DS refuses left breast

[Mummyfor3]

My DS is now 18 weeks old and apart from slightly slow weight gain very well however he has started to refuse the left breast is the last couple of weeks. He will latch on alright, but then fidget and moan (with his mouth full of breast and milk), throw his head back and forth, pull on the breast with his hand (ouch!) and then come off crying inconsolably. As soon as I put him to R breast he settles down, drinks well and falls off like a satisfied leech!
BTW, I have always been able to express less from L breast than R and am wondering whether there is less milk there. Having said that positionwise, the left is my preferred breast and I do not think that it has been stimulated less than the right, on the contrary.
Any ideas?

It may be that he is uncomfortable lying on that side and has the equivalent of a cricked neck / tight neck muscles or similar. You could try taking him to see a cranial osteopath?

I have considered that, Thankyou, and although I wonder, why now?? I may well go down that route. He does the same however whichever way I hold him (cradle, cross cradle, rugby, or lying down). I have just fed him again (he is now asleep in the garden ) and it was a real struggle. Neither him nor I are enjoying feeds at the moment.

Have you tried holding him the right breast way round but on the left breast? So that he thinks he's on the right breast, but is actually on the left... You might need extra cushions for this one, but it has worked for me on the odd times ds has refused a particular side...

That's a good idea and it will also help identify if it's problematic on the left side because he's uncomfortable!

Sometimes babies are just a bit funny... my ds hasn't got a side preference in particular - he just sometimes really doesn't want the one I offer, but wants the other one!