4mo arching back and pulling off while nursing--what is this?

[Anonymous]

My DS would do this but yell and hit at me. He preferred bottles (instant gratification) and nursing was too slow. Over time we got him on track. He is now a year and half and we still call him the 6 minute man - he eats fast and needs to be off and running. Always on the go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS would do this but yell and hit at me. He preferred bottles (instant gratification) and nursing was too slow. Over time we got him on track. He is now a year and half and we still call him the 6 minute man - he eats fast and needs to be off and running. Always on the go.

My DD was like this, too. Docs said reflux, but to this day I think it was just supreme frustration on her part. My DS, on the other hand, will happily nurse for 20 mins, then lounge around in my lap in a milk haze afterwards. Funny how they are so different!

[Anonymous]

omg, this sounds exactly like my 4 mo old! I just put a call into the dr. because she is doing all the things you mentioned. Also, she will take a bottle fine...so weird. I hope the reflux meds help!

[Anonymous]

Teething as well. The Gums hurt when they first start sucking. They diagnose every third baby with reflux: I have my doubts, since reflux didn't seem to be an issue before it was possible to medicate it.

If it just started, and is as variable in onset as you describe, I'd go for frustration, curiosity, or teething.

[Anonymous]

I had this issue with DD. I think it was just a really strong letdown and she couldn't keep up with the milk and freaked out. I ended up moving to EPing and then bailing. I hope this isn't the case for you, but I'm guessing a LC would be able to help you with it if it is (I did not pursue this route).

[Anonymous]

Oh, wow--this is my post from YEARS ago! We are on kid #2 now, and the one from this post will turn three next week.

FWIW, as an update: it was silent reflux. When we couldn't ID the problem but the nursing issues continued, our doctor decided to start medicating to see if things improved, and they did--hugely! My little 3rd percentile kid suddenly started eating far more and gaining lots of weight and jumped up the growth curve to the 40th percentile, where he remains as an almost-three-year-old. He was on Zantac from shortly after I posted this until 11 months, though we tried unsuccessfully to wean him off it two or three times in there (cries of pain/arching/unwillingness to nurse would return). We did not suspect reflux because he was not a spitty baby (hence the "silent" part)--his little brother is, so it's a very interesting contrast.

[Anonymous]

My baby has been doing something similar to this for the last month (she's 5 mos). I think she's distracted, and I think she's draining me pretty quickly. She may not be patient enough for a second let-down. I'm thinking possible growth spurt.

[Anonymous]

Same thing here. Come to find out reflux and lactose intolerance was the issue. Had to exclusive formula feed nutramigen.

[Anonymous]

Reflux

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know it can be a sign of reflux, but there are no other symptoms of that (and even silent reflux doesn't seem like it fits).

My EBF four-month-old periodically nurses for a few seconds and then goes stiff, arches his back, and pulls off, crying out. He goes right back to the breast a few seconds later so he's clearly still hungry, but often will repeat this a dozen times in a ten-minute nursing session. We've tried dark rooms, etc. to make sure it's not just a distracted baby, but I don't think that's it since he's not looking around at other things. It's really more like something hurt him and he's reacting, but then going back for more anyway. Once he finally gets going he seems fine, and no signs of distress after he's finished eating. If I pick him up and distract him he's all smiles so whatever it is doesn't seem to last. This doesn't happen every nursing session, but I haven't found a pattern to when it does and doesn't happen. As far as I know, I have no obvious issues with oversupply or fast letdown.

Anyone experience this and know what could cause it? He has a cough and is sneezy (started around the same time, I think---but no congestion) so I thought possibly an ear infection, but ped thinks that's unlikely absent other symptoms. Only other odd change is that his poop is sort of a soft peanut butter consistency (yuck!) without the "curds" it used to have in it---but otherwise normal color, frequency, etc. As of his four-month checkup, he was gaining beautifully. Any other thoughts? Thanks!

Hi! Did you ever find out what this was? It’s word for word what we are going through and suspecting dairy intolerance?

[Anonymous]

PP above- please see the OPs response 3 or 4 up from your comment.

Silent reflux was the problem

Also, reflux is exacerbated by intolerances, ties, and torticollis. If you think dairy is an issue, remove it.