keeps pulling off breast & screaming...

[suzi2]

my DS is 5 wks old. Today he feeds well for 5 mins then keeps pulling off and screams for ages. He then goes back on, wrestles my nipple for a bit and pulls off screaming again. He doesn't seem to need burped and settles if I offer him the other breast which he gulps down. It seems to happen far more on my right than on my left.

Any ideas?

[berolina]

beginnings of a blocked duct?
Has he fed well so far?
If so, maybe he's getting distractible at a very early age.
No other ideas really... how has bf bee so far?

[peaceandlight]

my ds1 used to do that. I changed to bottles and he was still the same. I never figured it out, he stopped eventually and the HV said some just do it...not very helpful!

[suzi2]

I meant to add that today he had a small, greenish poo with bits in it (looked like dried herbs!). I wonder if there is any connection...

He has fed well until now but is windy and colicky a lot of the time. We have him on Colief drops - has been a week - they are supposed to help digest the lactose.

[Amai]

If he is fine on the other breast maybe it is faster flowing. As berolina suggests maybe it is a blocked duct and he is getting frustrated. They are so sensitive sometimes, my DD (1.3)was the same with her bottle- breast proved too much of a night mare. She would stop mid-suck and scream, used to worry me senceless. She is fine now, still stroppy mind you.

[henshake]

Hi suzi2. My DS always struggled between boobs. He never pulled off screaming but I definitely had 1 boob that would choke him & this was due to the fast let down.

The breastfeeding specialist suggested I always offer this one first (the fast one) & then the other. This way he wasn't used to the slow one first.

He stopped choking and worked well until today when I had to give up (he is now 10 months old).

[spidermama]

Thrush inside his mouth? It can be painful for them and they pull off. Not always easy to diagnose but check for white coating on tongue which doesn't come off when you rub it. Or small white spots on tongue.

If it's thrush you need to treat baby's mouth and your nipples asap.

[kath4kids]

most babies have a favourite breast, and maybe there is more milk in the prefered side. my youngest did this when my milk started to dry up so maybe he's just having a growth spurt and wants more than is there at the minute. Just keep putting him on and hopefully he will stimulate you to produce more milk. Keep persevering though.

[milward]

Could be due to his comfort? My dd1 had a stiff neck that need physio. Could try him in different postions on that breast to see if that helps him get comfy.
AGree with spidermama - check for thrush in your baby & in yourself. Do you have any breast pain between feeds or sore nipples that don't seem to be getting better?

[chipmonkey]

My instinct would say fast letdown as the milk flows too quickly for them to cope with. My ds1 used to do this, he was also very colicky at that age. I really don't think green poo is an indicator of anything, all 3 of my ds's had it at some stage and they were all thriving at the time.
Be careful when looking for thrush. I thougt ds2 had it and on the advice of my HV and GP spent 3 weeks treating him and me.(he had a white coating on his tongue) After that I brought him to the hospital paediatrician for his routine check-up and mentioned it to her. She looked and said the white coating was......milk!! So I had been treating him for nothing.

[tatt]

add some probiotics (live yoghurt or health food store supplement) to your diet. Doesn't sound like milk allergy since he's ok with one breast but it will reduce the risk of developing allergy/ lactose intolerance anyway. Probiotics are very good at helping with poo problems.

[IcklePickle]

Visited Breast Feeding Clinic with similar problem. My 5week old screams after first 5 mins of foremilk then falls asleep as well. It is because he is lazy to get the harder to get hind milk. They recommended compression (squeeze boob between fingers above and below nipple for 1 minute then release) pretend it is a sponge. This helps release the hind milk. This has helped a bit. It is a guessing game a lot of this mum thing though!.

[karmamother]

My DS used to do this. I put it down to the fast let-down causing him to gulp too quickly & take in wind. I cured the problem by putting him on to suck, wait for the let-down, prise him off till the milk stopped hosing out (he screamed, of course, but far less than if I'd left him on) then I put him back on & he finished his feed without any windiness.

[sfxmum]

my dd did not feed from one breast for nearly 2 months for more that a couple of minutes. i kept persisting and would offer a bit when she was not starving. now she feeds fine from both.
worth rulling out all other cause as mentioned.
babbies are funny that way.
dd now 17wks

[sfxmum]

PS used to express to keep up supply. dad used to give bottle of expressed milk