Refusing the breast at 3 months?

[Lemonade]

Anyone else had this problem? I really wanted to BF until 6 months, but at the moment it is such a battle that I'm about ready to switch to formula .

DD has occasionally been a fussy feeder, especially on my right breast (she prefers the left) but for the last couple of weeks she has been refusing and then screaming when I offer her either breast. I offer when she makes her normal feeding cues, and she turns towards the breast and tries to latch on in the normal way, but then screams and won't have any of it. Eventually she either cries herself to sleep, and then will feed when she wakes 10 minutes or so later, or will calm down if I distract her with something. Sometimes she will go 4-5 hours between feeds before eventually taking it. I'm pretty sure she is hungry, because I have resorted to expressing and then she gulps down the bottle.

I don't get it! Is she just not hungry? 5 hours seems to be a long time to go between day feeds for a breast fed baby. She BFs beautifully if she wakes up in the night to feed, so could it be that she is getting distracted/over stimulated during day feeds? I don't think it is nipple confusion because has taken the occasional bottle since she was a week old with no issues. I'm worried that she just doesn't like BFing that much anymore

 

[MommyJogger]

I would guess she's not hungry. Some babies will gulp bottles literally no matter what. If she's fussing when offered the breast and happy to just play instead, I'd go with her lead and just nurse when she's happy to. A healthy 3 month old will not starve themselves. My first nursed constantly. My second only wants it when he wants it and nothing will convince him otherwise and some days it's very infrequent. It'll even out. Just keep an eye on wet diaper output to reassure yourself and keep on keeping on.

 

[luna_19]

I think this is quite normal.for.this age. I would avoid pumping and offering a bottle when she gets like this amd just keep offering the breast. Make.sure.when you do the occasional bottle you are using the slowest flow nipple possible and using a paced feeding method to mimic breastfeeding so she doesn't develop a preference for the faster flow. I remember around this age my lo would outright refuse one side for hours and hours I would be so sore but I just kept trying and changing positions until he finally would latch. There is a big growth spurt at 3 months also which I think contributed to the fussiness. Hang in there it will get better

 

[VALiz]

I have the same thing. I've finally figured out that my baby is overtired. Try an eat play sleep routine so that your baby is always eating after nap. It's the only way my baby will eat. He's 11 weeks and has been doing this for awhile. I used to think it was gas pain. I've tried giving him a bottle when he's like that and he won't take that either. If he does eat a little, once he starts realizing he's sleepy, he'll talk and wack himself in the face. That's a new development. He used to just pop off and cry. I'd spend hours trying to get him to eat and I was so stressed about. He's still not great if he's tired at the end of the day.

Good luck!

 

[_Meep_]

We've suffered HORRIBLY with this exact problem on and off since my daughter was two months old - it eventually changed from just refusal of the right breast to refusal of both. She's now had five or six nursing strikes, but she always snaps out of them eventually. I tend to dream-feed her through them - she feeds fine when she's sleepy.

I would say that the improvement in feeding, especially from the least-favourite breast, while your baby is sleepy in the middle of the night would imply that there is something about that breast which bothers her. Having gone through agony over this for five months with my daughter, I've come up with many feasible explanations, all of which carry some weight - movement in her gums (she always dribbles LOADS during a strike), congestion, silent reflux (her strikes seem to coincide with a lot of gastric upheaval!), etc. She has suffered with all of these. Basically though, I think it is triggered when my supply is high or I've become engorged, perhaps because she's slept all night without nursing or something - I have very forceful let-downs (especially on the right) and when they are at their strongest, she gulps, swallows air, gets stomach ache, etc. and loses both her appetite and her enthusiasm. It can throw her system out for a couple of weeks at a time!

I don't know if this applies to you and your right breast is a higher producer than your left/has a faster, more aggressive flow, but if so, it could be that that has triggered this and translated to a refusal of both breasts. Silent reflux is a major culprit too - watch/listen for random gulping/coughing and peculiar stomach sounds during and between feeds.

I think babies suddenly hit an age when they realise they CAN refuse and their sucking reflex isn't as overwhelming, but it's horrible for us as mothers.

If you do feel your baby isn't coping with your flow, it might be worth getting her checked for posterior tongue tie - it's usually invisible but can cause so much trouble. My baby's went undiagnosed until 4.5 months, but now it's gone, she does cope better and her nursing strikes are much shorter/less frequent.

Sorry for going on! I'd just hate to think of another mama feeling like I have ... and I want to say, you CAN do it ... we're still hanging on, somehow, at nearly 7 months.

Good luck.

P.S. Smaller, more frequent breastfeeds helped us a lot.

 

[noon_child]

My first thought was overstimulated and tired.

 

[superfrizbee]

I posted this just the other day!! A week or so later and DS is much better but still quite distractable. I think digestive wind didnt help and bicycling and lifting his legs to get his farts out was a must!

 

[halullat]

My son did this at this age, he was just too distracted by everything else so was getting frustrated, it passed though and we are still breastfeeding at 12 months. It was stressful but it got so much better thankfully!

 

[Lemonade]

I don't know if this applies to you and your right breast is a higher producer than your left/has a faster, more aggressive flow, but if so, it could be that that has triggered this and translated to a refusal of both breasts. Silent reflux is a major culprit too - watch/listen for random gulping/coughing and peculiar stomach sounds during and between feeds.

This makes a lot of sense, thanks. My right breast has always been the higher producer (always the one that leaks, feels most full etc.). When she does feed from the right, she sometimes pulls off after every suck - I hadn't thought of me having an aggressive flow, but it could definitely be that. She doesn't seem to have any signs of reflux, but I will make sure I keep an eye out.

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. We are still breastfeeding! Like I said in my original post, my aim has always been at least 6 months and she is 4 months tomorrow. We have good days and bad days, but I had a good think about it, and I am not ready to give up breastfeeding just yet, so we persevere!