Help! baby lost interest in feeding (16 weeks)

[dazedandconfunded]

My DS, exclusively bf and always an efficient feeder, has more or less stopped eating yesterday and today. She just takes a few sucks, then stops and looks around or grabs my necklace to play with. I latch her back on, she takes another suck, then loses interest again. She is very happy in herself, however, no crying for food or anything else - just does not seem interested.

I have just weaned her off nipple shields and wonder if this makes a difference, though for the last week she has been managing without them quite happily. I wonder if being without the shields has made my supply increase, because she does choke now and again as if she gets a bigger mouthful than she was expecting, and is extra burpy. But even so, she can't be getting enough.

In the past, she has never been a sucky / greedy baby - feeds like a little hoover every three hours and isn't bothered in between. If I waited for her to ask, it would be four hours. She has one feed in the night, but I get her up for it rather than waiting for her to wake. I would be very happy for her to feed more often, as you can probably gather, because her weight gain isn't stellar - 3 to 5 ounces per week. But if I put her on before she's due she just isn't interested - as I demonstrated to a surprised hv. I had stopped worrying about this because she has always been very happy and smiley, and a prodigious poo-er and wee-er - but now I am getting upset.

Please don't get upset. Babies are very good at taking just what they want and what they need.
I doubt the nipple shields are the problem because you said that she has been feeding for a week without them.
You say she is happy and just doesn't seem interested. In that case, all you can do is to make sure that feeding is available to her as often and for as long as she wants it.
You'll find that her feeding increases again when she hits her next growth spurt. You only really need to worry if she seems in pain, uncomfortable or isn't getting enough.
Trust her to take as much as she wants and you'll find it all far less stressful. She's probably getting far more than you realise in the short time that she's latched on for.

If she is happy, alert and is producing regular wet nappies, I wouldnt worry

my friends ds did this,stopped feeding all of a sudden,turned out she was pregnant.Must have been the taste of the milk that altered and put him off.I know it pregnancy doesn't affect the feeding for lots of babies but it definately did for this one.Could it be a possibility?

EEEEK! I hope not.

Pregnancy v unlikely, actually. Nor has my diet changed so milk should be just as usual.

She is chewing her hands non-stop, though, which I usually associate with hunger. Maybe a tooth?

bump

My little girl is 17 weeks and I am experiencing exactly the same. The last three days very short feeding times, fairly sporadically, but an otherwise healthy, very happy and smiley baby. She has always been an excellent feeder (since the moment of birth practically!) and it is really hard not to get upset about this; I just hope it's a phase that she will pass through. I keep trying and she is eating but there has certainly been a real loss of interest. Very weird. Try not to worry, that's what everyone tells me!

yes, maybe her teeth are hurting?
just try and persist and keep offering a feed and see how it goes.
obviously watch out for her nappies and keep an eye on her in case she gets listless or unhappy.
hopefully it is just a phase, maybe you could see how things go until tomorrow? and then revisit the situation?

Thanks for coming back to me, ladies.

I think it is dd's teeth that are at the root of the problem - her clothes are wet through and she is chewing everything. Certainly, her reluctance to concentrate on the breast is more than just the 'distractability' described on kellymom, but she is very well in herself (or was, before she had her jabs today, poor soul).

To my surprise, the hv was totally unconcerned about a 3 oz per week weight gain, and did not push formula or solids! She actually advised me to feed less often. I know this will have Tiktok up in arms, but given the way dd fights the breast at the best of times, I am going to see if she will settle down better for bigger, less frequent feeds. I have been trying to feed her more often than she demands, because going more than three hourly seems too long at 4m - but maybe not. Left to herself she goes through the night as well (I currently wake her up for a feed). I will go with her flow for a bit and see what happens.

Don't know if it's just a coincidence but E has been much, much better today after I expressed and Daddy fed her from a bottle for last feed last night. Seems to have broken the cycle and it gave me a rest from the heartbreak and frustration of trying! I think you are right about the teeth, lots of dribble here too! Just an idea, you sound like a great Mum doing a great job anyway.

Thanks Biffo - it's so easy to lose confidence and kind words make all the difference!

I wish dd would take a bottle but she isn't keen. It would give my poor nips a rest - she is teething on them, too ...

good plan to just go with the flow
best of luck, let us know how it goes
HC xx

how is it going dazed and confounded?

My baby is 16 weeks too and shoves fist, muslin, teddy bear etc etc in her mouth all the time (some days worse than others).

I think it might be some sort of pre-teething pain (can't believe one is cutting through just yet) and I give her Teetha granules - a homeopathic thing made by Nelsons every few days if she seems particularly uncomfortable. She seems to like them and find them soothing.

Wouldn't worry too much about the feeding. They seem to go in fits and starts. My baby is exclusively bf too and sometimes just isn't interested. She had been happily going through the night (well 9pm - 4am - does that count?) but then last week she started waking every 2 hours and would only settle when fed. Last night she slept through again. Maybe growth spurts...

Well, the nursing strike is over (though the biting isn't - ugh).

I find it hard to go with her flow though - I get anxious because she waits such a long time between feeds. I fed her at 4am this morning, she woke again at 8am - but didn't want feeding until 10.30! I couldn't help sticking her on in the meantime but she just arched her back and fought. She then had a short suck at 12.30, and that is that so far today. However, she is very happy and chortly, and pooing and weeing, so I will try not to worry. I had always assumed that demand feeding entailed more feeds than under a routine, but apparently not!