I'm so confused !

[TayTay'smummy]

My lo is six weeks old and she has started to confuse me over the last couple of days. She is breast and bottle fed and also uses paci. Lately, she has been waking up from her naps twenty minutes in, she has been well fed, activity, she is obviously tired, but she has her mouth wide open like a little bird . . and is rooting around. So I think, okay she wants her paci, but she spits it out repeatedly. So I think, okay growth spurt, she's still hungry. Offer the breast, refuses. So I get a bottle but she sometimes is a little nipple confused, she spits out bottle and refuses to swallow milk.  But she continues to root around and has her mouth wide open like she's looking for something to put in her mouth. What on earth does she want, if she doesn't want her paci for soothing, my breast or bottle. I'm worried that I'm doing something terribly wrong ?

[annamum]

Hi,

From what you wrote it looks like she may be overtired and doesn''t know how to get back to sleep. I am not an expert on sleep issues but I remember my dd would also act like that at this age. She was/is a spirited baby and putting her for nap or to sleep was difficult. She would seem to need all sorts of things only to refuse them, like your little girl. We also used pacifier for a little while and she always refused it at first but if we kept offering it she would take it.

I think, I don't have any great advice to you, except to perhaps go to a naps board and look for some answers there. I know that when they are so little they keep waking after 10 or 20 minutes but are definitely not rested yet, they still need their nap. If you are sure she is not hungry, you will need to resettle her.

Just remember, at 6 weeks they go through a growth spurt. How long does she go between feeds? How often generally do you feed her?

[TayTay'smummy]

Usually I feed my lo every two and a half to three hours and she breast feeds until satisfied or takes four to five ounces by bottle. Today, she has been eating every hour and a half and breast feeds very briefly or takes only two ounces per feed. It's now nine o;clock p.m. and has not really had a good nap since noon, she keeps waking up. Now we're dealing with a severely overtired baby. Tried everything, guess we're just having a really bad day.

[LindseysMom]

Hello.  Babies at this age can be so confusing to us new Mama's.   Your lo is probably going through a growth spurt.  So keep feeding on demand.  I just wanted to say that  I do remember those days with Lindsey.  I also would suggest that at your lo age, just do whatever you can to get her to sleep.  In my opinion I think it is better for lo's at this age to just get the sleep they need rather than starting to worry about how they get to sleep.  Don't worry to much yet about trying to get her to sleep on her own.  I really think it is more important for a baby to get their rest no matter how they get there than to try and "sleep train" at such a young age.   Not saying that that is what you are trying to do either just wanted to say that if you need to rock her or nurse her or whatever it takes it is ok, especially so you too can get your rest.  :wink:   Are you swaddling her?  That really helps them stay asleep because when their little arms flail it keeps them from waking themselves up.  I hope things get easier for you soon.  Hang in there.