screaming while b/f

[mylifestory]

i've no idea what to do as this has been going on for weeks now.  my little one screams at the breast most of the time & its rare to get a whole feed without it.  this means it can take an hour & a half per feed so i have no time to do anything else.  she screams after a few mins & will not stop for ages.  if i try to put her back she screams b4 she even gets back on.  i sit her up & distract her with something & shes ok for a few mons then it starts again.  ive taken to leaving it but i dont know what to as have tried everything, changing sides, not changing sides, positions.

what can i do??

she has 4 feeds per day usually long ones (5 & a half months now)  plus formula bits after lunch & b4 dinner.

introduced breakfast too which she loves for a few days now, but its made no difference.

thanks,
Rebecca xx

[malenka]

Is this something new or has it been going on for a while? If this is something new, it could be a growth spurt and should sort itself out after a few days.

If you take her off when she starts crying, does she stop? It might be that she's full - some babies get more efficient with their eating as they get older.

It could be that she's impatient for the milk. Have you tried breast compressions?

How often are you feeding her?

Check out this link as it might give you a few other ideas: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/concerns/baby/fussy-while-nursing.html

[Peek-a-boo]

Does she seem to be in pain?  Kind of sounds like what my DD did when she had thrush . . .

[tarakay]

Rebecca-
I ditto what Malenka said... my LO started doing the screaming thing too (can't remember when exactly, but 5 mos sounds about right) and still does it periodically now.

Here is what I decided:
My LO is spirited, so the screams at the BEGINNING of the feeding were anticipation/"get on with it" screams, and the screams at the middle/end were "I'm DONE" screams.  At 5.5 mos, my LO was only nursing for appx 7-10 min TOTAL (just for reference).

One way to test whether or not her screams are b/c she's full is to STOP feeding when she starts screaming - and not offer her the chance to BF again until it's time for the next feeding.  If she can go 4+ hours w/o needing a feeding, then she's getting plenty to drink?

Just ideas... screams are no fun - and it's frustrating when they won't feed.  Good luck!

Tara

[Shiv52]

Here at 5 months our feeds went from 30 minutes to about 5-7 minutes tops.  I'd try taking her off the breast once she starts just to see if she's still making it to the next feed.  COuld be she's done? 

THrush is definately worth ruling out though too.

In a rush but will be back xx

[*Ali*]

Have you tried burping her each time she screams? Could be she has a burp and needs to bring it up before she can continue. DS starte doing this around 4mo and I can normally get a burp out of him and then he stops til the next one. never was that windy before. Think he gulps more now and take in more air. He also does it at the end of the feed so if he keeps on and I cannot elicit a burp I stop. He nearly always makes it to the next feed.
Worth a try.
FYI My DS takes about 4 or 5 mins on each side to drain both breasts. But this can take much longer because of all the burping and stopping. Never happens when he is sleepy I am guessing cos he's so relaxed and doesn't take in so much air.

[MummyToBen]

Hi, I know you've had lots of possiblities for what it could be - it's like being a detective trying to work these things out sometimes - but have you also ruled out acid reflux?  Is her sleeping ok? Is she happy being lay flat?  My lo had bad acid reflux and his feeds were terribly upsetting as he would scream in pain for most of them  Might be worth checking out the colic and reflux boards to rule it out too. 

Hugs, I remember how terribly hard this was on my lo and me ((((())))

[simcar]

Had issues with both of my children.  I'd suggest burping and also checking how much milk you are producing.  My milk started to drop off by 5mths and DS started to really fuss at that point until I realized I wasn't producing enough for him.  He weaned himself by 7mths.  DD has reflux and was in constant need of burping... also weaned herself by 7mths.

[kitcat]

Maybe it is still to early but could it be teething related. I have heard that for some babies feeding is very painful while teething.