>Obviously sucking at the breast is more satisfying than sucking on fingers.

Not if you have an aggressive letdown - in the early weeks, every time
my baby came off the breast (to catch some air - it's hard work keeping
up with that flow-rate) she would return to discover *another* letdown,
and another and another. She would soon have a full tummy but her need
to suck continued. What could she do? Until she found her thumb she
would scream and be pretty inconsolable for a while after every feed.
Needless to say, she was searching for her thumb from a few days old!

My first never discovered her thumb, but instead would try and continue
sucking at my breast and get an over-full tummy (full of foremilk,
ofcourse) and that would lead to horrendous green, gassy stools, colic
and endless screaming (6-8 hours a night). She did this until she was at
least 6 mo. I have diagnosed the problem with hindsight, unfortunately.

OK, maybe I should have been more aware of what the problem was, and
taken steps to cure it, but I resent being acused of not fullfilling my
baby's sucking needs. To my way of thinking, my Alice and I have worked
out a compromise that works. We are both happy and Alice is very
healthy, so what's the problem? I would *pray* for my first to suck her
thumb, or anything so she would stop screaming. She would fight like a
tiger at the breast once she had had her fill, but nothing seemed to
calm her down - no one accuse me of not offering the breast enough,
please!
--
Anna (mummy to Emma, born 17th Jan 1995 and Alice, born 11th Sept 1996)
Email: [log in to unmask]  Web Page: http://www.ratbag.demon.co.uk/anna