please help, 10 wk old wont feed!

[lydiathetattooedlady]

sorry this is a bit long but im really struggling! ds 10 wks on monday and is breastfed. we have had a few problems
1 tongue tie, we didnt have it cut as was shown an exaggerated attatchment which meant i could comfortably feed and it doesnt look like it was a bad tongue tie iyswim?
2 we have had thrush in the last two weeks which i think is now cleared up.
at the beginning of last week i noticed
a real change in his feeds. he started going for nearly 3 hrs rather than the usual 1 1/2. i assumed he'd just started pacing himself out. he's still doing lots of wet nappies, his pooh though has gone very watery. when he is feedinfg he sounds like he's losing suction, its a funny sound but im worried he's gulping air. then last night he wouldnt settle for his usual after-bath feed and screamed for 2 hours whilst i was trying to get him to feed. i lay topless on the bed just trying to coax him but he just kept screaming and thrashing. eventually with me in tears dp gavehim a bottle which he took straight away. the same thing happened agasin this morning with his refuaol to feed. i keep trying to feed him when he's just starting to stir when i know he's ready for a feed but he is still fighting it. dp had to give him another bottle this morning. i dont think its nipple confusion as before last night hadnt had a bottle since monday. im at my wits end and sore! any advice as to whats goung on? sorry for the mammoth post, i dont want this to be the end of breast feeding!

[Masalamama]

Might he be associating your nipple with the discomfort of thrush? Maybe try a nipple shield. Whatever you do, just go with his flow. If he'd rather have a bottle either express or just give him formula. It's not worth the heartache.

[mumblecrumble]

It is worth some heart ache and it doesn;t have to be hard!!!

Please go and see a breast feeding coucilor or go to a breast feeding group. Call the midwife if you're sure where they are.

[Tambajam]

Please please call a helpline and speak to a trained counsellor. They are all still open for a couple of hours. You need to have a chat and talk through everything thoroughly:

National Breastfeeding Helpline

Helpline: 0300 100 0212
Funded by the Department of Health and staffed by trained volunteer mothers from the Breastfeeding Network and the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers. Lines are open between 9.30am and 9.30pm.

NCT Breastfeeding helpline
Breastfeeding Line: 0300 330 0771
Lines are open between 8am and 10pm seven days a week.

La Leche League
www.laleche.org.uk
Helpline: 0845 120 2918

Breastfeeding Network
www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk
Helpline: 0300 100 0210

The losing suction thing that you describe could well be related to the tongue tie. I'm not sure who assessed it last time but it might be worth meeting with someone else. Tongue tie isn't something you can always see easily by looking in a baby's mouth. A proper assessment for a posterior tongue tie may need to be done using a finger. Sometimes the tongue ties that don't look too awful can actually be the most problem.

Your instincts to do skin-to-skin are good. I would just hang out skin-to-skin without necessarily 'offering'. Just hold him, drip some milk around and see what happens without actually trying to 'put him on'. But this is all something you can talk through on a helpline. Please do call.