I don't know what I'm doing anymore

Fdpolla92

Hello everyone! I use to feel like I at least kind of knew what my baby needed but i guess not anymore! Any advice on these two things would be great!

First, we are having a breastfeeding problem for about 2 weeks now. DD use to always eat every 3 hours or so. She would open and close her mouth when she was hungry and eat on one side. When she was done she would let go and refuse any more. Now she is not doing any sort of hungry cues like that anymore and is just crying when she gets to be hungry but it is so unpredictable. She will eat on one side and keep going even though i feel empty so I will switch her to the other side. She will keep eating as long as im offering it so I'm never sure when she is actually finished. Her diaper output is fine and she doesn't seem like shes hungry still she just won't stop until I actually take her off.

The second issue is her sleeping. She use to go to bed drowsy without a problem. She has been progressively getting worse for about the last 5 weeks. I was spending hours trying to get her to sleep for her to wake up within 20 minutes. And she was back to waking up every hour at night. We seem to have the nights going a bit better. She will fuss for about 10 minutes but then sleep from 6pm- 1am, eat, then sleep until about 6. Sometimes waking up at 4am to eat. We are still having a horrible time with naps though. She is extremely irritated as soon as she gets put in her crib for a nap then by the time we get her to sleep shes only sleeping 20-30 minutes then waking up in a bad mood. Im not sure what to do to help naps. 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

dmendo01

First, I usually let DD eat until she unlatches herself. It can take a while, but usually when she does I burp her and switch to the other side. When she just starts messing around and not really eating I stop, or if she falls asleep I unlatch her and put her down to sleep. Maybe your LO is going through a growth spurt. 

Second, I'm not sure about this honestly, but there are several sleep threads. Maybe wait for deep sleep before you put them down? White noise still works well for Lyncoln as well as swaddling but we aren't even 3mo old yet. Will be Tuesday/also 13 weeks that day. She has been napping better and better but we also still sleep in RNP. I know you're in the crib and I have read that some put rolled up receiving blankets in there to help them feel more secure and cuddled. 

I know around 3.5-4mo from due date is a mental leap that lasts a while, so maybe that is it? 

angelicac06

I highly agree with PP, let LO eat until unlatching on her own. Burp before moving sides. 

It sounds like you're coming off a regression/leap. The ONLY way I xan get my LO to nap more than 30 mins is in arms. Maybe after she wakes up from her independent nap rock her back to sleep? Perhaps just one of those naps a day?

BP1979

My DS has suddenly changed his eating habits too. I think he's going through a growth spurt though. He usually would eat like a beast for 10 minutes and be done. But, the last week or so he's been eating for 20 or 30 minutes and he's been eating more frequently. Maybe try feeding your little one every 2 1/2 hours and letting her eat until she stops for a few days? This way you avoid the total meltdown when she gets so hungry.. 

pupsicle23

Have you recently returned to work or had another schedule change?  Since my return to work, DD has been all out of sorts.  She constantly wants to comfort nurse and also goes straight to crying for it...and she gets hysterical if it takes a minute to get set up. 

Her sleep is also thrown off. She'll sleep through the night,  but it takes a few tries to get her down.  I will take her for a lap around the house or nurse her as needed. 

She was starting to get back to normal,  but we had a lot of (loud) visitors (who were in her face a lot) this weekend, so she was thrown off again.  I'm chalking it all up to a change in routine and wondering where the heck I go all day. 

redfallon

Once you have it all figured out, they change things on you. This is still going on with my 2.5 year old

Fdpolla92

So whatever was going on with her she seems to have figured out. She went down today and took a 3 hour nap. Is down for her second one now without an issue. She also took a bottle today without a meltdown when she woke up with is an achivement by itself because we have been trying for weeks. She also started rolling today! I guess just too many new things going on in her little life!

theawc42

My lo doesn't unlatch either. The only time she does usually is her first feeding in the morning. Other than that she falls asleep almost every time and just keeps it in her mouth for comfort I think . I always have to detach her and she usually wakes up and fuses for a minute. I swear she could stay latched all day. She doesn't take a pacifier either 

groovylocks

Now will she EAT as long as you're offering or will she SUCK as long as you're offering? They're two different things. 

Do you ever notice her sucks become more shallow? Olive does this about halfway through any nursing session. She's using me as a human pacifier. She stops drawing milk and just nibbles. She has done this more and more lately. It's her teeth, in her case. 

As they age, their rate of growth slows. So their nutritional needs and frequency begin to change.

I can't help much with the sleeping. From the moment the pediatrician cleared her for uninterrupted rest till now, she goes down at 9pm. Sleeps till 2:30. Then 4:30. Then 6:30 and she's up for good. All night. Every night.