suddenly started vomiting after a feed

[moschops]

ds is now just over three weeks old.....after dealing with trapped wind and finally getting to grips with his demanding feeding routine he has now started being sick after every feed.

to begin with it was just a little amount when we laid him down, so we tried holding him a little longer to avoid this problem. now he has started bringing up quite a lot of milk and sometimes immediately after coming off the breast. this morning for the first time we had some pretty impressive projectile vomiting. he seems to be waking every two hours to feed and then when he's sick wanting to go straight back on the breast again.....which becomes a circle of feeding/vomiting and i very quickly become physically and emotionally worn out by it. he also wants to be held ALL the time......i know he probably wants comforting and likes being close to me/daddy but it's making it impossible to do even simple things like get myself something to eat and go to the loo.

as its a bank holiday i can't get hold of my health visitor so i thought i'd ask the wisdom of mumsnet if this is normal or should i be worrying at any stage?

I don't have all the answers but here goes...

At 3 wks, all babies want to be held all the time. they just came out of the only place they knew where they were always held. don't worry about this, its natural.

Re vomiting, do you have a forceful letdown? He may be swallowing more than his stomach can cope with at one time and brings up the excess. (he has learnt the suck technique so is getting more?) remember his tummy is the size of a walnut right now.

Is he crying right after vomiting? If not then he probably doesn't have reflux.

Is he gaining weight? If he is again, not reflux, don't worry.

A little bit of vomit can look like a lot, even when projectile. It is milk mixed with saliva etc. Take a tablespoon of milk and spill it down your shirt or throw on the floor or across the room and see what a mess it will make.

here is a handy website to do some more of your own search.
site

vomiting

Moschops - if the vomiting starts to be projectile pretty much every time then you should have a word with your GP.

There's a condition called pyloric stenosis which is quite common (and more common in boys)and that starts to show itself when baby is a couple of weeks old.

I'll find a link. Hang on....

Pyloric stenosis

Hope I haven't worried you. Just needs keeping an eye on maybe.

thankyou for your advice......

i'm going to keep an eye on him and see how he goes. he is a very greedy boy and i think part of the problem is he feeds too eagerly, but the bit about forceful let down is very interesting, as i seem to be very 'leaky' all of a sudden.

do you think it's worth getting in touch with a breast feeding support counsellor?

Always worth getting in touch with a counsellor where there are concerns with breastfeeding. Could be for any of the reasons being posted however could be something simple to do with rapid letdown. Counsellor could help.