3 week old with cold and gunky eyes? gp or normal

[Foxaroo]

my baby is 3 weeks old and i think he might have a cold. his dad had a cold when he came over at the weekend and was holding him and now this morning my baby seems a bit sniffly and both his eyes were really gunky when he woke up. like yellowy stuff stuck in the corners. i wiped it with warm water and it came off but it looked horrible.

im breastfeeding and normally he feeds every 2 to 3 hours pretty much like clockwork but today hes not really that interested. he did feed this morning but it was shorter than usual and then the next time he kind of just fussed and didnt stay on long.

hes still waking up and looking around but just seems a bit off compared to normal and im stressing that hes so little still.

do i need to ring the gp about this or is it just a normal baby cold thing? ive never dealt with a baby being ill before so i dont know when its something you should get checked.

sorry if this is a daft question im just a bit worried x

If he's drinking less and therefore having less wet nappies than normal I'd definitely take him. The gunky eyes and snuffling are normal though, assuming he's not sucking in at his ribs or between his collar bone, or flaring his nostrils when he breathe in.

3 weeks is so tiny, get him checked by a GP, they’d happily see a baby this small rather than taking any risks. A mild cold can become more
serious quickly when this small

Agree with PPs better safe than sorry. Also breast milk works wonders for conjunctivitis and gunky eyes, squirt it in and it’ll genuinely clear it up most of the time!

I would use breastmilk or cooled boiled water on a cotton pad to wipe his eyes. Mine had conjunctivitis at that age and ita horrible seeing them all gooey eyed.

As you're less than 28days pp i think you can still get the midwife out/ call them if you're concerned. Or go to the GP.
Personally if still having wet/ dirty nappies and no extreme temperatures I'd just treat at home but I can understand needing a medical opinion if you're worried.

its absolutely worth getting him checked if you feel his feeding is off, your health visitor might be able to check him too if you’re due a visit. With feeding, they feed less as breathing whilst sucking is exhausting when they are congested so try feeding little and often, there’s not an awful lot you can do for them at this age but keep a close eye intact gp can see them and don’t be afraid to call for further advice if you’re worried. Hope he’s better soon op

Yes, GP or health visitor because so tiny.

There’s an ointment which at least used to be given for the gunky eyes.