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Breastfeeding/Baby cries while nursing

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Expert: - 7/18/2005


Question
My son is eleven weeks old, and is double his birthweight (so I know that he is doing well).  However, we have had a problem since the beginning and it is driving me CRAZY!  Often, when he nurses, he will nurse for a few minutes (no more than three usually) and then come off crying.  He is inconsolable at this point and may bob off and on a couple of times, but then just cries.  If I give him a soother, he will calm down and if I wait long enough (like until he is sleeping), he will take the breast and feed for quite a while.  He seems to feed better when he is sleeping.  The problem isn't that he isn't hungry, I know that for sure and he doesn't have gas (burping him doesn't help).  I just don't understand why he cries and sometimes we just both get frustrated in the process.  I'd really like to figure it out so that feeding can be a more enjoyable experience.  Some days he will feed fine without any of these situations and other days he may do it once or twice, and still others he may do it every feed.  There just doesn't seem to be any logic in it all.  Any ideas what I can do?

Answer
Dear Stacy,

First, congratulations for giving your baby the best start in life by breastfeeding!

I can imagine how distressing it must be to have him cry so often during the feedings. Here are a few possible reasons why he might be doing this:

* You may be producing so much milk that a large quantity is expelled into his mouth, more than he can swallow.

* Your breasts may be pressing against his nose so that he cannot breathe.

* He may have a little sniffle, also interfering with his breathing through his nose.

Check out these possibilities & you may want to take a look at my book (see below) for more information. Or you might call a La Leche League person or lactation consultant in your area who can actually watch you breastfeeding.

Good luck!

Best regards,

Sally

Sally Wendkos Olds
Author, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING: Eiger & Olds, 3rd edition 1999, published by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books, and available in most public libraries, bookstores & La Leche League chapters.  

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Sally Wendkos Olds

Expertise

What do you want to know about breastfeeding? I can tell you what`s good for the baby, what`s good for the mother -- and the father, how it`s related to a woman`s sexuality, how working moms can nurse, how to overcome obstacles, and lots more. As the author of THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING and author or coauthor of 8 other books and more than 200 articles about child and adult development, I can offer sound, sensible advice on breastfeeding, child care and family issues.

Experience

I nursed my 3 daughters and am the grandmother of 5 breastfed children. My book THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING (written in consultation with pediatrician Marvin S. Eiger, M.D.) was first published in 1972, and in 1999 came out in an updated 3rd Edition by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books. It is now a classic, with over 2 million copies in print. I am now revising this book for a fourth edition, consulting with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D. This new edition will be published September 2009. I welcome any and all suggestions for the new edition. I coauthored college textbooks A CHILD'S WORLD: INFANCY THROUGH ADOLESCENCE, and HUMAN DEVELOPMENT; both are leading texts in their fields and have been read by 2 million students. I am the coauthor of HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND VALUES TO LIVE BY and RAISING A HYPERACTIVE CHILD, and author of THE WORKING PARENTS' SURVIVAL GUIDE & THE ETERNAL GARDEN: SEASONS OF OUR SEXUALITY. My newest book, A BALCONY IN NEPAL: GLIMPSES OF A HIMALAYAN VILLAGE, published in 2002, tells the story of the way of life in a remote village in Nepal, where all the women breastfeed! My book, SUPER GRANNY: COOL PROJECTS, ACTIVITIES, AND OTHER GREAT STUFF TO DO WITH YOUR GRANDKIDS, will be published March 2009. I speak often to professional, parent and general audiences and make many radio and TV appearances.

Credentials I received my B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where I minored in Psychology, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.

Other points of interest I have received national awards for my writing, and am a former president of the American Society of Journalists & Authors. I am listed in the World Who's Who of Women, International Authors & Writers Who's Who, and Contemporary Authors, and am a member of several professional and civic organizations. I believe: that all parents are working parents; that parents employed outside the home need special support; that mothers' well-being is crucial to their children's welfare; and that the family is the best institution in the world and the one for which we are least prepared. My thrills come when parents or kids tell me they were helped by my writing or speaking or just understanding. To find out more about me, go to

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