Sudden drop in feeding

[Lindsay27]

Over the last few days DD has decided she wants to eat every 4hrs, which is fine...we are close to 4 months now so she is stretching longer between feeds.  The problem is that even at 4hrs she is fighting her bottles tooth and nail and is only taking 2-3oz when she used to be taking 5oz every 3hrs.   What the heck is going on!? 

We had to change her to a lactose free formula about 2 weeks ago to stop some diarrhea that was persistent and wouldn't go away, but she changed over to this with no issues initially, so I don't think it's the formula. 

Any ideas??

[Lindsay27]

She is otherwise healthy, no sickness/fever or anything like that.

[lolsyb1982]

We had the same and was just before she turned 4mo and hit the GS. I've found since then she's continued eating more and takes nearer to 6oz every 4hrs.

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Does she need to go to a faster flow nipple perhaps?

[Lindsay27]

I just changed her to a faster flow not that long ago so I don't think it's that.  When she wants to eat she can down a bottle quickly, she is just mostly refusing it altogether.  She's dropped a bottle completely in the last few days - we used to do 6 feeds in 24hrs and now we're down to 5 and of those 5 she is sometimes only taking 2 or 3 oz.  I'm so confused, it is so random.  And now I'm having a hard time reading her cues because I never know if she's hungry or not. 

Even in the MOTN for NFs she's refusing   Like she will wake at say 4:30am, so it has been 9hrs since her BT feed and she will fight that bottle.  I mean...she has to be hungry!?

[Lindsay27]

Ughhhh I don't know what is going on.

She took 4oz at 7am, then another 4oz at 10:30am and then I tired I feed her at 2pm, took nothing, 2:30 took 1.5oz and now I'm trying at 4:30 and she isn't taking anything.  I mean 9.5oz all day!? This is not normal.  She just keeps turning her head away and refuses to take anything.

Update:  At 6pm I gave her a bottle of her old formula (with lactose) and she ate 5oz.  I don't know if she was just starving by this point or if she actually preferred it.  Who knows.  She did start to fart around near the end, so I think I am going to try faster nipples to see.  But now I don't know what to do...I don't want the old formula to bring back her diarrhea.  Gah I'm so confused and frustrated.

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Is the old formula available in a lactose free version?

[Lindsay27]

I stuck with Enfamil for both, so she was on Enfamil Gentlease and then we switched her to Enfamil Lactose Free.  I offered her a top up (old formula) at 7:30pm before bed and she was having none of it.  She always acts like she wants to eat, sees the bottle and opens her mouth, sucks vigorously for about 10 seconds and then just stops, spits it out and refuses any more.

So in 12hrs today she had 14.5oz and she normally does 1 NF, so if she does say 4oz tonight then she'd be at 18.5 in 24hrs when she used to be having 25-30oz.   I really don't think it's the flow but I will try some faster nipples to rule it out.

[haribo89]

She always acts like she wants to eat, sees the bottle and opens her mouth, sucks vigorously for about 10 seconds and then just stops, spits it out and refuses any more.

This is exactly what my little one does, I've put it down to reflux. I'm unsure if that's is the reason but it makes the most sense in our situation.
Whe he is like that we offer him a feed every hour if he's not taken much/any. We found when he is like that if we left him a few hour between feeds he would refuse or take little. If we offered it to him every hour, sometimes he wouldn't take, sometimes an oz, sometimes 3oz. But adding it up in 24 hours we got lots more down him this way than trying to stick to a more normal routine.
I'm unsure if it's ok for LF babies but we also used to put vanilla essential into bottles to tempt him a little more.

[Lindsay27]

Ya know Zoe, you might be right.  We've always suspected reflux because she throws up constantly, but she's a very happy baby and had no signs of pain so the doctor just called her a happy spitter.  And now that I think about it the last few days while this has been happening she squirms like she is trying to get away from herself. But she sees the bottle and tries to grab it and bring it to her mouth initially.

She ate 4oz at 5am...the first 2oz she took okay, the rest she fought.  We tried feeding this morning at 8:45am and 9:30am and we've only gotten 2oz into her.

I've left a message for her doctor but today and Monday are holidays so we the earliest we could get in is Tuesday and I think that's doubtful we'd get something that day.  I don't know what to do until then?  I think like you said Zie I will offer more frequently, she'll get more in if she takes 1oz every hour or so vs 1oz every 4 or 5 hours.