A few ? Re; combi feeding, formula brands, continuous nursing and a LOT of cryigg

[MrsGiraffe12]

DD is 3 weeks old and combi fed. She mostly has breast milk in the day with and occasional formula top up, and has formula from her 10pm feed to 6am where she's back to the boob. My questions are:

1. suddenly she has started wanting to be on the boob all day everyday. And will cry when she's not there and will only settle when she has a bottle (4oz of aptimil). Is the because a) she's having a growth spurt b) comfort (she won't take a dummy) c) not enough milk. Should I just give her bottle all the time instead and see if it settles her?

2. she seems to guzzle 4oz of formula back and then be unsettled till I offer her a boob top up. Is it time to up her feed to 5oz? Is that too much for her? She's 8lb 4oz

3. she seems very colicky on aptimil, and cries between 8pm and midnight. I've tried infacol and dentinox colic stuff to no avail, would it be worth changing her formula brand? Or do I need to consult HV on this one? Any recommendations on milk brand?

Thanks so much, were at our wits end with the crying baby x

Sounds normal. There is a 3 week growth spurt have a look at kellymom on growth spurts for more details. They are just trying to build your milk supply so keep offering the breast to encourage your supply to increase.

It is normal also for them to be unsettled in the evening and cluster feed. Mine have always fed on and off between 6-11 every night for a couple of months.

Mine is only a week old and she is boob monster 6pm-midnight. Like, i just sit there pasding her from one side to the other. MW said it's to help me produce milk fast/enough for the next phase of development and she will have these phases on and off. Could it be that? I was worried about "enough" milk but apparently her nappies are "beautiful " not sure if that's the word I would use!

It's a bit of a PITA though when she just feeds and feeds! But I guess that's why we have maternity leave!

She is trying to build your supply. Is there any particular reason you're using formula at night and topping up with formula? Night time breast feeds are very important for building supply. She'll also feed more frequently, building your supply quicker, if you drop the top ups.

Fussing at the breast is totally normal. The more you feed, the less fussy she'll get.

It's horrendous but sounds really normal based on my experience with dd1, I was attached to the sofa with a boob out permanently from about 430-midnight :) it does honestly get better if you can stick it out, I think 16 wks was the turning point for me...

It will actually probably get worse unless you bf over night. Going from 10pm until 6am with no bf or expressing will reduce your supply down and down unless you are really lucky.

I think you do sound like you need to speak to your hv so you can work through your options together

MrsGiraffe have you had a chance to talk over what you are doing with a bf counsellor or someone who has some knowledge about breastfeeding?

Going 10pm to 6 am with no breastfeeding so early on is going to have a detrimental effect on your milk supply - your baby may well be increasing her needs for bf in the day as a result of this.

If you are keen to continue bf, it would be a good idea to discuss your options - the way things are at present seem to be very upsetting for both of you.

Hope you find good help soon.