2 weeks old and I can't tell the difference between wind and hunger!

[waawaawaa]

Hi

My baby is just over 2 weeks and being breastfed. I'm struggling to tell the difference between him crying after what would seem like a full feed (20 mins on each breast)because he's still hungry or because he's got wind.

He howls in the late afternoon / evening and i have read that it could be because I'm not producing enough milk and so he's just taking in air when he feeds. Has this happened to anyone else and how can I tell if this what's happenning with us?

Many thanks in advance.

Congratulations waaawaaa on your new baby. And it is completely normal to be unable to tell the difference between wind and hunger!

The best way to tell if your baby is getting enough milk is not by whether he cries or not, to be honest, but by the number of wees and poos and by his weight gain. Lots of crying is normal, I'm afraid, especially in the late afternoon/ evening. It certainly surprised me with my baby and made me doubt myself.

A specialist on bf will be along in a minute, no doubt, but I just wanted to say have faith in your boobs! And maybe ring your MW, or if you are discharged, your HV in the morning? And/ or one of the helplines, like the NCT breastfeeding helpline, which was very useful to me. Just google them.

By the way, there's only one baby book I recommend, and that's this one. your baby week by week because it is written by a paediatrician and is quite precise about how much milk and crying and poos etc. you might expect week by week. It certainly doesn't say anything about babies who cry in the evening taking in only air!

Hello wawawaaa!
Babies often do fuss alot at this time of the day, especially when they are this young.

Personally I would just offer your LO one breast and then if they seem hungry, offer the other side. Don't worry too much about timing feeds or routine - just be guided by your baby.

I know it's tempting, but try not to read too many books. I did this with my first one and just got totally confused by all the different regimes and views. Now, I just trust my instincts and take the lead from my nbaby.

A windy baby usually will arch the back or bring knees up to the chest.

As long as you are feeding often then your body will make enough milk for your LO.
Good luck and congratulations!

Totally normal not to know the difference. I was am a HV and when DS was born had been a midwife for over 10 years. With other people's babies I was an expert but with my own - let's just say I as so emotionally involved I couldn't see the wood for the trees. So DS would be screaming with colic and the midwife in me would say "it's colic fgs don't give him anymore food", but the mother in me would be wringing her hands and saying "but what if he's hungry". The mother inevitably won over, DS would have more food (whch he would puke everywhere because he was crying with wind and not hunger) before settling down.

Thank you all for helping me feel better about the milk production.

Jolly Pirate, our experiences sound similar. I think he's got wind (knees up etc) but I can't help offering more food "just in case" and worried I'm making it worse - which it sounds like maybe I am. So how do you know when to stop the feeding and wait for him to get over the wind and do you have any tips for helping to get the wind up or is that late afternoon howling just something I have to cope with?

Does anything here help? Tiger in the tree hold was popular in this household.

mumsnet advice

Take good care of yourself- it is wearing I remember well, but it does pass, honest.

Waa - in the end I gave myself a rule that if he'd fed in the previous hour that the crying was probably down to wind.

DS did the later afternoon/evening howling for several weeks (usually from 5pm to 9pm) after which he would take a feed and then crash out. Thankfully after a few weeks he began to settle down and much of it stopped.

As domesticslattern says above - it is very wearing but does pass. DS is 7 now but the memories of those early days is still fresh. Nowadays the only howling in the evening is when he turns into a devil child who doesn't want to go to bed. Bless!