15 week old just started on solids but now refusing milk

[LynseyM]

Hi. My 15 week old ds is quite a big baby and the hv suggested I start him on solids.

He takes a solid meal at around 5:30 and sometimes some milk as well. He gets up aroung 3 am for another feed and takes this well also.

When he wakes at 8:30 he refuses to have milk and will only take it after about an hour of playing which by then he is totally knackered and cries/wriggles through his bottle.

He then cries through his next feed and again this is only after being up and alert for an hour.

The hv today said this is normal as he is after solid food not milk and that I should also drop the 3 o;clock feed.

Is it normal for him to only feed three times a day, get worked up before most feeds and then be sick an hour later (lumpy white stuff)?

the hv said he might be sick if he has eaten too much but he really isnt eating as much as he used to.

really sorry to waffle on. Any advice or support would be great.

Thanks

ooops. I diagnosed my ds as having colic. I hope I havent mistaken this for reflux. I think ill get that checked. He does seem to like lying on his side alot. Thanks for the link, ill check that out tonight.

oh and he is bottle fed.

Ah, sorry he cries a lot. Some babies do cry more than others. Doesn't mean he will be an unhappy older baby, toddler or child, it really doesn't. He is really, really young. Btw LOADS of babies go through an unsettled stage at around 15/16 weeks. Mumsnet archives are full of them! The vast majority do settle down with plenty of milk so don't panic.
Your HV sounds like a very silly woman! Milk and potato at 15 weeks? It's not your fault at all. You are only following the advice of someone who is supposed to know what she is talking about.

I was wondering how he was fed because some people seem to think that if a baby is big your breastmilk won't keep up (which is rubbish, I've fed my very bouncing baby on bf only 4 times a day since 3mo, it's all he wants/needs. Am thinking of changing name to DaisyTheDairyCow... ).
It may be worth experimenting with the type of formula, but I've no experience of that.
Are there any other HV's you could have contact with?

You've already had loads of good advice & replies so I don't need to add to them at all, except to say that as your HV seems a bit useless, next time she recommends something, ask for some references or research to back up what she has said - hopefully you will then be able to make an informed decision not one based on out of date/crap info.

I think the wriggling, unsettled fussy behaviour is probably an age thing (my DS has been like that the last few weeks - now 17wks) and it's unlikely he's hungry for solids. I would complain about your HV. Thank goodness you have MN for support. And you''re not a bad mum at all

Lynsey, just to confirm the total inappropriateness of your HV's advice. Early solids are known to have this drawback - they tend to replace milk, not act as extra calories for a supposedly hungry baby.

Really, when the dust has settled, you might think about complaining about her.

None of the behaviours you describe are signs of hunger in a 15 week old, by the way.

How are you doing now Lynsey?

Gosh this awful advice, I'm so sorry, you must be feeling so confused. I hope you are feeling a bit more confident about cutting out the solids - hopefully you'll be able to speak to another HV.

HI. Just thought Id post an update. All the advice given was great. Thank you. My ds has started taking his milk again and is now feeding every 4 hours and only waking once at night still. he is 16 weeks tomorrow so I have kept with the baby rice (just a couple of tea spoons at dinner time) which he seems to be really enjoying.

I had a read of the weaning site and also read the back of my childs personel health record which seemed to say that he was allowed solids from 4 months. I am going to try pureed veg too but will wait a while b 4 I give him dairy.
He still wriggles a bit through his bottles but I think it might be a stage he's going through.

He will also be tested for reflux and checked over by my gp soon.

I think another reason he was so unhappy was that he was overtired so I have implemented the baby whisperer pick up put down technique which has worked wonders, he now often has 2 or 3 hour long naps instead of the 25 mins he was doing.

Overall I am feeling much more confident and glad I logged on for support.

Thanks all

Lynsey - so pleased that you are seeing some progress following all the advice you received on here.

Just one other point, I would like to raise. I have no idea what kind of birth you had, but I'm wondering if he's still crying a lot and unsettled whether it would be worth your while trying to get to see a Cranial Osteopath. I know a lot of people are sceptical and it's definitely better to go with a recommendation from some-one rather that the 'yellow pages' approach - but I do know people who have had good experience and where colic / unsettledness has been really helped....

I think that sounds like a good idea. I havetried the pick up put down method which has worked but he can still be a bit grumbly.
I was enduced 14 days over my due date. I am quite petite and my ds was 8lb 1oz. I feel like it was quite a sterrsfull labour for him as I felt he should have been born sooner than this. For about 5 days I could hardly walk. I will definately look into cranial osteopathy, I have always been quite interested in this anyway. Thank youfor your advice