Squirming and kicking while bf

[keepinitreal1]

Hey ladies

My DS is 6 weeks old and we've been bf with some success until now. I have a very low supply on one side and normal on the other, so we've been adding formula ad per doctor's orders. He's been gaining weight normally.

I always start the feeds by bf and always on the weaker side so he's more likely to give it a good go and encourage production.

For the past week he's been REALLY fussy about bf. He'l latch on normally, then after a couple of minutes start to squirm and kick at me, releasing the boob and just trash around. Then, he'll try to latch on again but when he finds the nipple he just tries to grab it, succeeds, and immediately releases it again while doing this sucking noise, He does this for 10-15 times before latching on again, but never for more than a minute at a time.

He doesn't have trush, but has a very light reflux. I try to hold him up when bf for that reason. My nipples are ok so the latch is not the problem...

I really want to bf for at least 3 months so any advice would be appreciated. Thank you!

 

[Lil mole]

Could he be frustrated? If he's hungry and ur offering the side with lower supply first all the time. Maybe alternate which side you offer first, or the first time he unlatches offer the other side and go back to the first once he's finished again?
I've no advice for supply issues as that's about the only bf problem I haven't had! But a restless, kicking, fussy baby was always how I knew mine was hungry and usually she was just frustrated waiting for let down.

 

[jessmke]

I have a much lower supply on my left side, and if I start her on that side she gets very frustrated I think because she is hungry and isn't getting as much milk as fast as she would like to. I always start her on the right side, wait about a minute after I've felt a let down, then switch her to the left. Once she is done on the left I put her back on the right to finish the feed.

 

[noon_child]

If it is the 6 week growth spurt then he's probably hungry and frustrated. Kicking, thrashing and grabbing are all things that could stimulate a letdown so he's going with his instincts. I agree with switch feeding as one of the pp said (which is to keep going backwards and forwards from one breast to the other frequently as LO gets frustrated) as it gives the other breast a bit more time to get a letdown going.

NB You don't have to have a good supply on both sides to feed a baby adequately. Women with twins basically only have one boob per child after all. Yes it can make you lopsided to exclusively breastfeed from just one boob but if it's making LO frustrated during this growth spurt then I'd be inclined to stick him on the side that produces more once he fuses; that way he'll stimulate that one to up its milk production even if the other one still stays a little low.

The other thing I had to do during growth spurts to keep my LO interested was breast compressions. They stimulate let downs.

 

[keepinitreal1]

Thank you for your quick replies, this is some really good insight!

I will try to start on the good side and rotate him as he gets nervous. Will report back on how we're doing!

Thank you again!

 

[DaisyDreamer]

A few possible things could be going on. Like PPs said there is a varying amount of supply each boob. My left has way more than my right. One thing that might help is to self-express until milk comes out and latch them on. My LO is more encouraged to suck when he can taste the milk on his lips. For instance if one boob is drained and milk is not coming out fast enough he will squirm and kick. So I put him on the other one and if he is too agitated, self-express then latch him

As PP said it could also be the 6 week growth spurt and being frustrated with the supply, so try the self expressing see if that helps any.

I've noticed LO will do this when there is trapped air in his tummy. I rub his feet in the heel and arch, then rub his tummy. Specifically work a clockwise motion with your three fingers on his belly button. Then bring toes to his nose or knees to chest.

He might also just want something else to do, my LO gets bored in the AMs when he is just on the boob and I've not quite gotten up. Once I take him off to change him he is all smiles. So hope these help

 

[keepinitreal1]

So I thought I'd do a quick update if anyone ever encounters this situation.
We did every possible combination imaginable in the following 6 weeks:

- bad boob, good boob, bottle
- good boob, bad boob, bottle
- 1/2 bottle, bad boob, good boob, 1/2 bottle
- 1/2 bottle, good boob, bad boob, 1/2 bottle
- whole bottle, bad boob, good boob
- whole bottle, good boob, bad boob

We also tried about 5 different positions (which some of them were killing my back, but OK), pumping the foremilk so that he would start sucking after the letdown, massage for possible trapped air (we found some occasionally, but nothing drastic) etc. So every possible combination, permutation and trick in the book.

We stopped BF 4 days ago since in the past few days, he was crying as soon as he saw the boob. He absolutely refused to latch on and tried to push himself away from me. He also tried to hit my boobs and scratched me a couple of times. He was having none of it and only wanted the bottle.

Now that he only gets the bottle, the meal times have once again become a nice bonding experience. He will stare into my eyes, sometimes stop eating for a bit and tell me something, smile at me etc. So we are enjoying our time together once again.

I don't know what was happening, but either way, it didn't turn out so great for us. But he did BF for three months and I'm happy we even achieved that.

 

[noon_child]

So I thought I'd do a quick update if anyone ever encounters this situation.
We did every possible combination imaginable in the following 6 weeks:

- bad boob, good boob, bottle
- good boob, bad boob, bottle
- 1/2 bottle, bad boob, good boob, 1/2 bottle
- 1/2 bottle, good boob, bad boob, 1/2 bottle
- whole bottle, bad boob, good boob
- whole bottle, good boob, bad boob

We also tried about 5 different positions (which some of them were killing my back, but OK), pumping the foremilk so that he would start sucking after the letdown, massage for possible trapped air (we found some occasionally, but nothing drastic) etc. So every possible combination, permutation and trick in the book.

We stopped BF 4 days ago since in the past few days, he was crying as soon as he saw the boob. He absolutely refused to latch on and tried to push himself away from me. He also tried to hit my boobs and scratched me a couple of times. He was having none of it and only wanted the bottle.

Now that he only gets the bottle, the meal times have once again become a nice bonding experience. He will stare into my eyes, sometimes stop eating for a bit and tell me something, smile at me etc. So we are enjoying our time together once again.

I don't know what was happening, but either way, it didn't turn out so great for us. But he did BF for three months and I'm happy we even achieved that.

Please don't think there was anything wrong with your body or your milk because LO "was having none of it". Babies are designed (as a safety precaution) to allow only one thing in their mouth. This starts as the nipple but babies who get bottles can start thinking that the bottle teat is the "correct" thing to have in their mouth and go on a nursing strike. To these babies the nipple might be a choking hazard or poisonous because they have switched their natural instincts to accepting a bottle. Some babies can be 'tricked' in to allowing bottle and nipple but not all.

As long as you are happy with your choice then you have made the right one!