Fussy periods  are  a good description.  I have  heard health visitors say 
that at the one which  occurs  round 6 weeks formula feeding mothers 
sometimes change formulas as they think that the   formula is no longer 
right for the baby.   The   idea Nina mentions,  that they are periods of 
behaviour which happen  round the time  that a baby is undergoing a big 
developmental change is one that a lot of mothers find convincing.  An 
article  in the LCGB magazine some years ago  on the work of  van der Rijt 
Plooij and  Plooij suggested that these periods  happen at  fairly 
predictable times in  the first  couple of years, that   they happen to most 
babies however fed, and that they   'come out' of these periods however you 
respond to the baby, but if you offer the comfort  of the breast  whenever 
the baby  needs it he learns that  mum is there to help him when he's 
feeling    not quite right and if mum had been cutting short the feedings 
because she is  getting more active then it will increase the milk again. 
The early fussy periods are times when so often mothers feel or are told  by 
the world and his wife  that they don't have enough milk,  and  unless 
mothers know  that this is probably not the case   [if  the baby is putting 
on enough weight etc]  the periods are  ones where there is the risk of 
introducing bottles,  early solids -   3 and 4 months  are  both times when 
solids have been  introduced as    the baby is fussy,  solids are given, 
baby settles down, as he would have done anyway, therefore he  needed 
solids.
Mothers  so often ask 'is this normal' and are usually reassured when they 
know that [unless  the baby is unwell or not putting on weight] that   fussy 
periods are fairly normal and   if they hang in there,    give their baby 
lots of love and cuddles, [and no it  won't spoil him,] then things will 
get better.

Helen
England

I once attended a presentation by Mike Woolridge, at an LLLGB
> conference I think, where he discussed 'frequency days', 'growth
> spurts' etc. His research showed that the mother did not in fact
> produce more milk at those times and the baby did not in fact grow
> faster then - what he thinks happens is:  the mother gets distracted,
> maybe feeds less often or hurries the baby through feedings for a few
> days, and the baby then insists on getting the milk supply back on
> track. Probably this is published somewhere, it was a few years ago. I
> wish I could remember references, sorry!
>
> This reading of the situation would fit with the timing that these
> days often happen - when the mother has recovered from the birth and
> is getting more active, when more demands are made on her time, when
> the baby's behaviour changes because of developmental changes....?
> What do you think?
>
> However, it still seems helpful sometimes to refer to them as 'growth
> spurts' because this explains the baby's needs to the mother without
> blaming her, makes her look at the baby closely and think about the
> baby again, and trust that her body can respond to the baby's
> requirements. Maybe we need to think of better language to explain
> what's going on?
>
> Rachel O'Leary
> Cambridge, UK


>
> Hi Marianne
> In Aus, we have stopped using the term 'growth spurt' since there is no
> evidence that this is in fact what is going on - and as another poster has
> pointed out, no evidence that milk supply is actually increased by the
> behaviours that mothers describe.
> However, we have found that many mothers notice an increase in feeding
> frequency and fussing at around 10 -14 days, around 6 weeks and around 10
> weeks.  So we talk about 'fussy days' and try to normalise the behaviour 
> by
> observing that 'many mothers find their babies go through a period of 
> fussy
> days at (whatever) ages.'  Describe the pattern of more frequent feeding 
> and
> irritability which settles down after a few days.  Suggestions for 
> managing
> life during this time are offered and the mother is encouraged to contact 
> us
> again if things don't change by the end of the week.
> In the real world some babies will have their 6 week 'fussy days' a little
> early and some a little late.  In practice I find this a convenient way to
> normalise unexpected behaviour for mothers who seem to think that babies 
> can
> be programmed to eat and sleep predictably in perpetuity and are staggered
> to find that they gave birth to an individual.  By the end of the week,
> babies are usually less irritable because they are getting what they need
> and mothers are working life in around them.
> I have heard it suggested that these fussy periods do exist and that they
> precede the achievement of a neurological milestone. (Smiling responsively
> at 6 weeks; rolling over at 10 or 12; crawling at 6 ...)  The suggestion 
> is
> that they are irritable because they are frustrated and working hard at
> mastering this new skill.
> Good luck
> Nina Berry
> Australia

             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome