Bottle Feeding

Sometimes halfway through bottle feeding my baby, she will start to panic, go red in the face and cry even while the bottle teat is still in her mouth. Up to that point in time, she would have been feeding peacefully. I would then take the bottle out of her mouth (as she would start to choke shortly after as she can't cry and swallow at the same time) and then try to burp her. She would tend to stop crying but when I try to feed her again, she sometimes starts to cry and panic again. Is this behavior normal and is there anything I can do about it?

Your daughter’s behavior does not sound too unusual, but it is distressing for both you and her, and here are some points to consider about the feed in general:

• Is the milk flow too fast or too slow for her? Would a different teat or bottle help?
• As she sucks, do you pull a little on the bottle, to keep a bit of resistance? That way she draws the teat in at her own rate.
• You could hold her a little upright during and after a feed to help the milk settle in her tummy.
• Keep her nose clean as babies need to nose breathe during feeding.

As she is a good weight, it is unlikely that there is a serious problem, however as you described her as ‘panicking’ it would be worthwhile asking your own Health Visitor to observe a feed and perhaps she could see if your child had pain, wind or any other cause for her distress.

It is also nearly time for her 6-8 week review with the GP, so as long as she remains well in herself and continues to gain weight, you could wait until then and mention it to the GP who might like to explore the problem further.

If your child has any very unusual symptoms, breathing problems, or behaviors during a feed, please contact a doctor directly.