My baby keeps being sick but...

[PizzaPlanet2]

...is practically begging me for milk.

I'm breastfeeding a 3 week old. He's attached to my boob 24/7. Thing is he feeds until he's sick everywhere, then roots and pulls towards my boob in order to feed again. This just repeats.

WIBU to go longer between feeds so he's not sick so much? If I do this I'll have a crying baby to deal with though and he might become stressed.

I'm worried he's feeding when he's actually not really hungry, that I have no idea what I'm going, etc etc.

Could you try him on a dummy? It might just be he likes to suck I had one of them and a dummy saved my sanity

Could be reflux, does he have any problems being laid flat?

Just let him do what he needs to do, being sick is so common at this age and he'll probably grow out of it pretty soon.

I doubt it's his whole feed, it always looks more than what it is.

That's why everybody tells you you need so many muslins!

@Reaa we don't have a dummy but would rather not use one if possible. Though not completely averse to the idea!

@Whymustyoubringinthebirds he hates being on his back during the day. If I lay him on his back after a feed he moans. If I hold him upright he still moans but much less...

This is so hard. I have no clue what I'm doing...

Your baby could have reflux, possibly caused by cows milk protein intolerance. A baby with reflux will want to feed constantly as breast milk has a natural pain relieving quality. Unfortunately if it is the milk protein intolerance that causes it then it will create a vicious cycle.

If you cut cows milk out of your diet you may see an improvement.

Check out the kellymom website it is very good for all things breastfeeding.

Just read he hates lying down, that is another sign of reflux.

Sounds like reflux. My baby had it for about 9 months. Vommited whole feeds regularly during the day. But he was a very happy baby who gained weight well, so I didn’t do anything about it (except for packing lots of muslins and spare clothes!) it settled lots at 6 months with introducing food.

If you baby seems unhappy go see the GP, they can give meds to help with reflux.

Can you hold him and walk around after a feed every feed till he burps/the milk goes down? To an extent, all babies spit milk up, if hes not in screaming pain and is thriving, its actually good that he drinks and spits out alot because this helps establish your supply. Using a dummy would diminish this, especially in the first 8 weeks.
Your baby is the only judge of what he needs, so if he roots, let him. Could you pack him in a carrier in between feeds? Btw, feeding seemingly 24/7 seems normal at 3-4 weeks, (marble sized stomachs) and as a PP mentioned, he is probably spitting put less than it seems. You have figured out that holding upright helps, so that would be the best way to proceed rather than interventions such as dummies or scheduled feeding, which will lead to reduced supply, introduction of formula, and if he really does have reflux, it will be less painful if he is breastfed.
I think you know what you are doing, it will get easier in the next weeks, i wouldn't exclude medical help but would be wary of unnecessary interventions.

Does the sick come out in a great force?

Is this a new issue?

@ThatOneHurt no it doesn't come out forcefully at all. It's a new problem (last few days) but he's only 3 weeks old so it all seems new to me...

This was classic growth spurt behaviour for my daughter at that age. She didn’t have reflux or any other issues and it was the only time she was ever sick. My money would be on growth spurt

I would also suggest wedge baby pillows so he does not lie flat (hard to breastfeed on but for afterwards) and lots of teeny bibs. If he is not gaining weight, passing enough urine/stools, or is in pain please seek a doc immediately, otherwise it doesnt sound too bad and quite normal and common.
We have this one by babymoov.

If he start projectile vomiting you need to take him to hospital as it could be pyloric stenosis. But from what you des dice it sounds like reflux. Try some gaviscon.

If it starts projectile vomit see your GP to rule out a condition called Pyloric Stenosis.

In the mean time, it's likely to be reflux, but also be careful that he has plenty of wet nappies and poos.
Vomiting is one thing but he's clearly hungry, you still want to see plenty of wet and dirty nappies to ensure that he's keeping down enough. Keep an eye on his weight gain as well.

Otherwise treat it as reflux, there's a few tricks you can try such as keeping them up right after a feed, raising their mattress so they don't lay flat etc.
There's meds but they come with their own issues. gaviscon causes constipation and there's other unlicensed meds if all that doesn't work.

This sounds like my DS who was diagnosed with reflux at about 4 weeks. He was prescribed gaviscon which helped and he did grow out of it by about 4 months.

Please don’t worry, honestly no one knows what they’re doing esp with their first. You clearly love your DS, which is the most important thing. I bet you’re doing an absolutely incredible job. Don’t ever be afraid to ask for help - I was with my DD and developed PND. No one will judge you for reaching out.

Good luck and huge congratulations on your new baby

Oh poor toot. Have you got a sling? If not, get one and pop him in after a feed - it replaces the comfort and warmth he's looking for at your breast and keeps them upright. Does your milk come out quite fast, making him gasp and splutter at all? Does he make a clicking noise when he feeds?

Sounds like reflux, my son was similar. Kept eating to sooth the burn but would sick it back up because he was over eating causing more burning.

My DD was like this, started when she was 3 weeks old.
She had reflux due to cows milk protein intolerance. I cut dairy out of my diet, she grew out of it once I started weaning her.
Raising cot end also helps.

I also had the same experience with cow milk allergy.

Feeding more upright helped both my refluxy boys feed a bit more slowly and vomit less. I used laid back position for DS1 until he was about ten weeks and his head seemed to get too heavy. After that I used koala position. I tried to do the same with DS2 and it did reduce the vomiting but he hated those feeding positions more than the vomiting so we just put up with his little puddles everywhere! Both boys had Omeprazole and DS1 also tried ranitidine to reduce the discomfort associated with the excess acid they produced, which was the cause of the reflux. Both boys have cow's milk and soya allergies but DS1's reflux was completely separate from that and didn't improve when I cut them out from my diet. DS2's reflux was helped a little by me avoiding them.
The vomiting reduced (although it got much smellier and the puddles were harder to find) when they got mobile and started on solids.

I also find that DS2 still (13mo) has that kind of behaviour around when I ovulate and also when my period starts, as I produce massive amounts of extra milk then. I guess it's possible you could be having some kind of hormone surge causing it.

Ds2 was a puker and did so much better with lots of little short feeds with very thorough burping in between. He was a lot more satisfied and far less likely to lose the lot.

Could be gas or reflux. Try some infacol and see if that helps - it makes the gas bubbles clump together and move to the tip so that the gas doesn't hurt when he's lying down and it doesn't dislodge the milk when he burps.

Don't deprive him of food if he wants to eat - not good for your supply, and awful for him to be hungry.

Sounds like reflux to me too, and or possible dairy intolerance. Can you try removing dairy from your diet?