings, and whilst he was off on paternity leave.

 

[ashley2pink]

From my point of view, feeding my baby in the early days was more important than maintaining the house and any day to day stuff. It was only such a small time in her life. I did have a supportive OH though who kept me topped up with food n drink in the evenings, and whilst he was off on paternity leave.

I agree with whatever women choose to do. But for me the house can wait. I dont need to be tending to my husband either. He's a big boy and can feed himself. I breastfeed on demand. My 5 year old is in school too, but it takes just minutes to get her there/ pick her up so it doesnt interfere with bf'ing my newborn. I dont need to supplement, I am home all day. I do have to feed my 2 older kids, but I dont see how that would take away from exclusive non-scheduled nursings of my newborn. But, I choose to nurse this way, on my baby's schedule. I understand its not for everyone and can be too stressful/depressing for some women. Its not always easy for me either, but it doesnt bother me too much and I know it will pass soon so I just get through every day/week

 

[marina294]

thank you for your replies im glad to know there is a reason for the constant sucking-she is still doing it but to top it off is fighting sleep through the day but a sling seems to help-im not supplementing formula as i workked so hard to get her latched on to bf i kinda feel it would defeat the object iykwim. but i was tempted sleep deprivation and exhaustion can make you feel desperate.

My OH has said he feels like he cant help almost like he jelous he cant feed her as i havent built up an expressed milk supply yet. he has already said if he had his way he would have put her on formula! and said i think she loves me more than him the silly man if i could give him my boobies i would lol!!

People make you feel like there not getting enough (she surely cant be hungry again-the MIL) and my OH suggesting formula they start to make you question yourself!

 

[Bec27]

Yes it's definitely a growth spurt, I know it can be frustrating to feed so much and for so long. My baby boy kept pulling my nipple and fussing and I found it was wind. When your lo starts to do it, take them off, sit them up and wind. I usually find he does a big burp fairly quickly and then wants to carry on feeding. It's not always the case but it is most of the time. Give it a go and HTH

 

[Squirmsmum]

I had this yesterday she was on and off from 1pm till 8pm until I finally cracked the tears came, my OH put us into his car and drive round till me and lily fell asleep. I feel your pain it's awful not being able to even have a shower or make a cup of tea, but all the advice I've had is to just wait it out, there is enough milk, it won't last long. Hope it gets better for you soon.