Block Nursing and Spitting Up

Updated on October 09, 2010
K.E. asks from Marietta, GA
4 answers

Hello ladies.
You always have such great advice. I have a 3 weeks old baby girl. initially she was nursing on one side only for 5-10 min every 1.5 hrs or so. She always had a hard tummy and seemed to always be crying out in pain. I could tell she was swallowing air during let down and milk would be pouring out the sides of her mouth. My sister and mother had strong, fast let down so I figured that was the problem here too. A few days ago I started block feeding. So now she nurses on one side for 2 feedings in a row and then I switch. The last day and a half she has been in almost no pain, she burps easily most of the time. her tummy is still a little hard, but it's better and doesn't seem to bother her. But, now we have a new problem. She spits up after every feeding, something she never did before. She'll spit up a few times after each feeding, from a little dribble to a tablespoon or so. My question is why would she be spitting up more nwo and is there anything I can do to help. I'd rather have her spit up than be in pain, but if I can fix this too that'd be great. She does burp after almost every feeding and if she doesn't then I sit her semi-up right for a while afterwards.
She is gaining weight well. At her 2 week she weighed 7 lbs (6 lbs 9 oz at birth).
Any advice would be great. Thanks!

Update: Thanks for the replies so far: The dr. does know about her tummy and gave us some gas drops, I'll have her check it out at our next appt in a week. Also, I know babies spit up, just thought it was odd since she never did before I changed her feeding habits. Also, another questions that I forgot to ask: I know that block feeding can lower milk production some. Should I try to switch back to changing sides each feeding at some point or should i just keep block feeding for a while. I don't want to jeopardize my milk supply. Thanks!

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P.M.

answers from Portland on

When my daughter was born, people still lived in caves and pediatricians advised getting all babies on a 4-hour feeding schedule. My daughter needed to eat every 2.5 hours, and I got scolded for that. So for awhile I tried coaxing her to nurse longer at a feeding. She always spit up the last ounce or two – she just couldn't hold that much food at once. So I fed her what she actually asked for, and every 2.5 hours, and it worked so much better for both of us.

I doubt that you will risk losing your supply – your body is cleverly designed to produce the amount of milk the baby actually consumes. I'd ask a lactation consultant, but I've known a couple of moms with very fast let-down who pumped for a couple of minutes before nursing so the baby wouldn't be overwhelmed by the supply.

1 mom found this helpful
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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

You NEED to tell your Pediatrician... about her "hard" tummy... it can mean a lot of things.

1 mom found this helpful
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R.B.

answers from New York on

I think you are doing great so I guess I don't really understand what the problem with the spit up is? Babies spit up. Some a little some alot. Burping her might help or she just might be getting more hind milk and that has more fat and therefore she will spit up. I wouldn't worry too much about the spit up. She sounds like she is thriving.
Great job!
R.

1 mom found this helpful

M.L.

answers from Chicago on

I agree with Rebekah - my daughter went through nearly the same thing you talk about so I did the same. I was fine with the spitting up over the hard/gassy tummy. My daughter is now nearly 10 months old and around 6-7 months rarely spit-up. Sounds like you are doing great. And as SH said call the pediatrician and mention the hard tummy just to be sure it's nothing more than gassiness. Best wishes to you!

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