can anyone diagnose these symptoms?

[sunglasses]

6 week old
bottle fed and consuming a lot more than the recommended amount for her weight, has put on weight and jumped up a centile in 2 weeks! Seems windy and in pain after every feed but not irritable whilst feeding. difficult to wind, doesnt always burp, but is tense and very screwed up for a while after. only thing that calms her is laying upright against chest or being held over shoulder or in sling where she will happily fall asleep.
Once asleep will sometimes be put in cot on back only to wake again seemingly in pain after about 15 mins. no amount of picking up and resettling will get her go down again on her back however if flipped over on tummy sleeps instantly and for 2-3 hours in day and sometimes 5-6 at night.
Real problem is 'awake' time. I cant put her down anywhere!
she wont go in a bouncy chair-reclined or sitting up position or on her back in a pram or in car seat without wriggling, screwing up face and screaming. She seems in pain but then sometimes starts rooting as if hungry! As i say she is definately getting enough food.
Is this colic or could it be silent reflux or just plain old wind or constipation( she poos only once a day and it is soft but she does strain) and what are best tried and tested cures. Also should I expect her to spend some happy awake time every day yet or is she just too young- cant remember from first time but she was a different baby, very alert and smiley after 3 weeks. Any suggestions greatly appreciated

What formula are you using? Any arching back at all?

yes does arch back, especially in bouncy chair. Using SMA Gold. Why?

Could be any of the things you suggest. Have you tried Colief? Otherwise I'd ask about infant Gaviscon for reflux but that is only available on prescription and I've no idea if 6 weeks is too young (although it is not absorbed by the system so may not be a problem) Have you got an electronic swing? That really helped me with dd (my second) as I couldn't have her in the sling all the time. Good luck..........

Sounds like silent reflux to me. You can buy gaviscon over counter btw, but very expensive.

infacol - gets them to bring the wind up. Some people swear by it others don't. But its not very pricey. Ds had the same windy/colicy thing and it helped him loads.

Also get a sequence of several winding positions going.

Dr Brown's bottles are very good against wind I've heard. Also if you can get her to drink some fennel tea (made and cooled).

Could she be thirsty? Particularly in this hot weather. Would she take some cooled, boiled water? Maybe she is getting too much formula when she really just needs water.

Have had friends who swear by Cow and Gate Comfort formula for windy / colic-y babies.

Used Infacol myself - v.good but DS not nearly as bad as yours

ds became constipated with sma, I put him on aptamil (contains pre-biotics (friendly gut bacteria) and he was fine. Try prop up her cot so that she is lying at an angle, slightly upright. Placing her in a car seat might also ease he discomfort and give you two hands to work with for a while. I second infacol, and you might want to check that the teat size you use is correct. Ds moved onto size 3 (avent) within the first 4 weeks.

sounds like colic to me. ds1 had it terribly.
you have to stick it out, keep giving them colief and infacol and makesure you have some support.

Sounds like my ds when he was a baby and it took him one and a half years to get over it! He probably had silent reflux but after numerous trips to the doctor and health visitor, I was told it was colic and it would pass. I also couln't put him down for two seconds and found it exhausting so I know what you are going through and feel your pain! I put him to sleep on his stomach which really helped as I think the pressure was good for him. I also tried the water thing which worked for a while. By the end of the first year, I did find that holding him and bouncing gently on the edge of the bed helped. It will pass and hopefully sooner for you than me. He is a very happy boy now who eats like a horse with no wind problems but my only problem now is that he is an extremely clingy boy (now 3.9years) and finds it hard to be by himself which is probably due to me carrying him all day every day in the beginning. Sorry I couldn't help but I hope it is of some comfort that you are not alone. Push the doctors for help as much as you can! Good luck.

Hiya

I had to dash off as DS woke up. I would try changing formula as DS had a lot of probs with it -constipated etc, so we swtiched to Aptamil and that was a lot better.

I also use the Dr Brown bottles and they are really good for wind and I would recommend you see the Dr or HV and mention the arching back as that is a symptom of reflux - DS had it. He was given Infant Gaviscon which helped loads.

Also, when winding, don't pat, rub up and down as the patting can aggravate the reflux apparently.

HTH?

Niks

my thoughts (no time to read thread so apologies if brief and/or repeating):

i would say, if shes happy sleeping on her tummy, id almost defiantely just let her sleep on her tummy. i know its against advice, but id be inclined to listen to my child really. if nervous you could get one of those hi tech listening devices??

re daytimes; try a fisher price swing seat. it CHANGED my life when ds3 was a baby. i was sceptical but honestly, i would describe it as a miracle. can do a link to the one i mean (i tried another type and it did not have same effect) if youre interested.

they root all the time, newborns. i find anyway. it is just their natural way of looking for comfort... not necessarily hunger making them do it (as you suspect)

just sounds windy to me. ds1 was too. she'll grow out of it in a few months is all i can say to that! not much comfort now, i know.

ooh yes, do try water in this heat. didnt think of that as mine were bf at that age, but i think ff babies need a bit of water in the warmer months.

and try stroking the back upwards, rather than patting. helps to stimulate the muscles of the throat or whatever to bring the air upwards.

and do get as much support as you can. sleep deprivation will take its toll on you. good luck!

Thanks for all the comments. Am trying infacol at mo and have given cool boiled water today. Might try the swing if problem doesnt get any better. Also have read a number of posts about SMA not being so good for colicky babies so will maybe try a different one- wasnt sure if it was ok to chop and change formulas, would i notice the difference straifght away or would it take a while on new formula?
Re feeding is it better to give little and often or a good feed with 3-4 hours in between to digest properly?