trouble with 7 week old

[SalsaP]

Hi

My LO is 7 weeks old and, generally speaking, seems to have a quiet temperament. However, out of the blue, at least twice a week he will turn into a different baby where he will cry the whole day through with no apparent way of calming him down. These days are really difficult and I struggle to cope with the crying. During these days, and sometimes on his quiet days, he will also feed really badly. He is bottle fed and during some feeds he will keep stopping, spit out the bottle and scream. He will then scream again because he is hungry and wants the bottle back. He will continue to do this until he has finished feeding. I have mentioned this to the HV and the doctor but neither had any advise to give. As far as they are concerned he is putting on weight and is healthy so just tell me I have to ride it out. This is easier said than done! He is on Cow and Gate Infant and will take about 140ml 7 or 8 times a day and I will wind him 3 times each feed. He does seem to be a bit of a windy baby as he farts quite alot! He also hates being winded and gets really angry/upset so on his bad days this really makes him mad!

So I was wondering if anyone had any advice as to why on some days he gets like this. I not convinced it is colic becaused I understand colic to be appear more regularly than his episodes. With him on one day he will be absolutely content and the next a screaming little monster for the whole day. I have tried Infacol previously and have just bought some colief and am thinking of trying it. Do you think it is worth a go? I don't want to try it unneccesarily as i understand it can interfere with their bowel movements.

Does anyone have any other suggestions as to why he may get so bad tempered/upset on these random days and what I could try to prevent him from getting like this?

Thank you!

Sally

Hmm, not sure how much help I can be but I wouldn't wind him three times a feed - once should be fine and he'll burp again if he needs it. Has his throat been checked in case of reflux? That could cause him to reject feeding even if he's hungry. Formulas are much of a muchness, but I found HIPP to agree well with DS, whereas a tin of SMA we were given gave him nasty poo and windy tummy, so if medical reasons are ruled out, it could be worth switching brand. Are you using an anti colic bottle/teat? Perhaps he's getting too much air or having issues with the flow, so this could be worth a shot too. Good luck!

No useful advice, DS (now 1) had colic, but it was mild and regular. It doesn't sound like colic to me, but of course I'm no specialist. Could he be overtired on those days, does he nap less when he has the crying episodes? Also, I've read that they can get really cranky before a developmental milestone,have you noticed any changes in him after such days?

Thanks for your thoughts so far.

I did ask the Doctor if it might be reflux and that was dismissed straight away without any examination. Who knows why! The teats we use are anti colic although sometimes he tries to drink so quickly you hear his lips smacking against the teat and I assume he is taking alot of air in with it.

I'm not sure about the over tiredness idea. I know that he does get overtired in the evenings sometimes which makes him agitated and he flails his arms about. This will normally happen towards the end of his grouchy days where he wears himself out.

Today has been pretty horrid. He had some good stretches of sleep last night and woke up fairly calm. As the morning went on he became quite vocal and he grumbled and moaned alot. This is the first time he has done this. Normally he is either quiet or cries. Anyway, as the day has gone on, he has worn himself out and has started to cry inconsolably again. Strangely his feeds today have mostly been calm. I'm flummoxed! Thing is I find it so stressful when he is like this that I darent go out and about. I just cant face having to battle it out with him in public.

Mine would get if it's a poo day.

Funny you should say as that today was a poo day! He goes every couple of days though -does that mean every other day is going to be this difficult then!? Also, his mood hasnt improved since pooing, in fact it has got worse, but I think thats because he is overtired now.

Do you have different makes of bottles and teats? The reason I ask is that dd couldn't get on with tt bottles and teats as they were too fast for her.i started using Avent all the time and she was fine.