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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

Help me please, Baby screaming during breastfeeding

19 replies

SailorVie · 15/05/2012 22:28

I'm almost at the end of my tether. I have a DD, 5 weeks old, who seems to scream and cry through almost every feed. I feel so worn out and upset, she pulls off and then cries. I then struggle to latch her on again, but then she pulls off again after only a few sucks.
Feeds are now long drawn out affairs which are mega stressful. She is putting weight on, though not excessively. She has always had fussy periods in the early evenings, but now the screaming and crying is happening at the daytime feeds as well.
The only feed of the day which is completely calm is the one formula feed she gets in the middle of the night. I feel such a failure, having struggled through the agony of cracked nipples in the early days and poor latch, and was determined to breastfeed my baby (I only managed 2 weeks of BF with my DS1).

I feel that feeding should be a nurturing calm time for us, yet my poor DD seems almost tortured.

I don't think it's thrush as I'm not suffering any pain in the nipple or breast. Initially I thought it was oversupply but the one reliably calm feed of the day apart from the formula feed is the early morning one, when my breasts feel at their fullest.

Please help me continue breastfeeding, tonight after a 2 hour feeding screamathon I was tempted to throw the towel in a move to formula.

OP posts:

thisisyesterday · 15/05/2012 22:34

that sounds horrid for both of you :(

have you seen a real life breastfeeding counsellor?

is this recent or has she always done it?

Original poster

SailorVie · 16/05/2012 01:08

She has to a certain extent always been like this, but it started off being the early evening feeds, and has gradually moved to being like this for most of the dayt

OP posts:

Original poster

SailorVie · 16/05/2012 01:11

daytime feeds as well. The middle of the night and first thing in the morning tend to be ok.
I've been to a breastfeeding cafe, and a La Leche league meeting but no joy so far.
:(

OP posts:

Solo · 16/05/2012 01:21

Have you checked your Dd's mouth for thrush? she may have it and not you; the bottle feed might just be easier for her to take with having thrush and could be the reason she's not screaming with that feed. Definitely check her mouth and maybe get your gp or hv to check too.

Hope it's sorted soon for you.

esselle · 16/05/2012 07:30

Would you consider taking your baby to see a chiropractor or osteopath? I had difficulty feeding DC2 on my left side when he was a newborn and took him to see a chiro. His shoulder was out of alignment and after 2 visits he was feeding beautifully. He must have been really uncomfortable feeding.

I have also recently taken 4wk old DC4 to see the same chiro as she has pretty awful reflux and constantly screamed while in her car seat. We have been twice and already she is much more settled and no longer screams in the car, she even falls asleep in her car seat!!

I figure that birth is quite a stressful time for their little bodies so it is no surprise if they are out of alignment.

It could be that your DC has a stiff neck and finds breast feeding uncomfortable but bottle feeding is ok because the position is different.

If you do decide to try this out do make sure you find someone who is a paediatric chiropractor and deals with newborns.
I hope that you get to the bottom of this and sort it out soon!

fhdl34 · 16/05/2012 08:21

how's your letdown? If it's fast like my left boob, baby might be pulling off because of that. My DD does, it either goes all over her neck and chest or into a muslin if I'm quick enough. She hovers there with an open mouth waiting to latch on again but if it takes a while to stop squirting, she starts screaming. DD never has had thrush but it also sounds like the symptoms of that, perhaps check her mouth if you haven't done so already

Hunterj · 16/05/2012 09:09

Usually the flow is faster in the mornings, maybe she is getting frustrated waiting for the milk to flow later in the day. Do you only feel full in the morning? If the answer is yes, then maybe she likes the faster flow and not having to wait! If so, I would try hand expressing before you latch her on, during the day, just enough to get the milk flowing. If you find this helps, I would consider replacing the formula feed in the night for a breastfeed to keep your supply up, which may increase your flow rate slightly. If she fusses later on in the feed, you could try breast compressions.

Hunterj · 16/05/2012 09:24

Can I just ask a random question, if baby doesn't take a full feed, do you offer same side next feed or do you swap sides anyway. Have you tried an Ergo baby carrier, mine will only feed in that when we are out, I couldn't cope without it!

Hunterj · 16/05/2012 09:30

Ignore last post re carrier etc, came up in wrong post!

IvanaNap · 16/05/2012 11:11

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn as this poster has privacy concerns.

sharklet · 16/05/2012 16:21

Here's an idea and it may be controversial, but you already mentioned giving her one formula feed during the day and that this was the only calm feed. It is possible she is suffering from "nipple confusion". It is much easier for a baby to get the latch on a bottle and hammer away than it is (at first) on the breast - well for some anyway. I had problems with DD and I would suggest two possible things to at least try which may help you bridge the gap while you persist in trying to get the regular breastfeeding down.

Firstly have you tried expressing feeds? I used to express and freeze small feeds every day so hubby could bond too - but it could also help you in that it could help you establish the level of feed required by expressing and you could give some of expressed milk to baby in a bottle. Try using one of the teats that mimics a mothers breast (I can't remember the make but they are out there and easy to find) and make sure you use one for newborns, not a later teat with a larger hole - the ones for older babies make them lazy when it comes to breastfeeding as well.

My main advice wold be to get into contact with La Leche League or NCT and work with a breastfeeding counsellor in your area. I had awful problems getting feeding established with DD, and they really really helped, but you have to persist!

Good Luck x

TessTosterone · 16/05/2012 16:28

Ds2 did this and it was reflux. Gaviscon was a miracle. Having said that I would have thought it would happen with breast and bottle as it did with him.

nickelbabe · 16/05/2012 16:30

another thing, it could be something in the ear.

or she could be coming down with a cold?

This morning, DD wouldn't stop crying - I tried to feed her on both sides, but she wouldn't calm down.
I picked her up and put her on my shoulder (thought cuddle if nothing else works!) and she puked.
I think it was wind.

But you must must must keep persevering to get help from a professional.
don't let them fob you off, and keep asking for help!

olimpia · 16/05/2012 18:22

What is different about the night and morning feeds that are much calmer? Do you feed lying down during those feed or are your boobs fuller? I think you need RL help here. If you rule out all the usual culprits - thrush, TT, reflux - then I think it could be a supply issue: either letdown is too fast (could be if the only good feeds are laying down) or too slow.

Original poster

SailorVie · 16/05/2012 23:23

Thank you so much for the responses, we went to the GP today who said it looked like thrush (white patches on DD's tongue, breast pain and sore nipples in me, along with the screaming during feeds) We've been prescribed nystatin drops for DD and nystatin cream for me.

I'm hoping this will solve the problem in the next week, otherwise it's back to square one!

OP posts:

Original poster

SailorVie · 16/05/2012 23:28

I feel so bad, tonight I cracked and gave DD a bottle of formula in the early evening. After a day of having my nipples chomped on, and the screaming (the breastfeeding room at the Natural History Museum was a particularly fun location to scare off the new mums with my red faced angry little DD who kept pulling off every few sucks... I was feeling sore, stressed and pissed off.

I just hope I haven't messed up my supply. :(

OP posts:

whenwill · 17/05/2012 09:51

I had this from about week 7. also gave one expressed bottle a day. spoke to lll who said it could be flow confusion. Wouldn't suck to keep up supply so kept diminishing starting with eve feed each time. Was determined so I pumped in afternoon and now just in eves. to keep up bigger supply which means more flow in first/second let down (and pump for expressed bottle in eve.) If you are full in night FEED as this is one of the best times to help keep up your milk. Baby more focus and calm and often sucks better when sleepy. If you give formula- pump! otherwise your milk really will just go down if baby not sucking.

nickelbabe · 17/05/2012 10:30

you'll be fine, don't worry.

think of it as giving yourself a little tiny break while the nystatin kicks in.

and keep feeding as much as you can!

Meggymoodle · 17/05/2012 12:52

Hope this clears up for you soon. If it doesn't, ask your GP to prescribe floconozole for you. Mine didn't clear up with cream and it was a right pain - literally and metaphorically. It went eventually but I'm sure if I'd caught it earlier with the right meds it would've been easier.

The other thing that worked for us was feeding when DS was asleep. He was a brilliant dream-feeder so during one horrendous period I waited until he had fallen asleep in the evening and then latched him on asleep. They generally take a full feed completely fuss-free.

Good luck with it. It's not a nice time :(

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