Refusing to nurse in the evening

[emilie]

hey all - I could use some of your wisdom. evening nursing sessions with DD have become a daily battle and I'm getting bummed out about it.

DD is 4 months old and I have never been able to EBF. For a long time she was taking 10-12 oz of formula a day and the rest was coming from nursing. We were nursing 6 times a day and everything was great. Over the last month, though, things have changed. She is now sleeping through the night 10-11 hours, so we are often down to just 5 nursing sessions. However, the main change has been in the evenings. When it's time for her evening nursing session she refuses to nurse. When I put her on the breastfeeding pillow she screams and screams and refuses the breast, even though she is hungry. If she gets the breast in her mouth, she bites down and it hurts. For a while I would give her a pacifier for a couple minutes to calm her down and then switch it out for the breast, but that isn't working anymore. So now I've resorted to pumping in the evening while giving her a bottle of formula and then giving her what I pumped. 

Any idea why this might be happening? I have low milk supply, so could it be that by the end of the day I don't have as much and she's not interested? Nursing earlier in the day is never a problem, but this happens literally every day at night. Also, I know that it's the "witching hour" or whatever - could it just be that she's less patient and just wants a bottle instead of having to work for it? I've tried different positions without the pillow - laid back, side lying, etc., and nothing works. I hate that this upsets her every day, but I've definitely seen my milk supply drop further since this has been happening, and the amount of formula she's taking is going up as well. What should I do?

[judyblume14]

Can you try bumping that session a little earlier so that you catch her before she's cranky?

[LadyNymeria]

No advice, but didn't want to read and not respond. Hugs to you and I hope you can find something that works.

[billyhorrible]

Apr 28, 2017 9:30:20 GMT -5 judyblume14 said:

Can you try bumping that session a little earlier so that you catch her before she's cranky?

I was going to suggest this also.  But sub in "hungry" for cranky.  I've found that often when a child (or adult) is hungry they become impatient and difficult.
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[vvvvvfee]

it does sound like frustration from hunger, and your milk is not coming out fast enough for her (which is why she's satisfied with a bottle). you could try either hand-expressing a little or pumping for just a minute or two until you get a let-down, and then letting her nurse. try massaging your breast while she's nursing, also, to help with milk flow. warm compresses also help.

[vvvvvfee]

i think the tips here would be useful, too, even though she's talking about outright refusal to nurse: www.nancymohrbacher.com/articles/2013/1/26/is-your-formerly-nursing-baby-refusing-to-breastfeed.html

[emilie]

thank you, all. she pretty much refuses to nurse altogether at night these days - she starts losing it when I try to offer the breast and doesn't even attempt to latch (even if I pump first or express milk). It's so weird because it's like a switch flips - the earlier feedings are totally fine with no signs of fussiness. I think maybe it could be a fussy evenings thing, too - i'm trying to get her to go to bed earlier and to nap for longer - maybe that will make her less fussy at the end of the day.