2 week old bf problems-confused, please help!

[evelynj]

My 2 week old dd has started having problems latching on-just in the last few days (she's developed colic in this time also). She was pretty good before this but now, especially in the morning or after a big nap, it can take 1-2 hours to get her to feed. I'm worried she's not feeding enough although she seems content with what she gets. It's hard to know because of the colicky crying but she can be awake & alert when being walked about & she doesn't cry for food.
Should I be trying to feed her every 2-3 hours at this stage? It seems a bit pointless as she flat out won't cooperate

Today she fed at 6am, 10.30am until nearly midday (both sides), then mostly slept until 3.30 then woke & cried-wouldn't latch on til 4.30. She got more hysterical during this time if I tried to feed her & wouldn't latch on. It seems like she wasn't hungry but she often goes more than 3 hours from the start of a feed. She's a little jaundice & sleeps a lot in the day & then usually wakens to scream Constantly from 10pm -ish til 2am, then she's exhausted herself with screaming & falls asleep

Im not very good at coping with her crying & even though I know I should relax, I always end up in floods of tears when she's upset. Im very close to trying her with a bottle of formula but know I'd be devastated if we stopped bf so soon. Otoh, if formula would be likely to help, surely it's worthwhile? I'm emotionally exhausted!

I've taken her to a cranial osteopath today who says after 24 hours we should see an improvement (fx) but need to go back in a week for another session. Any thoughts or advice greatly appreciated as I feel pretty useless at the minute..

I would (if you haven't already) check with your HV about how often to feed. I would be inclined to try every 3 hours and see how that goes.

I don't think that swapping to formula would make much difference tbh - I'm not sure there's much evidence that formula will help with the colic.

Do you have a partner that can take the baby in between feeds to give you a break?

Hi,

Thanks-my husband can take her in the evenings but he's back at work today, tho my parents are near & supportive.

Mw comes tomorrow-I've been trying to feed 3 hourly (counting from start of last feed), but she really doesn't seem to want it that much & me trying to force feed adds to both our stress-she has been cluster feeding since 4.30 so that's reassured me a bit but also seems that she is able to latch on when she wants to? I guess I'll see what mw says & if baby has put on any weight since last weigh in last week and take it from there, trying to chill out a bit in the meantime....

I think you need some specialist help - could you call one of the breastfeeding helplines tomorrow and speak to a breastfeeding counsellor? There might be someone in your area who can come to see you.

Evelynj - sending you a big virtual hug. I was pretty much in your place a year ago with a very colicky/upset baby and it's awful, just awful. Nothing can prepare you for the situation you are in now, let alone the hormones, tiredness etc.

They say you should try feeding newborns every three hours (from the start of each feed) but I have friends who have let it go longer, if the baby was happy with it. I'd speak to your HV - at this stage you should still have access to that all day phone service they offer. I think many babies go through stages of not feeding well e.g with latching on, moving around etc. Try to persevere if you can. Often newborns may cluster feed (I had a 4 hour session once) and at that time she was probably just taking tiny amounts at a time, but you just have to sit there (put something good on the telly). I used a bottle with expressed milk when I needed a break - can anyone else help?

Some ways that helped my DD's colic crying are:

• laying her on my lap (head by my knees/feet by my sore bits!) on her side and rubbing her back
• swaddling and standing under extractor fan or hairdryer on full
• Anti colic massage (you tube have some examples)
• changing my diet to exclude loads of nice stuff (caffeine, brassicas, chocolate, anything spicy, garlicky, tomatoes, dairy - so I used lactose free milk)
• infacol before every feed
• I also spent a fortune on cranial osteopathy but was a bit sceptical

I know a day may feel like a week at the moment, but I can honestly say IT WILL GET EASIER! Promise :). Is this your first?

I don't think the NHS, NCT etc does enough to prepare you for how hard bf can be for some. Try to keep at it if you can, and it does get easier. As I mentioned before, express if you can (medala swing pump is really good) and then someone else can give you a hand meaning you can sleep for more than an hour! Formula may seem like the easy way out, but I think that increases colic, so it may get worse.

Keep at it and know you're doing a fantastic job xx

Thanks so much for the replies. I started today excluding dairy but osteopath said don't bother at this early stage & I would find it really difficult to exclude dairy. Those are good tips for colicky babes, thanks-will try them. She's calm at the minute & it's so lovely. Knackered though so may try for an early night-think I may have been underestimating how tired I am on 3-6 hours sleep a day!

I have a 3yo son as well but had trouble bf him-it was worse as I had to express loads & try to get him to catch on too.

I may try the breastfeeding helpline tomorrow also-living in hope that the cranial osteopathy has waved a magical wand & cured any ills!

Thanks again :)

nutella - lactose free milk is still a dairy product. Lactose is milk sugar so your body produces it anyway, regardless of what you eat. If your baby was allergic to cow's milk then they would still be affected by lactose free milk.

I wouldn't start eliminating foods from your diet without any reason to think the baby has food intolerances - you still need a good diet for your own health. There's no evidence that things like onions, tomatoes etc get into your bloodstream and milk anyway.

Tongue tie is a possibility. You need someone who really knows what they are doing to assess your baby.

Where are you based?

I'm in Northern Ireland so helps not as readily available tho there is a lactation consultant who I could get round. If I thought it would be money well spent that would be fine but what if she's here for 2 hours+ & baby doesnt want to feed in this time?

Hv has said she's not Tongue tied but has a short Tongue? I feel that theres some sort of Tongue issue tho. Also osteopath said she had tension in her jaw & the therapy shoul have loosened that a bit so should be able to open wider For better latch (in 24 hours).

Does anyone have experience with lactation consultants?

thanks again

"short tongue" is sometimes what people say when they don't recognise a posterior tongue tie. Also, the tension in the jaw which the CO mentions is probably caused by the tension in the frenulum.

It would be worth joining the tongue tie babies support group on facebook and finding out if there is anyone in your area who specialises in tongue tie.