Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

weaning early

66 replies

HJ06 · 26/07/2006 22:12

My ds is 14 weeks old, and for the past week he has been hungry all day,feeding every hour or so and and started waking every 2-3 hours at night.
he has only put on 4oz in 10 day, where as he has been putting on up to a pound on in 10 days.
He has been crying none stop from been hungry and tired. I gave him a teaspoon of baby rice for the first today and he was like a different baby, back to him happy self.
Has any body had this, what did you do?

OP posts:

Original poster

HJ06 · 04/08/2006 21:35

feeding him is not the problem, it is how upset he is getting, it is not like him to cry for for food or to cry at bed time, its like something has really unsettled him.
As giving him baby rice made no difference i have not given it to him again, just dont know what else is wrong.

OP posts:

archiesmummy · 04/08/2006 22:25

Maybe just a growth spurt? I hope he gets back to "normal" soon..

vitomum · 04/08/2006 22:36

It is really hard at this age. I remember feeling that ds just constantly changed the goalposts. Whenever i thought we had got some routine established then things changes and we were left trying to get to grips with his new plan! You will work it out it just takes time. Personally i used a dummy wih ds and that helped him settle too. Good luck.

FanjoFanjoWhosGotTheFanjo · 05/08/2006 07:29

They are often really upset. Babies are like that. I don't think solid food would help, particularly not this early.

Original poster

HJ06 · 05/08/2006 15:09

tried a dummy, will not have it, he likes his hands.

Worst night in a long time last night , up every 2-3 hour, would only sleep if i feed hm till he fell asleep, was then up 2-4am, crying none stop(must love us next door).
It is made worse by the fact my family live 45 min drive away and dh is head chef of a hotel and resturant so works long hours 6 days a week so i dont really get much of a break.

This has gone from does ds need weaning to whats all the crying about!

Think i need to go and eat lots and lots of chocolate.

OP posts:

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 15:46

Yes, chocolate is a good thing when you have a baby.
I just posted in breast & bottle feeding about DS waking 10-15 times last night. Today he is fine. Don't know if it's the effects of the stomach bug we all had at the weekend or if he is starting to teeth again.. Anyway, not a lot you can do, just give lots of cuddles.

Original poster

HJ06 · 05/08/2006 16:04

just read it, its good to know i am not the only one going through it (sometimes need reminding). will be watching for ideas.

OP posts:

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 16:09

AS I see it, he has slept fine in the day and this morning I actually got a 2 hour nap (wow), so I'll just try to take things a bit more as they come, otherwise I'll get stressed out about it and it's not worth it.

FrannyandZooey · 05/08/2006 16:24

I don't get why people are happy to follow worldwide health advice on virtually every matter except this one. Would you say to someone who had been given expert medical advice for their baby "Oh just do what you think is right for your baby" "Just follow what you think is best, don't listen to them"?

Why do people think they know better than the very rigorous research carried out by the World Health Organisation, which states that it is best not to introduce solid foods until 6 months? I don't get it.

FrannyandZooey · 05/08/2006 16:25

Oh and wanted to say (less stroppily) that I am sorry for those of you whose babies are waking all the time. Mine did it too, it drives you somewhere near insanity some days doesn't it?

Original poster

HJ06 · 05/08/2006 16:51

Think i have been lucky with the night time thing until now as he has only been up 1-2 times a night, a lot of people say thats great for a bf baby, but to us its normal.
HV said looks as though he is teething so well just have to wait and see.
I just worry as this is not normal for him, maybay he is just a bad tempered little monkey.

OP posts:

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 21:13

Just wanted to say I completely agree with you FrannyandZooey. Even people who know the dangers of weaning early still get tempted into it. I don't understand what the rush is. I am normally the odd one out and always have to defend why I didn't wean him earlier.... Annoying!

FrannyandZooey · 05/08/2006 21:30

Yes I mean I can totally see why people gte tempted to try it - I did it myself, I weaned aged 24 weeks because I thought ds 'needed' it, but I can't understand why people would egg one another on to ignore very sensible and well-researched medical guidance in favour of "doing what you feel is best". It's very odd.

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 21:39

And it annoys me that they almost make you feel there is something wrong with you for following the correct advise. It's just another milepost to a lot of people I think, like sitting up, rolling & walking, completely ignoring the fact that it's not something LO's are actually doing themselves. I know HV's are still advising (mine did) 4 months, but there is so much info out there, that this is not really an excuse.

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 21:40

And 24 weeks isn't like 14 weeks is it.

FrannyandZooey · 05/08/2006 21:42

Well, you know, I didn't follow the guidelines either, so I shouldn't criticise others. But I wouldn't go around saying "Oh just follow your instincts" when there is a body of respected advice out there to follow.

archiesmummy · 05/08/2006 21:49

I think because so many health professionals don't believe in the 26 week weaning then poeple don't take it seriously. There must be a reason. I only know 1 other person in RL who waited til 26 weeks and she regrets that she did. She has been led to beleive that if she had started earlier then DD would have taken to it better!!!
Oops, I can hear DS awake, back in a mo (I hope)

Original poster

HJ06 · 06/08/2006 12:58

poeple had been telling me for weeks to start weaning him, it was my mum that spent 2 hours trying to get me to give him baby rice, i was been told he would be much happier. My aim is been to get to 4-5 months then wait and see how things go and if i can hold out till 6 months then great.
my brothers girlfriend started weaning dd at 16 week (she is 5 weeks older thn ds), dut she gives her 3 meals a day already, now thats wrong.
Ds does seem to be much better, had a great night last night, took about 10 min to get him to go down, when he did slept from about 8-3, then 3.30-7.30, so whatever has been bothering him seems to have settled.

OP posts:

CorrieDale · 06/08/2006 13:17

I think archiesmummy has a good point. My HVs aren't bad on the whole, and they do say 'you're recommended to wait until 6 months'. But it's like it's some incredibly difficult target that the government has set (probably just out of sheer spite against a Tory constituency), and mums know their own babies best so should wean when they think the baby is ready. Then, in their postnatal weaning talk, they give out info about what to give at 4 months and how many meals a day the baby should be on at 5 months, etc, and then say 'of course you can go through these stages much faster if you wean at 6 months'. So it's pretty clear what the 'norm' is. And their 'signs of readiness' start off with 'starts waking up at night', which isn't even a sign, let alone the most important! No wonder I felt like a circus freak because I weaned at 6 months. "Well done you!" they said, as if I'd scaled Everest. Quickly followed by: "oooh, he's dropped another centile hasn't he? We'll have to see what happens now he's on solids." Any mothers of 4 month babies who heard that little exchange will have rushed home to get the baby rice going.

If I have another baby, guess who'll be their least popular mum during the weaning talk... heh heh heh.

geekgrrl · 06/08/2006 13:23

why do people find it so incredibly hard to wait???!!! I really don't get this, sorry. i've got three children and found waiting until they're six months or older (my eldest was 8 months when she started solids) really easy. I just didn't give them anything other than BM - what's so hard about that? I found it about as hard as not letting my toddler have cola.

They were all between 9.5 - 10lbs at birth by the way and continued along that centile, so none of this 'but mine was 8lbs at birth so needed solids' crap please.

FrannyandZooey · 06/08/2006 13:27

I think it's the pressure, geekgrrl. I was convinced not to wait the extra 2 weeks by my (very nice) HV. Next time I would keep away from hvs unless my baby is actually ill - in which case I would go to the gp. As a new mum you are so vulnerable and desperately wanting to do the right thing for your child - especially as far as feeding is concerned. This is why hvs are in such an influential position, and why it makes me so mad to hear that they have given crap advice.

archiesmummy · 06/08/2006 13:46

We should start a campaign to get HV's educated. My friends HV actually did say 6 months and explained all the dangers of early weaning, but still everyone in their "parent baby" group weaned long before 26 weeks, so I put a lot of it down to MIL's and even mums aswell. I know my MIL hassled us to wean him coz he was chewing everything and must therefor be hungry. What annoys me most I think is that overbearing look they give you when you say you are waiting til 6 months. Makes me want to scream: it's not me there is something wrong with, it's all of you that are crazy!!!! When I had DS weighed at 6 months I said something about all on BM, perhaps expecting a pat on the back and a well done. Instead all this HV said was : you must give him solids immidiately and within a week you can have him on 3 meals a day. Crazy people!

FrannyandZooey · 06/08/2006 13:50

One of the saddest things I have found is that you don't get credit for doing what you think is right and what in this case is recommended as being right. I breastfed ds up to age 2 and beyond as also recommended by the WHO and got nothing but disbelief and in one case outright scorn from hvs. The one medical person who has ever congratulated me on it is my Muslim GP - in her culture it is regarded as the ideal but they believe not many women are capable of achieving it - big kudos for those who can. It makes me sad to think how different things are in this culture

Original poster

HJ06 · 06/08/2006 14:05

i have found a lot of people telling me how they startd weaning anything from 12 weeks old, the only person i know that waited till 6 months said dont wait that long.
it can can be hard when its your first to know what to do for the best. It is made worse by GP saying it is ok to give baby rice and baby foods saying from 4 months.
I have slso had people (including family) saying he would be happier on formula as he is a hugry baby, the fact he loves to bf and will not take a bottle from me (even ebm), they seem to forget.

OP posts:

Original poster

HJ06 · 06/08/2006 14:14

it is good to hear from both sides, and to know it can be done, and not to jump in just becouse he is 4 months.
he is nearly 16 weeks now, and feel that without hearing from other people, would not have believed i could carry on just bf for another 2 months.

OP posts:

Flip

1 2 3