Whats with all this fussing?

[BekZ]

DD is 12 weeks and has changed the way she feeds. She seems to be fussy. She'll start a feed ok but 5 or 10 mins later she is bobbing on and off and pulling. She throws her arms out and shakes her head, sucks for a few seconds then it is on and off again.

Any idea why?
BTW we've had a few rough days with feeding and being unsettled. She went 9 hours yesterday with no sleep. I tried going to bed with her for an hour and letting her feed but she was still unsettled soI ended up giving her emb to calm her down. This seemed to work.

[MamaPan]

Interesting you should mention this hon bc Jacob is doing something similar.. he goes on the boob and then will pull of and REALLY scream.. he has done this a few times in the last day or 2... i try to get him back on and he may do it again...
I think in my case it may be a return of the fast flow fairy as he has been feeding a lot the last few days so my supply is superhuman again! so i am trying to get him on, then off while i have a fast flow for a bit into a cloth nappy and then a relaxed feed back on again.
I also think maybe he is getting overstimulated as he is so much more alert now.. so am trying not to feed him in the living room etc but take him into my bedroom and a relaxed environment (easier said than done).
Hmmm - maybe someone else will have some answers for us.

[sloane]

oh wow, no answers here but we're in the middle of the world's longest feed right now okay, maybe not the longest but DS has been on & off the boob & screaming for about the last 40 mins. i've handed him over to DP for calming duties before we try again.

maybe it is just as mamapan says & they're more alert & therefore more stimulated by their surroundings?

[~clover~]

I'd say its a growth spurt & she's trying to up the amount of milk she's getting, or getting impatient with let down.
Give it a few days & she (they) should settle again. Might be feeding more often too?

[Barb Glare]

Hi,

It is so confusing when their pattern changes so radically. I was wondering, does she tend to have one breast or two these days? After she's fed for 10 mins do you tend to swap her to the other side if she's fussy? Or put her back on the same side? How many times would you say she's feeding now in 24Hours? sorry for the questions - without answers, but hopefully we will get to the bottom of this!

[Miss E]

Ash goes through phases when he does this sometimes as well. Sometimes he will get really aggressive, kicks his legs and throws his arms around, and then throw himself off almost as if he has gotten too much and has to come up for air. Othertimes he will do the on and off thing too, which I think is when he's no longer super hungry and wants to look at what's going and whose around as well as feed.

[BekZ]

Thanks everyone for your replies. It seems that a few bubs are doing the same thing, which leads me to think it is a wonder week or growth spurt.

Barb - In answer to your questions

One breast or two - A bit of both. Some feeds are just one (shorter) and others particularly night feeds (longer) are 2. When she is going through a fussy stage I'll offer the same breast until I think she has had adequate time on that side or if she is really fussy I'll switch her in an effort to see if she is hungry.

How many feeds - This is hard to quantify because I am not really sure what constitutes a feed. Here is todays feeding (roughly)

4am - 40 min
7.30am - 20 min
8.30am - 10 min
10am - 10 min
10.45 - 20 min
sleep
12 - 15 mins
1-2 sleep
2 - 40 min - on/off feeding
4.30 - 5.30 on/off feeding
6.30 - on/off extremely cranky hard to attach
7.30 - finally settled and fed for a solid 30 mins

I hope that helps

[lilprecious75]

Well Jeremy is doing something similar so thought I would add my thoughts here as well.
Most of his feeds he enjoys and stays attached and focused and feeds well.
Other feeds he will whimper, yank on the nipple, and fuss.
Tonight (this last feed before bed) he was whimpering, pulling on the nipple, throwing his free arm around, arching his back a bit, kicking his feet, and generally fussing but he stayed attached and kept feeding for probably 15-20 minutes.
Then he finished that side I patted his back for a few minutes and then offered the other side and he fed comfortably for maybe another 15-20 minutes (couldn't see the clock so really only guessing) before he fell asleep.
My thoughts have been that it is a growth spurt thing? But I'm not sure... It only happens occassionally with him.
Also, he had his 2 month needles yesterday and has been generally unsettled so thought that might be playing into it as well.
So I will watch this thread to see what others (as well as Barb) think about all this!!

[Winter]

At 12 weeks I felt like my DD was permanently attached to my boobs! But it settled down after a week, think it was just a growth spurt but it was hard work at the time. All those little feeds did up my milk supply though so maybe that was the aim?

[Barb Glare]

Hi,

I can't tell you how normal your baby's pattern looks! If she has fed for 10 mins or so and is fussy - I think she's probably telling you that she's pretty much finished that side and would like the other, please. At this age, babies are very efficient feeders, and where they spent a long time on the breast previously, can finish it in 10 mins or so. Of course, at other times they will want longer, more relaxed feeds. In the late afternoon it is common for them to want short feeds - they are just fussy! It's nothing to do with you - it's them. If you are able to "go with the flow" and organise your day so you can give them that cluster of feeds, things usually go quite well.

[BekZ]

Thanks Barb. As I was typing my last post I thought it looked fairly normal especially for a wonder week or growth spurt.