Am I going wrong somewhere....?

My 4 week old son is not letting me get much sleep for the last 4
nights. He used to b/feed and go to sleep and wake up every 3 hours.
Now he seems to be waking up evry half hour or every hour. I feel like
a zombie in the mornings because I have had hardly any sleep. When I
feed him, he seems to fall asleep after being on the breast for just
5-10 minutes. I can tell he isnt full but dont know how to keep him
awake. Friends have suggested that he might be too warm - but how to I
keep him cool? I worry that if I dont put enough layers on him, he
might get cold.... Friends have also told me not to carry him in my
arms when feeding him, because he is getting too cozy and that I
should feed him lying down and have his body away from mine - but this
position is ever so uncmfortable. Also, when I start to breast feed
him his mouth gets so full he latches off the breast and starts to cry
- I dont know whether he is choking on the milk or what.

Some one please help me on this. This is my first baby and sometimes I
feel like I am doing something wrong or my baby isnt well.

Is this colic or what?

Also, can someone please explain to me what "growth spurt" is?

"Shunaari" wrote in message
om...
My 4 week old son is not letting me get much sleep for the last 4
nights. He used to b/feed and go to sleep and wake up every 3 hours.
Now he seems to be waking up evry half hour or every hour.

This is pretty normal for this age - a typical growth spurt is at about 3
weeks, some babies go through it a bit early, some a bit late. It generally
lasts a few days to a week and then subsides as your milk production
increases to meet the new demand.

(snip) When I
feed him, he seems to fall asleep after being on the breast for just
5-10 minutes. I can tell he isnt full but dont know how to keep him
awake. Friends have suggested that he might be too warm - but how to I
keep him cool? I worry that if I dont put enough layers on him, he
might get cold.... Friends have also told me not to carry him in my
arms when feeding him, because he is getting too cozy and that I
should feed him lying down and have his body away from mine - but this
position is ever so uncmfortable.

I used to strip DS down to his diaper to keep him awake - had a receiving
blanket in case I thought he was *too* cold, and he was also snuggled up
right next to me, so he was getting some warmth that way. Didn't leave him
in the onsie and sleeper, though - too warm and too sleepy! I would also
tickle him if he seemed to be dropping off. Not that he was actually
ticklish at that age, but it did seem to work to keep him awake and nursing
rather than drifting off to sleep.

Also, when I start to breast feed
him his mouth gets so full he latches off the breast and starts to cry
- I dont know whether he is choking on the milk or what.

Sounds like it might be overactive letdown - that is, when your milk starts
to flow, it comes out too fast for the little guy to keep up with, so he
winds up choking a little bit and pulling off the breast to manage it.
Iphigenia already gave you a pointer on how to handle this . . .

Some one please help me on this. This is my first baby and sometimes I
feel like I am doing something wrong or my baby isnt well.

Sounds like you're doing well - just watch for the overactive letdown stuff
and try to ride out the growth spurt. The first several weeks (6-10 for
most women) are the most difficult, then things do tend to settle in and get
easier.

Good luck to you!

Patty