nightmare feeds

[Suzfluz]

hi there, this is my first time on mumsnet...my daughter is 15 weeks and is having real problems feeding, she is bottle fed and has started crying at feed times. I feed her 4 hourly, I have tried differant bottles and teets, I have taken her to docs and I speak regularly to health visitor and no one can help. She fusses, crys and arches her back at feeds, what then happens is she becomes so exausted with crying that she eventually feeds, this can take well over an hour and is very stressful for us both. We have tried infant gaviscon which seemed to work for a few days and she has reverted back to crying. Today I have changed her milk from SMA gold to Aptamil easy digest, so I will see how that works, I also have made an appointment with a cranial osteopath for next week to see if that will help..
GP and health visitor have no idea what the problem is and seem unconcerned as she is gaining wait...the reason she is gaining wait is because I persevere, the strain is starting to get to me and I am beginning to dread feeds.....
Has anyone any ideas???

Sorry no ideas but welcome to MN and bumping for you.

Welcome to mumsnet, it sounds like feeding ttime isnt much fun for either of you, I cant say if there is anything stopping her feeding, or if she is getting stressed, a couple of things I would suggest are having her checked for thrush on her tongue, is it particularly white, check just before a feed, this can be really painful and stop her wanting to feed, the other prop her up quite high when she feeds see if it makes a difference. The only other thing is try and stay calm and enjoy as much of this time as you can. This may just be a phase that finishes all of a sudden

A friend of mine had a very similar experience and she said the cranial osteopathy really helped calm the situation down. If it doesn't you could go back to your doctor and insist they refer you to a pediatrician, don't take no for an answer! AGain that's what my friend had to do.
Good luck.

Suzfluz, you might find the change of formula makes a difference....might take a couple of days.

Is there any chance you might think about breastfeeding? It is possible to relactate - never easy if it is some time since you switched (or didn't start) but it makes sense to consider it as an option if you feel it is at feed times that she is most distressed and uncomfortable...if you want to know more, just ask

Hi everyone, thanks for the messages, have changed her milk as of yesterday to aptimal easy digest, and have also stretched her feed times longer so she is actually hungrier....so far so good!! she has fed very well today, drank 6 ounces at each feed and not a single fight!! however not getting too excited yet....as may all go pear shaped. Deceided to let her take the lead more, which is hard at first as I am slightly obessessed with routine!
Thanks for your notes, I have checked her tongue and all is well, and as for breast feeding I wish I could, however i wont go into detail, but we tried and ended up in hopsital twice with a poorly baby (insufficient milk).
Will keep you posted on the cranial osteopath...which is also for her head, she has plageocephaly! I know she sounds like a right nightmare...shes gorgeous really!
We will get sorted, am feeling positive!

Hi Suz

Only just seen this. How are things going? My dd was exactly the same. She had this at about four weeks, and then it cleared up - and then came back again at about ten weeks. It sounds like silent reflux. What helped with us was putting her back on the newborn teats after having graduated to the number two teats. Also keeping her really upright for feeding.

Hi there, things are better thanks, she still has her moments, but there is a definite improvement, the cranial oesteopath was really helpful too and said that her head, neck and body are twisted/ mis-aligned so that could also be making feeding uncomfortable for her. We have 3 more sessions booked and will then re-assess.