Has anyone else had this happen??
My daughter is 4 months old and is breastfeed. We have always had issues with breastfeeding with her. In the beginning she choked threw every feeding I gave her. The docs didn't seem concerned and said I just had active let down, so I just dealt with it. Within a few months the choking has gotten better with only the occasional issue however she has started a whole new issue.
She arches while feeding and will break the latch and then come right back on for more over and over. It is as if she is getting mad or even looses focus?!
After awhile I just move her to the other side and she is fine for a bit and then it starts up again. When she does break latch and comes back, she does it in a very intense way and nearly buries her face into my breast.
I for sure don't produce tons of milk and she feeds like every 2 hours. I assume because I don't produce much at a setting that is why she eats so often, but do you think that is why she is arching and break the latch?? Is she just frustrated??
Anyhow just wondered if anyone else had had this issue?? I don't think she is underfed because she is a chubby baby for sure! I am not really worried, but find it odd is all. I just feel like if I let her she would eat all day. I mean she always has her mouth open if you come anywhere near her face :)
I had this problem with my daughter...it ended up being GER, (reflux). She is now on pepcid, and she is a different baby!
Research GER or GERD (gasterintestional (sp?) reflux disease). Two good baby websites for breastfeeding moms are
www.askdrsears.com and www.kellymom.com
My daughter had reflux. She did take medication, but in the end, we started seeing a pediatric chiropractor. If you are in Pueblo, go see Beth Lancaster - she rocks.
Good luck!
HI J.! My youngest baby did this (he was bron in April, and my fourth) I finally figured out that it was because he had to burp! It was very annoying until I knew because he would just about rip off my nipple and arch his back and fuss, so I know what you mean. I also have a very active letdown and so I figured out that while he was gulping as fast as he could, he was also getting a lot of air and then he would need to burp. I fixed this by burping him several times during his feedings and that seemed to solve the problem! Also, one other thing it could be is gas. It can be painful for a baby to be in some positions when they have gas in their tummy. I love the mylicon drops and would give these to my baby before I fed them. Good Luck!
I highly, highly recommend you call your local La Leche League Leader and attend one of their meetings. It's free and friendly and might give you lots of helpful insight! The Web site is www.llli.org.
That said, I think it sounds like you could have a forceful let-down reflex, and she pulls off to avoid the initial "gush" she's come to expect. The fact that she's fine for a bit and then starts up again makes me think it's related to let-down/milk-ejection reflex. Consider nursing while tipped back, lke in a recliner, kind of against gravity to slow the flow a bit. Some moms (like me) also like to nurse while laying down because then if Baby pulls off, the extra milk just runs out of her mouth instead of gagging her.
I know some babies do the pull-off/latch back on thing repeatedly to get the flow of milk started, but since you've dealt with an active let-down reflex before, that's my hunch.
Be careful not to judge your supply by how often she eats, because it could shake you confidence for no reason. Human milk is digested within 90 minutes, 4 months is a logical growth-spurt time, and babies like to nurse for reasons besides hunger (snuggling, warmth, etc.) so nursing often sounds pretty normal. A more reliable measure of your supply is watching her diaper output.
That said, it's a good idea to keep her at one breast long enough for the composition of the milk to change from foremilk (thin, watery, higher in protein) to hindmilk (creamy, high-fat) so she can stay satisfied and keep getting chubby! Sounds like you're already good at "watching the baby, not the clock." Her satisfaction will give you to cues you need to know when she's had enough.
Good for you for nursing your baby!
My baby does the same thing. She is not breastfed, but she acts the same way with her bottle. She has started arching her back and pulls away from the bottle and then opens her mouth wide and searches for the food. Sometimes she does just fine and sucks it all down, but other times she arches. She is also chubby and healthy.
I don't have any advice. You will do what's best for you and your baby.
Good luck.
Your baby might have acid reflux. It's a common sign when they arch the back while feeding from the breast or bottle. You could try to nurse using a different position so your baby isn't laying down quite as much. We went through this problem with my daughter.
My son also arched his back. He recovered from a cold, but it left liquid in his ears. He would be in discomfort while nursing so would arch his back, then come right back on for more nursing. It went on and on.
I suggest you try altering nursing positions, to see if that helps. I also suggest contacting the LLL leader in your area and see what they say. They have helped me with so many of my breastfeeding troubles.
What you describe are classic symptoms of overactive letdown. I have it, too, and with my DS1 I was *sure* he had nipple confusion because nursing was so hard for us when we first started. I didn't actually know it was overactive letdown until I had my 2nd baby & darned if he didn't nurse exactly the same way!
Stick with it, read this: www.llli.org/oversupply (yeah, I know you said you don't have tons of milk... it talks about overactive letdown, too), try nursing lying down on your side (let gravity help you reduce the flow) and try a scissors hold on your nipple while she nurses (it can also reduce the flow).
It does get a bit better as the baby gets the whole suck-breathe-swallow thing down, but my 7 1/2 month old still nurses like it's a contact sport! ;)
FWIW, I noticed that some other people mentioned dairy intolerance. My little guy has that, too, but I wouldn't worry about that too much unless your DD's got other symptoms as well (arching after feeds, hard tummy & very stiff posture, green poop, excessive gas, etc.
Best of luck!
llli.org is the site for la leche league. i'd recommend finding a leader in your area giving her a call or an email to talk with someone about this, or going to the next meeting in your area. you can find names and numbers and email addresses of leaders in your area by going to llli.org ____@____.com is my email address, i can look some of this up to see what the possible causes are if you'd like to email me personally and talk about it more.
J.,
You already have some specific advice relating to the symptoms you describe. Can I also suggest calling La Leche League?
When checking the website, I found only a meeting in Thorton on the 3rd Wednesday each month at 7:00 P.M.
The leaders listed are:Tammie ###-###-#### Marilyn ###-###-####
They can direct you to someone closer to you.
I have had very many positive experiences turning to LLL for help when my children were little.
You do not mention consulting a lactation consultant, have you?
Something I learned years ago;
Aside from your daughter reacting to a potential problem like reflux, babies feed voraciously, not due to your lack of supply, but simply because they are stimulating your body to be in sinc with their needs. Our bodies are made to respond wonderfully to our children!
Luck and quick resolution to you, A.
Hi, J.! Congratulations on your beautiful girl! Yes, my daughter did the same thing; it was like she was saying, "I want to eat! No, I don't want to eat! I want to eat! No, I can't eat!" It was very frustrating, and I felt bad for her. She was also fussy with gas. As soon as I stopped eating dairy, she was a new baby. No more gas pains and she nursed like a champ. Food for thought... I stayed off dairy until she was about 7-8 months old, when she could eat dairy on her own with no problem. Her little digestive system just had to grow up a little bit. My son was the same way.
Good luck, and congrats!
S.
Just so you know, my baby also did this around 4 months of age - and she had no reflux - no other problems. It became kind of a game for her. This may sound harsh, but when this started making feedings difficult, I decided to do something about it. The first time she pulled off I would end the feeding. I wouldn't feed her again until the next time for a feeding. It didn't take long (within a day or two) for her to realize that if she wanted a full feeding, she was going to have to stick with it - which she did. I just pumped off a little when I got too full until she figured it out. It worked like a charm! That being said, it is absolutely possible that there is something else going on like the other responses have said. I just wanted you to know that it doesn't necessarily indicate a big problem. It could be that your baby is just becoming more aware & gets easily distracted. So be aware of the possibility of a bigger problem & follow your instincts. And call your pediatrician or a lactation specialist to talk through the possible issues if you feel that there are some. Good luck!
Both of my girls started out this same way. Eventually, they developed other symptoms of reflux and milk protein sensitivity. That may not be the case with your little one, but is something to think about. They were both chubby as well. Unfortunately, no matter what I did with my diet, they still had problems, so I had to stop breastfeeding. One ended up doing fine on Nutramigen and the other is now 6 months and doing great on Neocate formula and Prevacid for the reflux. Good luck!
Not to get too personal, but are you "large" busted? I am a double D cup (probably even bigger when nursing!) and my first baby used to do the same thing. I figured out that I was so big I was covering her whole mouth and nose area, and she couldn't breathe! She'd jerk away for a breath, but then desperately wanted more food. I had to place 2 fingers on either side of my nipple to hold my breast back away from her face. Then we had no problems.
I don't know if this is your problem or not, but if so, it's an easy fix!
Congrats on the new little one--enjoy every minute of her--pretty soon she'll be a teenager!
J.
Hi J.,
My son was born in June and it sounds like we have a similar situation. He would choke and cough a lot when I fed him. I discovered that my milk just lets down too fast for him. I have tired just taking him off every couple of minutes so he can catch his breath. If your daughter is still doing this, you can also try to press two fingers close to the nipple and try to shut off a valve. (I learned that from a breastfeeding class) He would choke most at the first feeding of the morning because that is when I had the fullest milk.
Regarding the arching, does she spit up a lot? Any projectile spitting up? Does she look really uncomfortable or scream sometimes during or after a feeding? These were all things my son did. He was finally diagnosed with Acid Reflux. I started writing down his cries and amount of times he would spit up in a day. This helped the doc see that it was acid reflux. He has been on Zantac ever since. He still spits up quite a bit but doesn't seem to be in pain. We also have him sleep in his car seat so he is at an incline. And I try to nurse him slightly inclined as well. We keep him upright for at least 30 minutes after he eats and try to burp him well. These are all things that have helped.
My son also does what your daughter does with the pulling off and then coming back intensely. He latches back on with such fury that you think he is famished. He mainly does this late afternoon and I have wondered if I just don't produce enough milk for him at that time and he gets frustrated. Are there certain times of day that your daughter does that? Or is it all the time? I don't know if you have implemented any bottle feeding but I would try to pump during her fussy time of day and see how much milk you produce. Then feed her with the bottle of breastmilk. Just an idea. If you don't produce much then you know to pump other times during the day and give her a fuller bottle when she is fussy.
I hope this helps. Sounds like we are in the same boat so feel free to email me if you would like to. I know it can be frustrating but just know that you are doing the best you can! It is encouraging to hear that she is chubby... that is a good sign. My little guy is a chunker despite spitting up 10-15 times a day. Good luck!
I had the same issue. My little guy had reflux which would burn and he would arch his back and break latch because of the reflux. But he was still hungry. I would talk to your pediatrician right away and tell him what is happening. They can give you something to help her with the pain.
You probably are producing pleanty of milk - breastfed babies often eat every 2 hours and she is gaining weight well it sounds like.
Is she stuffy? Does she have allergies? A stuffy nose or sinuses can make it hard to nurse - can't breath, difficult to swallow (think of last time you had a bad headcold...) It could also be an ear infection, and the sucking causes more pain and discomfort. For either, changing sides also changing the side she's laying on and readjust the pressure, so it's comfortable for a few minutes. I would take her to the doc to rule out any infections, then ask for advice from a lactation specialist (my pediatrician IS a lactation specialist, so its easy there, but ask your doc for a referral, or check out le leche league).
Have you tried supplementing with formulas? I had to give my daughter Nutramigen, helped a ton as she had reflux as well as the predigested formula helped her a ton. I would mix half and half and she settled down a ton. Does your daughter seem to be in pain, does she have excess gas? Are you burping her frequently during feedings? That is essential to burp and let her release gas or she could be taking in too much and getting a cramp and needs to pull away to relieve the gas!!!! I would burp both of my kids every few minutes during feedings when I breast fed as well as supplemented.
The one thing that truly helped my daughter was the Nutramigen, it stayed with her longer and helped relieve all her tummy issues all together. I am not putting down breast feeding as that is crucial, it was just what we had to finally choose to do for our daughter earlier then I would have normally and really helped her.
For my son I supplemented with formula so he wasn't have to eat every two hours and I could take longer stretches from breast feeding. Both then transitioned to a bottle beautifully by 3 months and I just found it easier to pump and give it to them that way so I could actually visually see the amount they were taking in. Just a thought....if it is gas too you can give Mylicon BEFORE you start breast feeding and that will help her too.
Good luck
I think that you should talk to a lactation consultant. They should have a few at your local hospital. When I went to them they had me in a curtained off room, so it was comfortable and then I fed my baby in front of them. They are really good. They checked to make sure my baby was latching on right and measured how much milk I produce. So I think that would be much better for you because they know what's normal and whats not as well as common problems.and their solutions
Perhaps she is having trouble breathing while feeding or a little claustrophobic.
babies arch their backs when they're uncomfortable. Burp her/check her diaper......
The back arching sounds like acid reflux. Check with your Dr.
Not to concern you - but do you pump to make sure you are still producing enough. Long story short - it took almost a month for me to figure out that my milk had lessened.
Second, it may be yeast, do you eat a lot of yeast products, suagary foods, beer? Or maybe there is something in your diet she is not liking. Log EVERYTHING you eat/ drink. Just some tips I read while trying to figure out my own issues
Sounds like reflux to me... 2 of my 3 babies had it. Many Dr's misdiagnose it or miss it altogether, especially if it isn't associated with a lot of spitting up. I would check out the websites the other poster listed and go back to your ped with some information. Reflux babies often nurse frequently because breastmilk is soothing and arching is also a symptom. There are many things you can do to help. Many babies with reflux have a dairy sensitivity that they usually grow out of by 12 mos. Try cutting out dairy from your diet for a couple weeks and see if she improves. That helped both my boys tremendously. There are also safe Rx you can get from your ped that help with the discomfort until they grow out of it. Which they usually do... HTH
A.
My son ended up to be dairy, soy, and corn intolerant (not allergic). I wish I knew that when he was nursing. try cutting out dairy in your diet for at minimum two weeks. this seems to be very comon.
