Author Topic: Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?  (Read 2766 times)

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Offline aidenmc

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Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?
« on: September 02, 2010, 01:07:31 am »
This may be a silly question, but I am wondering whether chronic problems with gas are behind ds' fussiness at the breast and erratic feeding. I also wonder if this is behind his difficulty settling before sleep. He will often become fussy and seems hungry but only takes a partial feed, often stopping after a few minutes. I will try to burp him but as he is becoming increasingly fussy and crying harder I think that he is not actually hungry but OT, so I work at getting him to sleep (still doing AP - patting, holding, walking, rocking, etc. - starting shh/pat next week). However, he doesn't settle well or he will drift off and then wake and ask to nurse again and we start the whole process over again. Sometimes it is a couple of hours before he finally settles. Other times he isn't so fraught, but just refuses to nurse after a brief (i.e., few minutes) feed. Of course this totally throws off our EASY as he ends up nursing again later, closer to S time.

So tonight, 3 hrs after his previous feed, which was not a bad one, he nursed on one side then stopped again. I burped him but then he refused any more. I tried the other side but he kept bobbing off and on. So, I decided to give him a bath. The fussing and then hard crying began after he was dressed (noticed it was blue around his mouth - wind). Tired to feed again, but off and on and increased distress. So, I committed to burping him and found that eventually he settled and emptied the left side. Then he was so calm. I burped some more and some came up after ten minutes or so. He drifted off and I tried to put him down but he woke and started after his hands (always hunger or gas for him), so I picked him up and got out more.

So... what struck me was how calm he was after finally filling his belly. It took awhile for him to get back to sleep (although he did it on his own with a little patting in his crib  ;D), but despite the fact that it was well past an appropriate awake time he was not fussing at all! Is it possible that fussiness that I take to be OT is really related to this seemingly ongoing problem with feeding?

On a side note - reflux has been suggested and I will explore with the doctor when we go for his 2 month in mid-October, but is there a correlation between gas and reflux?

TIA for any insights.
Becky,
Mom to Kieran (10/15/2000); Aiden, (7/ 8/ 2005); and Samuel (7/10/2010)

Offline *Liz*

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Re: Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?
« Reply #1 on: September 02, 2010, 05:38:00 am »
Major correlation between gas and reflux due to the chaotic feeding.

If you suspect reflux I wouldn't leave it weeks before speaking to a doctor as they can develop a lot of feeding issues in that length of time.

Offline aidenmc

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Re: Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?
« Reply #2 on: September 06, 2010, 02:23:53 am »
Liz,
I'm really not sure if reflux is the problem. I know gas and sometimes OT interfere a lot, but I am starting to wonder also if he's just not as hungry as I think he *should* be. He is sometimes going 4 hours between feedings - or even more when he has those little snacks of a few minutes. But isn't he young to go so long? Yesterday I fed him at 1 then fought with him between 3:30 and 4:30, then again off and on till about 8 when he finally had a good feed!

Also, another weird question. He has a couple of white spots on his lower gum. One of them is sharp. I've noticed occasional drooling and today i gave him a knuckle to see if he was hungry. He bit down and his crying and fussing turned into a loud cry of pain. Could he really be teething this young? Could it explain some of the feeding issues? But then wouldn't he also refuse the paci?

Sorry to carry on with this. He seems to otherwise be a healthy happy boy but when he has these feeding troubles I feel for the little guy, but I also wonder if I am trying too hard and assuming he's hungry when he's just tired and gassy. Can a lo this age actually be on 4 hour feeds regularly?
Becky,
Mom to Kieran (10/15/2000); Aiden, (7/ 8/ 2005); and Samuel (7/10/2010)

Offline ~Amz~

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Re: Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?
« Reply #3 on: September 06, 2010, 04:01:04 am »
Hiya aidenmc, funny u asked about teething. My DS is colicky and was sleeping well during the nights until last week when he started waking every 3 hrs. So I called a midwife team to ask about his colic and she told me that maybe he might be waking up more often at night because he might be teething. So I asked can they be teething this young and she said yes.

Is your LO drooling? My DS is drooling, but not all the time and like u when I was rubbing ashton and parsons (teething powder) in his gums I felt something abit sharp on the top side of his gum, so I'll have a good look tomorrow.

Have u checked out the FAQ in colic,reflux board (sorry I'm not able to attach the linkk for u as I'm on my mobile), you'll find a lot of helpful info if u think that your LO has reflux.

HTH. 



Offline aidenmc

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Re: Could trapped wind be behind poor eating and fussiness?
« Reply #4 on: September 06, 2010, 17:57:30 pm »
Thanks newmummy. I will look at those boards some more to be sure.
Becky,
Mom to Kieran (10/15/2000); Aiden, (7/ 8/ 2005); and Samuel (7/10/2010)