Growth Spurt?

[@llli*zulieka1]

My son is 10 weeks old and is a real guzzler on the breast. However, during the week there he suddenly wanted to nurse ALL DAY!! I didn't mind, 'cos I wasn't doing anything anyway but the next morning I swear he'd suddenly grown. It seems like all of a sudden his clothes didn't fit and the nappies I'd bought 2 days previously were too tight. Also, a couple of days before he was really unsettled for no apparent reason and we couldn't calm him.

Now he's back to his normal cheery wee self but his feeding patterns are all over the place, not like the every 4hrs we had before. Now he's feeding sporadically and I never know how long he'll nurse for. Sometimes for 5 minutes, sometimes 20 minutes or whatever. He's also wanting an extra feed at 1 in the morning which he didn't want before. He usually went to bed at 10(ish) and wouldn't wake for a feed until 4 or so.

I feed on demand which worked ok cos he sorta developed his own routine but now we don't know whether we're coming or going. Is this a growth spurt like I've heard about and will he settle down again? Is it normal for this kind of thing to happen? I understand growth spurts do happen, just never really expected it to be as drastic as this...

[@llli*mommal]

What you describe sounds absolutely normal for a 10 week old baby. Babies change their feeding and sleeping patterns all the time in the first year, and the changes can be extreme. If anything, I think the major issue here is one of perception. Up to now your baby sounds like he has has been unbelievably easy- it is extraordinarily rare for a breastfed baby to spontaneously go 4 hours between feedings! (My girls, for example, fed every 1-2 hours around the clock for the first few months.) Now, all of a sudden you're experiencing a more typical feeding pattern (that is to say, no pattern at all!), and it's throwing you for a loop. Just hang in there, mama! Just when you get used to this, it's going to change all over again.

[@llli*zulieka1]

Lol, I guess I have had it easy so far. My perception is based on the fact I've had no idea what to expect and therefore just took everyday as it came and now suddenly everything changed. As long as my wee rascal is happy and healthy though I'm not that bothered about how he feeds. It's just nice to know I haven't done something wrong to cause him to change like this!! Thanks for the reassurance...

[@llli*kst.7399]

The thing all mothers can say is just when you think you've got it all figured out they change it up on you. It's the only consistent. My son still follows that pattern. He will have a perfectly regular schedule. Nap at the same time, wake at the same time, eat at the same times. And for a couple of weeks I think I can actually have a routine. Then one day he's up all night and won't nap that day. Then he's either nursing non stop or refusing. And that becomes the norm for about a week until he settles back into a new schedule. Although usually not that far off from the old one. My son is 17 months old. They keep us on our toes. My best advice for you is to follow his cues, stay flexible and try to be patient with the changes.