Baby crying non stop

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I have a 6 week old, I love him so much but I’m struggling with his constant crying. If he isn’t feeding (ENF) he is crying and inconsolable.

i do the full baby MOT - clean nappy, not too warm/cold, feed on demand, comfy clothing etc. he also barely sleeps, he will sleep for a 2 hour stretch in the sling only. He’s awake most of the day. I really really struggle to settle him. I don’t know whether he can smell my milk and it confuses him? After he is done feeding he fusses and cries on the boob and then he gets set off.

I try singing, rocking, bouncing, fresh air (hates the pram). Even in the sling today he screamed and wouldn’t settle. My husband can settle him eventually by bouncing on the ball, but I’ve tried it over and over and he won’t sleep for me.

its so hard, I just want to be able to enjoy my baby.
went to the GP and was told this is just how babies can be, and to ride it out (could take months apparently…)

I’m sleep deprived, solo feeding him and getting no peace. The house is a state all week until the weekend when I can parent with my husband and do some chores. He cries held, lying down, in pram, in bouncer etc.

I took him to an osteopath, he said he is full of tension but he didn’t appear to really perform any treatment.

Any words of wisdom?

So sorry to hear this. It sounds like silent reflux which isn't serious long term but very difficult (and common) to manage in these weeks.

The fact he is fussing after feeding rather than content, suggests this.

Could also be dairy allergy.

Sounds exactly like my babies. Things to help are to keep upright especially after feeding, ensure winded (but gently), maybe try dairy free formula.
May need omeprazole from doc. I wouldn't waste time with Gaviscon etc.

I'm so sorry you're having such a hard time. I would start by seeing someone for breastfeeding, an IBCLC if you can but whoever you can access. Hopefully you have a local breastfeeding support group? Babies do cry, some cry lots but the fact he's not settled even briefly after feeding suggests there might be something else going on. My son was like this and he had a dairy allergy; I cut out dairy and could continue breastfeeding, but i think you'd be best to check there's no issues with milk removal first.

Is his weight gain ok and tracking the percentile line? Mine was like this because of low milk supply and never getting enough milk. Like a different baby once we were supplementing.

He is gaining weight really well whilst I EBF, but barely gained anything the first 3 weeks due to tongue tie. It’s sad because after struggling with breastfeeding I really like it now and finally have the hang of it but it’s disheartening not being able to settle my baby. I did speak to the GP about reflux but she said they are oversubscribing medication and she won’t consider it unless he is still like this in a few weeks
i have thought about cutting dairy!

Would a local BF support be able to determine if my supply is low? I assumed not because of the steady weight gain

I am thinking your baby might be crying from being overtired.

They can only stay awake for about 2 hours at most at this age (if I remember well, mine are teenagers).

I would watch for signs of tiredness and act promptly. You see the first yawn - you have 10 minutes max to change his nappy and to take him somewhere quiet. Pat him gently between the shoulder blades on your shoulder first, then try putthing him down when he is almost asleep, rolls onto his side, keep patting for 15-20 minutes, then roll him onto his back, step aside and hope for the best. This is from Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems book, pp. 180-181(I hope I got the pages right).

Baby Whisperer does not recommend rocking or bouncing as it tends to overstimunlate babies. She used to work as a neonatal nurse so she knows a lot about settling babies. Ignore her breastfeeding advice, the rest of the book is very good. You need the 2nd edition, with the yellow cover.

I hope it helps

You poor thing, it’s awful when they can’t be consoled. Yes some babies are like this but not without a cause, colic just means unexplained crying but these days we often can explain it if we look. I would look at reflux and allergies (cows milk protein is most likely but not the only one) might be worth cutting dairy from your diet and seeing if that helps?

If baby is feeding a normal amount and growing, enough wees and poos etc, then your supply is fine.

Or just breastfeed to sleep in 5-10 mins while you lie there and save yourself all this work!

I completely agree he is overtired, but fights and fights the sleep. I will definitely look at that advice because our techniques have been very focussed on movement up until now. I wish he would sleep more, I’m running on empty!

Should be fine if the weight gain is tracking the line and not dropping. Mine was dropping percentile lines.

He dropped from 50th to 6th at first because of the undiagnosed tongue tie, but now he is 10th and seems to be steadily climbing

He doesn’t BF to sleep anymore sadly, not since week 2/3

Coming from someone who has had a lot of babies they do not sleep well regardless of what you change atm. Some will cry more from colic if your absolutely sure baby has a full tummy. But hang on it will still be a few wmore weeks before the sleep pattern increases. Tbh for 2 of mine I gave up bf because it was exhausting and I needed hubby to look after the twins so I got sleep. With the singles hubby would take babies while I went upstairs to get sleep to share the load when he was in from work

Tongue tie can affect their ability to latch effectively so he won’t have stimulated enough supply early on, hence the poor weight gain. Mine dropped from 75th to 25th percentile and ended up being readmitted. What he’s doing now is playing catch up to up your supply- the fussing around and not being content after feeds. In theory once your supply catches up things should settle down.

Try excluding dairy from your diet although it does take a few days (possibly a couple of weeks I am not sure) to leave their system. The fact he fusses more after feeding makes me convinced it is this or reflux (or both).

Has he always been hiccupy? Does he scrunch up rather than go floppy after feed? = Reflux pain

Does he have any spots or rashes = could be dairy.

I remember these days, they are very difficult and even tomorrow wouldn't be soon enough for a fix, but you will get through it. Big hug.

Unlikely that you have low supply of he’s gaining weight nicely. There’s nothing that you’ve posted so far that would suggest that your supply is low.

It could be that he’s “catching up” and things will settle soon.

Some things you can try are offering a feed every two hours in the day and using Breast Compressions.

Have you started to go to your local BFing Support Group too yet?