Saturday, August 18, 2007
My baby has ADD while nursing
NJ is exclusively breastfed and he is having a harder and harder time nursing. He is way too distracted! He will latch off to any little noise he hears. And nursing while we're out and about? Forget it! He is the same way when I try to give him a bottle. All of my old tricks aren't working. the only time he will nurse a decent amount is right after he wakes up. That is the ideal time to nurse him but it doesn't always turn out that way. When he is sleepy, he will nurse anywhere from 10-15 minutes. When he's awake, I'm lucky if I can get 3 minutes out of him. I don't think he is nursing more efficiently while he is alert either. Anyone else? Any suggestions?
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9 comments:
Hey Kyung! Kathryn started doing this as well, when she was about 6 months old. At that time I was nursing her 5 times a day...I started spacing her feeding out and just feeding her 4 times a day (when she woke up in the AM, then every 4 hours), and that helped tremendously...she was hungry enough to take full feeds and was less distracted. She still gets distracted sometimes, but it's not as bad as it was! She also got better when we recently took the paci away. I think you already took NJ's, but if not, that's an option. Hang in there...breastmilk is so good for him!
kyung,
as we speak i am having the same problem. Reid hasn't eaten since 4:30 AM and it's now 8:30 AM and he could care less. there are so many interesting things to look at. sometimes he just looks up at me and smiles that wide mouth smile as if to see, "hi mama, what's up?" while that doesn't accomplish really anything it does help me relax and smile back. his best feedings are during the night. he's 3 mo. old and waking up 2 xs so those are good feedings.
one thing i try that works at times is changing positions. i find laying down in bed nursing him helps him focus.
I'm nursing NJ 4x a day as well, usually every 4-4.5 hrs, depending on his nap lengths. It's worse when we're out and about. (you saw how he was at church, Lisa!) I usually do nurse him lying down- he prefers it that way I think.
The world is definitely a more interesting than just staring at the boob. Have you tried a nursing necklace? I didn't with Chloe, but I had friends who swore by it. You don't have to worry about NJ not getting enough milk/nutrition. He'll nurse more efficiently and less often. If he takes to a cup well, he'll start the self-weaning process if you don't start it for him.
Rachel is the same way. Her best nursing is first thing in the AM, and the rest are hit and miss. I've been tense about it off and on b/c I think her weight has fluctuated, but lately, I've remembered that she's doing fine and looks perfectly healthy. And they are pretty efficient at getting what they need.
Rachel has a lovey, so if she's having a hard time w/ pre-bedtime meltdowns (i.e. not nursing but fighting me and crying), letting her hold her lovey has helped her concentrate on nursing tremendously. The nursing necklace sounds like a cool idea or let him hold a toy maybe - one that won't hurt you if banged against you:) we also are of the camp that seeks to nurse right after she wakes up. If she wakes up early from her nap, I sometimes still nurse her early....I'd rather not fight her later on, and then I'll give her solids a little later, so usually, we get back on schedule pretty easily then.
Hang in there:) And, I saw him in church yesterday (lookin all cute, btw), and he looks like he is getting plenty and doing quite well. I have sympathy for you....I had to walk a little while nursing Rachel last night....holding 22 pounds up to you is a little tiresome:)
Yup BTDT...Bailey will ONLY nurse if we are in my room dorr shut and laying down on the bed with no distractions...other wise no way no how!
oh I thought Hayden was the only one!!! lol.. my 8 mo old is on a nursing strike, or so I thought up till now. You'd think being my 2nd baby I'd know what to do. But I completely forgot what happened to dd 2 years ago.
Hayden's nursing only 2 minutes each time and it's frustrating as I already started the let down process. I'm also worried my milk will go away if he doesn't finish his meal! he's so conspitated so clearly he didn't get enough fluid. When I handed him a cup of water he'd drink it right away. I even had to mix formula powder into his rice cereal (used to be just water) to make sure he gets nutrients. He's getting really thin this past 2 weeks. Not even any fat rolls on his thighs and his legs are so thin. His face is slim and his chin is pointy. I don't think this is normal as I love fat babies. lol...
what's a nursing necklace?
A nursing necklace is just a necklace with big beads on it that you wear to keep baby occupied while nursing. I think the idea is that you're supposed to only wear it when you're nursing so it's like a toy that baby gets rewarded to play.
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