Baby growth spurt/5 week wonder?

[Mums123456789]

So I’m a new mum to a 5 week old baby girl. She has generally been good (as much a new little ones can be at this age) but I have noticed the last 4 days she has been very very fussy, crying all the time (if she’s not feeding she’s crying) she’s not sleeping at all. She may get 20/30 mins then wake and that will continue throughout the day. She feeds every 3 hours (on formula). When researching it seems to be a growth spurt? Has anyone else experienced this and how long did it last? A very tired mummy looking for some light at the end of the tunnel. We don’t have any family/friend support where we live as we have recently moved to a new area so we’re feeling it for sure and definitely me.
I’ve been to the GP to check it’s not reflux related and although they have given gaviscon they didn’t think it is but couldn’t rule anything out as there’s no test!
Any advice would be great.

Hi - hope you're doing ok today! Im not sure I have much advice but wanted to reply. I have a 9 week old and she definitely had a growth spurt around week 5. The difference in her when looking back at photos from week 4 to week 6 is huge so you could be right. My baby also used to be very fussy and if not feeding she was crying (mostly in evenings) and I used to put this down to cluster feeding and usual evening fussiness but then I learnt more about wake windows and realised she was possibly just over tired and cranky as I wasn't keeping on top of the naps as the day went on - and definitely not in an evening as I thought this meant she wouldn't sleep as well at night 🤦🏼‍♀️. Since I've encouraged more naps the fussiness reduced loads (could be coincidental though as she might have grown out of the fussiness anyway). Is there anyway you can help her to nap longer? Mine usually doesn't nap long in her cot or anywhere stationary but if I hold her, pop her in the sling/carrier or in the pushchair she sleeps for much longer - sometimes up to 2hrs and she's much less cranky the more sleep she has. What's her sleep like at night? I breastfeed so can't really offer much advice on formula but have you tried offering her more? I usually just feed on demand when mine is being fussy to help calm her but I appreciate this is different for formula fed babies so hopefully someone else might be able to offer better advice to you on that one!

Hi,
Thank you so much for replying. It’s nice to hear someone else’s story instead of just googling. I think I got into that with the sleep. I thought I’d try keep her awake a little longer but as you said it just doesn’t help matters when she’s already grumpy when she’s awake. I’m hoping to ride it out of the next week and see if she starts to settle again. Is your little more more settled now?
Thanks again for replying. It’s lovely to talk to someone else than my partner or family. I’m the first one of my friends to have a baby so very limited to who I can off load too!

@Mums123456789 yes she's a lot more settled now. I'd say we turned a big corner at 4 weeks then another at 6 weeks when the fussiness really seemed to tail off. She can still be a bit more cranky in an evening but she's generally quite easy to settle now and I make sure she naps in an evening.

I'm also guilty for googling everything but I've learnt every baby is different and what works for one person/baby might not for the next but I do find it reassuring/helpful to hear others experiences too. It's a bit of a cliche but I now believe everything is a phase which soon changes but I remember feeling quite overwhelmed in the first few weeks at times because I didn't really know/trust that these phases soon pass.