Grumpy Bubba

Hi ladies

Just needing some reassurance I guess, DS is 11 weeks old today and lately he has been really grumpy alot of the time. He is sleeping really well overnight goes to sleep about 7-8pm and will sleep through till 4-5am and then go straight back to sleep after a feed and wake up again at 8 am. His day sleeps are a bit more hit and miss though, some days he wont sleep alot and other days he will sleep for hours.

My problem is that I have been finding that during the day he seems really grumpy and unhappy. At first I thought it was because he didn't have enough sleeps during the day but that doesn't seem to be the issue as the grumpiness occurs whether he has had a good sleep or not. He wakes up and starts crying and when he gets picked up he stops crying but is grumpy! I can manage to get smiles out of him for about half an hour after a feed and then he just starts whinging and wriggling and doesn't want to be held, he gets put in the swing and is happy there for awhile and then the whinging starts again.

I dont really know if this is an issue and this may be a silly post but its something that is making me worry. Am i doing something wrong? Should I be trying to engage him more? Is he bored? Is this normal behaviour for a child this age? I dont want my bubba to be sad but I just dont know what to do. Guess im looking for some reassurance and experiences and maybe some ideas of what a baby this age should be doing although I know that there probably is no such thing.

Hope this makes sense, guess im just a worried mummy.

It can be normal behaviour, but if your instincts tell you otherwise then don't be afraid to follow them. Could you talk to your MCHN or get him checked over by a paediatrician?

My DS1 was a very unsettled baby from 2 weeks of age. Although he slept well at night, he was very unhappy during the day and wanted to be held and moved around all the time. I was at my wits end when he was 10 weeks old until my friend suggested I take him to a paediatric chiropractor. By that stage I would have tried anything! So I took him to the chiro and it turns out that he had a dislocated shoulder which had happened at birth and no-one had picked it up. After a few gentle sessions at the chiro (absolutely no bone crunching, just gentle manipulation) he was a new baby. He was happier, much more settled and would happily play on the floor for longer periods without wanting to be picked up.

I thought I'd share my story in case you are eventually out of ideas. Hopefully you DS becomes happier soon :hug:.

The other thought I had was, depending on how long this has been going on, he could be going through his 3 month growth spurt? Obviously this only applies if its a relatively recent or new thing.

Trish has good advice- trust that instinct. If you think something is wrong, get him checked out. If you just think he's going through a grumpy phase....meh, that seems to happen too!

With our little one, she seems to get grumpy only when she's hungry. Even if I've just fed her and she's had a good feed, sometimes about an hour or so later she gets grumpy, so we give her some more and it always works... one happy bubba. It might not work for you, but can't help to try.

DS was like this too. He just wasn't a happy baby. I found Mylanta eased this. He must've had indigestion or slight silent reflux. It wouldn't hurt to try it. 2mls before each feed. He got much better around 3 months so I'd say if it is due to this, he will be on the road to recovery.

Are you breastfeeding? If so, have you got a fast let down? This was my problem.

Again, just sharing my experience.

I second the baby chiro. Might be lots of things but sounds like something is making him uncomfortable and a lot of babies are out of wack after birth and a little alignment at the baby chiro can work wonders.

dont know if this helps. But i learnt with DD that if she woke crying, she hadnt had enough sleep. So i re-settle and she goes back to sleep. I only get her up when shes happy and talking to herself, the walls, the blanket.. aanything lol. SO mayb hes still tired???

i too second the chiropractor!

Thanks for your suggestions ladies, I feel better knowing im not the only one who has gone through this. I have a feeling that the grumpiness may have been due to tiredness as Hollye suggested as he has basically acting like a newborn the last few days, eating and sleeping and today he has been alot happier with alot more awake time.

I also am starting to think that my bubba may be one of those kids who responds well to some kind of routine maybe? He seems to be happier when he knows whats coming

Georgi can I ask why you started to use mylanta? The reason I ask is that sometimes when ds is crying he stops like there is smething in his chest and then starts crying again and I was wondering about reflux. Its hard to explain. He doesn't have any crying fits while he is feeding though which I heard was a symptom of reflux. My GP basically said that if ds had relfux I would know about it due to his behaviours around feed time.

I tried it cause he use to cry & whinge all the time, particularly after a feed & even though he had slept well. My sister suggested it could help & bought it for me. I didn't end up using it for long, only a couple of weeks then he got over it.

By all means, it is worth trying things out. For us, I found that DD was just a grumpy baby. As she has gotten older she's gotten progressively happier. As a baby, she used to be happy after a feed for around 10-ish minutes, then she'd start to get cranky. I believe it was her personality. She went through phases of being happier for longer.
Now, as a toddler, she's a lot happier than ever before. Just wanted to reassure you that in case the things you try out don't work, it may just be that your bubs is a bit of a cranky-pants. And that he may very well 'grow into himself' and get happier as he gets older.