Help :( 5 week old feeding

[esselllx]

My daughter is 5 weeks and she's hungry all of the time. Can you over feed your baby? She is formula fed. Her belly has gone really swollen and big again the health visitor said it was normal but it's gotten a lot worse. She's also sick after every feed, even when a lot of time has past. And it's not just a little bit she's sick quite a lot. She cry's not long after her last bottle for another one and starts sucking her hands and screaming but I'm scared that I'll over feed her I'm a first time mum someone please help me

[MsChatterbox]

Hmm could be reflux when she eats it soothes the pain temporarily. Could also be cmpa with the crying immediately after bottle and swollen stomach. Make a gp appointment and ask for either a prescription for dairy free milk or a referral for a test.

[esselllx]

@MsChatterbox if it is reflux how do I get rid of it and it's the weekend now so I don't know what to do :( do I just keep feeding her whenever she cries for it? I've been trying to distract her and calm her down it instead of feeding her too often it works for a little while but then she starts sucking her hands and the air and screaming again

[lockdownpregnancy]

She sounds like she's got colic. The sucking soothes them which is why you probably think she's hungry.
You can't over feed a baby, as they will throw up anything they don't want.
My DS is sick quite a bit, regardless of how long it's been since his bottle.
I was told to use thickening agent for his milk and what a mistake that was! It stopped him bringing up his milk but he was so constipated he screamed the most awful scream when he pooped cus it was so painful for him! I spoke to a doctor and she just said that as long as my DS has wet nappies, poops and puts on weight then it doesn't matter if he is a sicky baby.
He was 5 weeks when all this was happening (along with him having colic), so we stopped the thickening agent. He's 14 weeks now and is over 14lb in weight. We get through various clothes, bibs and countless muslins per day but he's a happy baby.
If you're baby does have colic try gripe water and also tummy massage, warm baths and we also put Colief in his formula. All of that really helped our DS. Colic does start to ease after the 6 week mark though, it's just an horrendous time as even though you do what you can, you can't help them feel better!

[MsChatterbox]

For reflux make sure you keep them upright for minimum 30 minutes after a feed. You can also raise the cot by placing books under the feet of one end or you can buy a wedge that goes under the mattress. You can get medication for reflux but it can cause tummy issues so try with keeping upright first. My son had it really bad it did go with age. How often is baby eating? If baby guzzles bottle then offer more the aim is for them to leave at least 1oz and then you know they have had enough. A dummy can help with reflux too as they are constantly swallowing.

[Suzi888]

Are you making the bottles up or do you buy the pre made cartons?
Pharmacies are still open, if your worried they can probably give you some advice tomorrow. Alternatively ring 111 if you are really concerned.

[Ticklemynickel]

Are you using a dummy? DD1 was like this - would get very agitated for a bottle and throw up when she'd had too much (we would basically have a bottle on the go constantly from early evening to bedtime) so we used to give her a dummy in the evenings to help calm her.

[esselllx]

@Suzi888 I'm making them up and @Ticklemynickel I do use one but she always spits it out so you think she could be allergic to milk or something ? But surely if she was this wild have started from birth she's only started throwing up badly like two weeks ago

[Suzi888]

Sorry just seen this, I’d give your GP or health visitor a ring. Hand sucking usually means hungry, perhaps she needs the ‘hungry baby milk’.
If your making the bottles up are you giving them a good shake? I was a first time mum too and sometimes when I got to almost the end of the bottle there was a lot of the powder in the bottom, where I hadn’t shaken it adequately.

[esselllx]

@Suzi888 I put her on the hungry milk it gave her bad belly ache and made her constipated also made her tummy really swollen and bloated

[esselllx]

So I switched back

[Suzi888]

@esselllxOh no, that’s the only thing with switching the milk. I’d give your GP a ring if you are worried, for peace of mind.

[december2020]

My son (7 weeks old) had similar symptoms recently and it was reflux (diagnosed by the health visitor).
We've started him on anti reflux milk a couple days ago as step one and while it hasn't totally solved the problem completely it's really helped him! He's eating, sleeping properly and a much happier baby.
He fed like crazy on his first 2 bottles probably as it was the first meal he was able to keep down properly and was starving.

We're seeing how it goes with the anti reflux formula and then if needed we'll go to the gp and see if he needs any further meds.

She mentioned if it was a milk allergy he'd have a rash mostly likely on his face, hands and feet and his poos would be diarrhoea and he'd be going 10-15 times a day.