Growth spurt vs Supply issue???

So this is the longest I have breastfed any of my babies for and I am having a hard time figuring out if this is just normal growth spurt behaviour or if my supply is dwindling.

Over the past week dd's sleep has been getting worse and worse. Every night is worse than the night before. She had for weeks been having the same night routine. Fed at 8pm would wake between 3-4am for a feed and then settle blissfully back to sleep until 7-8am in the morning. Over the last week she has been waking for more and more feeds. Last night she woke 4 times. She was fed at 8pm, she woke at 9:46pm, 12:20am, 3:15am and 5:30am. It is also taking longer and longer to settle her, last night taking about an hour each time. She used to only want one boob when she woke up at night before she fell back to sleep but now she won't go back to sleep unless she has had both, at every night feed. As a result I am only getting 3hrs sleep every night and I am sick and exhausted. I have had laryingitis for a week because I am not getting enough sleep to recover.

What concerned me a little I guess is when she was having 1 night feed off 1 boob, she would wake up in the morning completely soaked, having peed through nearly every night. But last night with 4 night feeds, each feed with both boobs, her nappy was definately wet when she woke up but she hadn't peed through. During the day her nappies are still wet, not as wet as usual, although generally the nappy I change about 5pm until bathtime at 8pm is basically dry, I don't know if that's normal at not. Her poos have changed, she was always a twice a day pooer, now she is a once every 2 days pooer, which I know is normal for a breastfed baby, it's just not normal for her.

She has never been a particularly settled baby but she's not any more unsettled than she used to be during the day. I have noticed that after a couple of minutes into a feed she starts doing an awful lot of sucking and not a whole lot of swallowing but I don't know if that's just because she's gotten older, she can draw a whole feed out quicker.

I thought at the start it was a growth spurt even though I was a little confused as I thought she had, had her 3 month growth spurt a couple of weeks ago when we had a few unsettled days. But it just seems to be getting worse and worse.

I don't know if its relevant but a few days before the trouble started I had a period of severe engorgement for about 4 days. I was so engorged, I had no idea why as nothing in our day to day had changed but my god was I engorged. It lasted 4 days. And since my breasts softened again we have had nothing but trouble. Also her latch has become terrible in the last few days as well. It was never great because of her tongue tie but the last few days it has been really bad. We still have 2 weeks before our appointment with the oral surgeon though so I don't know what to do about it.

The softening of breasts is normal about now - it's the time when supply should change from being a hormone-driven flood to being suck-and-demand driven.
Associated with that may be a bit of a levelling off in supply, with bub consequently taking action and feeding more frequently.
The change in pooing patterns can happen about now - it is a concern if it happens in the first couple of months.
Does Piper have a snotty nose? That can make for inefficient feeds and crappier latching. As can ear infections or sore throats.
I am wondering if you are waiting too long before swapping - basically if she is drinking faster than she used to. And then when there's not much left she's taking to mangling. See how you with giving her 10-15 minutes each side (or even less). If she seems hungry after side 2 then give her side 1 back again. Also - can she feed with you lying down now? That can help a bit with the exhaustion.
I think that the only way to be really sure about her intake is to weigh her now and in a week or so, just to make sure she's still going along OK.
big hugs
Kate

She does have a bit of a snotty nose. Maybe she's just feeling crappy like me. We can feed lying down. The little bugger won't let me do it at night though. She's happy to feed lying down at 5-6am but the other night feeds she will just cry until I sit up and feed her.

When I say she's starting to suck without a whole lot of swallowing its like 3-5 mins. A long feed is 10 mins before it slows to just a dummy suck. During the day we are still on hrly feeds, we always have been. But I didn't mind because she slept so well at night. Now she's not. The constant day and night feeds are a bit much.

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OK - try swapping to the second side as soon as she starts to suck without swallowing. And swap back again when she does it on the other side - normally comfort sucking isn't a problem, but since she hurts you she may as well be getting as much milk in as possible!

Okay so I just fed her, gave her both sides twice and she was still screaming so I heated up a bottle of ebm and she drank 50ml and is finally happily playing on her mat.

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At this age they can go through a stage of feeding less during the day and more at night (due to distraction during the day). Being sick will also mess with things - snotty noses and sore throats make feeding uncomfortable. The sudden engorgement could well be due to a change in feeding habits (maybe less milk taken during the day?)
If your supply's been messed around (not sure that it has, but anyway) the best thing, as always, is to just feed as much as you can. Swapping sides if she's comfort sucking is good too, as kmn suggests. You'll need to give it a few days to see if it helps any.
:hug: