7 week old baby never seems full

[PoppyPeaches]

hi!
I have a beautiful chunky baby boy who is 7 weeks old. I am mainly breastfeeding with one formula bottle given around 9.30pm for bed as by then I am exhausted and feel like I have no milk. My baby is hungry ALL the time… and would feed constantly if I let him, but I cap his feeds at 60mins as I have had enough by then, however he usually continues to show hunger cues just after finishing.
he was a big baby at birth (95th percentile), and since then has continually gained double the weight he needs to, and is now 98th percentile, and does constant wet nappies through the day, so I feel like he must be getting enough. Every day he cluster feeds from around 4pm until bed which is really hard but I let him as I don’t want my supply to dwindle and I really want breastfeeding to work, but I’m really struggling as I can’t blame a growth spurt as it’s been going on since the beginning.
i Have seen numerous lactation consultants and breastfeeding specialists as he has a persistently shallow latch, and therefore I have resorted to using a nipple shield (on their suggestion) as he refuses to latch at all without it (I think this is partly because we had to introduce a bottle early as I was very ill after birth and consequently had no milk for the first week). I now have plenty of milk and my breasts feel much emptier after he feeds so I know he is getting something, along with double the weight gain he needs, and Around 10-12 soaking wet nappies per day).

he will happily nap in the sling or car seat during the day, but not really in his Moses basket as I don’t think he is full enough to get into a deep sleep. Even when he has a large bottle he still cries for more, so I know he has a huge appetite! It’s just starting to really get me down that I spend literally all day feeding my baby but I can’t satisfy him. My MIL says my hubby was exactly the same as a baby and she was advised to give him bottles of water but obviously this isn’t a thing now.

is anyone else in the same boat?

thanks so much if you got this far! Xxxx

He is satisfied, he's having a great time snuggled in feeling safe against your boob while snacking as he goes. Totally totally normal for his age. In a month or so he'll be much more awake and nosey and won't feed so constantly (but may still feed often, just for not as long). You're doing great, he sounds like a lovely chubby baby who is thriving.

Does he have signs of silent reflux?

This can cause comfort eating and overeating. The feeding soothes the reflux but then causes discomfort with the solution of feed again.

During one period of silent reflux at 13 months my daughter went from have 1-2 5 Oz bottles of formula overnight to 5 and desperate for more as if we hadn't fed her. She was breastfeed until 11 months and she had a shallow latch and issues with feeding because of the silent reflux and dairy allergies.

No experience but a couple of my friends with feed forever babies had floppy larynx, sorry I don't know the proper term for it but might be something else to look into.

Will he take a dummy? Sounds like he has a strong desire to suckle rather than being hungry.

Your baby is that age where they cluster feed lots, consistently seem hungry and are now establishing your supply.

The only other things I can think of is latching / tounge tie issues (60 min + feeds?)

And silent reflux (seeming hungry even after having big bottles)

With silent reflux baby is constantly searching for milk to sooth their throat but the constant feeding makes reflux worse

Thankyou for your kind reply! I think part of the problem is he’s hard to distract between feeds as he’s still so young, and the bad weather has made going out with the pram or sling hard recently! That’s good to hear that in anther few weeks he’ll be more aware so hopefully I can play with him a bit more and hopefully stretch it out which will help my sanity!

Thanks for your reply! I’ve just googled silent reflux and I don’t think he has any other symptoms, however we have our 8 week GP appointment next week so I will ask and see whether they think it could be that, and also the larynx thing too - thanks! He sleeps really well at night for his age, and I assumed the reflux would also be a problem then and make him uncomfortable but who knows?

thabks for your reply! He will sometimes take a dummy but sometimes spits it out! This afternoon I was feeding and after about 30mins the sucking had really slowed so I swapped nipple for dummy, and managed to soothe him to sleep that way - and he slept for 2hrs! It was on me and I couldn’t move, but still going to take it as a win!

Thanks for the reply! Yes I’ve read there is a growth spurt at 6-7 weeks so maybe that’s making this particularly intense! Yea the 60 minute feeds are a killer, but he does seem to be consistently sucking and getting milk for most of this time anyway - the feeding specialist said some babies feed for ages at this age and everything is fine, but it does feel excessive!
today I’ve capped his feeds at 45 mins and then swapped a dummy into his mouth which has worked, and he did one feed where he came off himself after 25 mins, and I’ve been bobbing him in the sling after which has kept him content.
ive looked at the other symptoms of silent reflux and don’t think he has any, however im at the GP next week anyway so I’ll mention it and see what they think, thanks!

Do you switch sides when the sucking slows? That might help speed up the feeds.

I think see it through a couple more weeks and go from there! 6-7 weeks can be the hardest but if you get through this phase you’ll probably be grateful you continued breast feeding and get through xx

My eldest had awful silent reflux and allergies. It started young but around 7-10 weeks it started to get worse and it was predominantly in the day time it was only from about 12 weeks on that it was constant. At this point it was causing feeding aversions and she breastfeed for a total of 1-2 minutes between 10 am and 8pm but feed more overnight.

My second is nearly 6 months and has had a bit of reflux but no where near as bad. Around 2-3 months he got a bit of silent reflux in the evenings. He did a lot of comfort feeding during the "witching hours" but was getting more milk than he was wanting. I have a good supply and a fast letdown and basically any sucking sets off full force spray (thank goodness for a wipeable sofa!) we got some infant gaviscon from the GP at his 8 weeks check and we used this 2 or 3 times a week if he seemed to be doing a lot of feeding in the evening. This thickens the feeds so they are harder to reflux. We also would offer a dummy if he had had a good feed but still wanted to suckle. If he was still rooting after a couple of minutes I would offer the breast again if he had settled in left him with the dummy

Both have mine have most contact napped. I've leaned in. My first was in my arms constantly which was tough. My second is much happier to be put down and I can some times transfer him from my arms to the cot asleep. He has been a very sleepy baby our routine from about 3 months has been to have sleepi-feedi naps most of the morning. We drop my eldest of at school then snuggle on the sofa and he sleeps and feeds on and off from about 9.30 until 12.30-1. the amount of feeding varies day to day. He is then more alert in the afternoon but has a couple of shorter naps. If he is having a growth spurt he can feed and nap most of the afternoon too. If the sucking slows I pop him off and if he starts actively feeding again I pop him on the other side. If he just wants the comfort of the nipple in his mouth I leave him be

"Every day he cluster feeds from around 4pm until bed" totally normal at that age, mine did the same. Do not worry at all about trying to get him to nap in a moses basket, mine didn't nap in her cot til she was over 12 months old. Just enjoy the contact naps, or use a sling if you want to use your hands/ move around. In a few weeks he'll be more alert and hopefully better weather means you can get out and about, and he'll be distracted. Get some good shows on netflix whilst you feed!

I would take the wins re sleeping well at night and great weight gain. And enjoy the time on the sofa feeding your baby! Mine also fed for very long periods at this stage (and went from 75th to 98th centile)… I remember one night feed where he fed1h15m continuously and protested when I tried to unlatch him after 50 mins. Eventually he chilled out a bit!!