help! baby wants to eat all day!

[newmominct]

My baby has been taking a bottle of pumped milk jsut fine ever since he was 4 weeks old (hes now 2 months and 2 weeks)

For the past week it seems like when hes with me all he does is hungrily cry and cry.

when he nurses he'll only nurse on each breast for 5 or 6 minutes until he pulls away and swings his arms and legs all around and twists and turns... but he wont re latch, then he'll eat about 5 or so minutes more on the other breast and do the same....
when he's with my mother who watches him a few days a week while i work she gives him his bottle of pumped milk and barely cries with her at all....

what do you think i'm doing wrong to make my baby cry so much?????????????????

[Amy_G_]

babies cry for various reasons,
it is unlikely that it is something you are doing.

He may have gotten used to the bottle and the faster flow, so he starts complaining when the breast slows down after 5-6 minutes and he has to work harder to get the milk. You can use breast compression, and massage to "speed up" the flow a little bit, and also be sure the bottle he uses during the time away from you has a slow flow nipple, so he has to work a bit whether at the bottle or the breast.

[newmominct]

i try compression, that doesnt seem to do the trick in fact it sems lik he gets even more fussy....
i'll look for a slow flow bottle though, thanks... he currently drinks from a dr browns bottle im not sure if thats slow flow....
i just want my poor little guy to be able to nurse and happy

[Amy_G_]

look for a slow flow nipple --not a slow flow bottle.
there is also the possibility that
he may be fussy because he's getting full so fast out of your wonder boobs, and he really just wants to comfort nurse a bit without getting somuch milk. or he's fussy cause he wants to get down on his tummy and try to roll over and sit up and play, and he's frustrated cause his body won't cooperate. or he's a bit off cause mommy holds him differently than granny does. or you smell so good with all that wonderful milk but he just wants to go to sleep. It's so hard to tell with these little guys.

[newmominct]

well...i nursed him at 11AM for 15 minutes until he pulled away and kept crying....i got frustrated and gave him a bottle of 3 oz and now hes sleeping peacefully at 12:15.... now i'm worried his nursing days are numbered... now I'M the one crying non stop since he fell asleep...

[Amy_G_]

put the formula away.
have a neighbor hold onto it for a while.
don't give the formula unless he is away from you.
giving the formula may mean you tanked him so full that the only option was for him to go to sleep --like when you overeat at thanksgiving dinner and the only thing that you can do is find a comfy place to sleep. ;)

At his age, he may not really need to eat for that long. Often they'll be able to empty a boob in a few minutes, and then be fussy cause they can't get to sleep. Breastmilk isn't quite the sleeping pill for an older baby as it is for a young newborn--knocking them out after a nursing session. so he needs other things to help him get to sleep.

and I think a bit of it is bottle nipple preference. Latch is TOTALLY different when bottle feeding than breastfeeding and some babies really come to prefer one over the other. so give bottles only as much as absolutely necessary, and don't give a bottle when he shows his fussiness at the breast, or he'll learn if I fuss I get the easy bottle thing, and if I keep quiet I have to work hard at this breast thing. Babies are like most humans, they want to take the easy way out and not do any more work than absolutely necessary. ;)

Now I guess we should check to see how his weight gain has been, and overall happiness/alertness/development during times when not breastfeeding, as well as any signs of reflux, how often you burp him, etc.

[newmominct]

hes never had formula! just expressed breastmilk!
but either breastmilk or formula, i def. dont want to overfeed my baby!

when he fusses like that after nursing again, i'll try to put him to sleep with a binky and some backrubs...

breastfeeding is just such an important thing to me anytime something seems off i panic!

[newmominct]

he was 6 lbs 5 oz at birth and was 10lbs 1 oz when weighed 7 days ago..
and he burps like a champ!
he does spit up a little after most feedings
but when hes not nursing and not crying hes the happiest most bright eyed little boy i know <3

[Amy_G_]

so put away the bottles when the two of you are together. save the pumped milk for when you two are apart!
It's fairly easy to overfeed with a bottle, regardless of contents, and it's easy for baby to prefer the bottle. so just keep keeping on and quit questioning the boob so much. :) It usually knows best, even if baby thinks they know best. ;)

weight gain is fine, spit up is probably a laundry problem, but if fussiness continues and spit up increases, it could be reflux maybe but I really doubt it.

[newmominct]

thank you so much for your help... i feel better...
im over thinking i guess, that always gets me in trouble!
what do you mean by a laundry problem with the spit up?

[Amy_G_]

it's a laundry problem, means you have more laundry to do.

[yerendira]

my daughter did the same thing. she would also "spit up" a lot and then she had an "attack" at 4 a.m. one day and in desperation after doing reserach in books an on-line I was able to match her symptoms with Gastro Intestinal Reflux. She is now on medication and is doing great! Look up GERD and make note of your baby's behavior and habits. You may note a match. If so, call your pediatrician and get an appointment. Good luck!