baby will not sleep because of gas

[orzo15]

Is anyone elses baby like this? my baby is 5 weeks old, and since he was probably 1 or 2 weeks old, his sleep is awful because of writhing with gas pains. He will go down beginning of the night for maximum 2 hours, and then its every 20-40 mins the rest of the night unless i hold him. He just won't go on his back in his next to me, i think because its uncomfy with gas on his back and he doesn't get into a deep enough sleep as he just wants comfort. But its killing me, i don't have a partner so am alone during the night with him.

I've got a lot of friends who have just had babies but no one else seems to be struggling with this, or they say their baby is a bad sleeper because they are up every 2-3 hours but honestly that sounds like a dream at this point to have a couple hours sleep in between rather than 20 minutes! Has anyone had the same experience and can give some tips or even just hope?

our baby went through a phase like this, we just had to do lots of bicycle kicks, she’s probably done the Tour De France by now! And tummy massages too. We also kept her upright for about 20 mins after each feed and I would hold her so her back was to my chest, my arm around her chest and under her armpits and have her legs dangling, I’d then move her hips side to side while in this position. I saw a video saying that helps get gas moving. It starting easing around 8 weeks and now she’s 12 weeks we have no gas issues at all

Thank you. I am doing all of this and whilst it does get gas out, it then just seems to build back up and doesn't seem to make a difference to his sleep, as 40 mins later he will be squirming around and wake up crying. I have just had his tongue tie cut yesterday as i think he was taking in a lot of air breastfeeding, so i am hoping that improves things. 8 weeks sounds like such a long time away when hes 5 weeks and i am getting on average 3 hours sleep a night :(

Mine was like this

TT cut should help a lot - give it a week to see improvement

Do you have a fast let down (milk spurts out like a fire hose?!) that can also contribute to wind - if so you may want to try catching the first let down in a cloth, or feeding side lying as this slows the gush.

you will get through this- in another five weeks, the sleep pattern starts to get so much better. Can you safely co sleep? Baby not rolling yet so make sure no loose covers, pillows, sometimes that really helps, keep baby upright over your shoulder or on your chest for 15 minutes after every feed (set a quiet alarm on your phone during the night if you’re worried you’ll drop off asleep) let their legs stretch out as that’s what really helps the gas, their digestive systems are still so new, it will get better. If it continues , could check for any milk allergies.

@minipie i really hope TT helps, did yours have the same problem? Yes i do but the problem is i don't feel the let down so unsure when to take him off to catch it! But i've seen the spray and sometimes he coughs like he can't handle it which definitely must contribute to wind

I actually co slept (safely) last night, i've always said i would never do it and i actually feel guilty about it because i know he's safer in his crib but i couldn't handle it last night with how little sleep i have had and he slept so much better, woke every 1.5-2 hours instead

Co sleeping is safe if you follow the guidelines

Do try side lying feeding - should be easier with the TT cut as latch should be stronger. Really helps if you have fast let down/fast flow. We had the same choking/spluttering issue.

@orzo15 my baby had this and had a cows milk protein allergy so I had to cut out milk from my diet (and take extra calcium) as I was breastfeeding and get special formula for the times I gave him formula. It's worth asking your doctor about this. My baby had some bad nappies but not as bad as cmpa babies normally have and he had a rash.

Have you thought about what you are eating /drinking? If bf this matters!

@minipie I think for now i will have to keep going as its the only way to save my sanity at the moment. I did try side feeding but didnt feel he was latched properly, but maybe will be better with tongue tie cut. Did you notice gas improved after yours had TT cut?

@Overlyanxious I have thought this, will give it a go. How long before you noticed an improvement? He doesn't have any other signs but am desperate at this point so might as well cut it out and see!

I will try cutting dairy out, a lactation consultant said its unlikely as he doesn't have other symptoms. Food wise myself, i am only drinking water and tea with oat milk, oats for breakfast and mainly lately pasta with veggies as its easy

@orzo15 I saw an improvement within a couple of weeks.

Ours had wind and terrible sleep due to dairy and soya allergies. If you do try cutting dairy from your diet to see if it helps, I would consider cutting soya too or at least switching to oat milk not soy milk. Then if you do see a noticeable improvement, you can always try soya and see what happens. The difference was noticeable within a couple of days for us. Good luck

Thank you! Did you have any symptoms other than wind and bad sleep?

Did you notice gas improved after yours had TT cut?

Yes, but we didn’t get TT cut till c12 weeks so it may be that it was getting better by then anyway. However it definitely improved latch and DD jumped centiles after the TT cut so was clearly feeding better.

Currently going through this! Did it get any better?