DD2 not content unless boob in her mouth help!

[wendibird22]

DD2 is 14wks and just not content unless my boob, her hand, or a toy is in her mouth. She'll nurse all.day.long expect for the occasional cat nap. I feel like she nurses 15mins, naps for 20, nurses for 15, naps for 20, wash, rinse, repeat. She's only content in the bouncy, swing, or playmat for 10mins max and then the fussing starts and she'll calm down as soon as she latches on.
She wont take a paci (at least not for longer than a minute). At night when I put her to bed she frantically searches for her hand/fingers/thumb.

Could this be a growth spurt? Could she just have a high need to pacify herself? Any suggestions? DD1 wasn't like this that I can recall (amazing how much of a blur her infancy already is to me). I'm going back to work next week and not sure how DD2 is going to survive daycare w/out my boob!

[smiles33]

My DD2 was like this, too, and refused 4 different kinds of pacifiers. I thought she would be miserable at daycare and worried endlessly about it. When she started daycare, she sort of reverse-cycled and had only 2 oz of BM in bottles for 9 hours. When we got home, she'd nurse for 3 hours straight and then sleep for 3-4 hours before wanting to nurse more. I don't have any advice but to say that she'll adapt somehow because she has to.

I truly think it's harder on you, as you're sleep-deprived, working a FT job, and then not being able to do anything around the house while you're nursing every night. DH fed me dinner every night as I couldn't cut my meat while nursing! The first few months I went back to work, our house was a pig sty as I had no time to do anything on a weeknight but nurse, wash bottles, fill bottles, and pass out.

DD2 is now almost 10 months old and is no longer attached to my boob every minute we're home. Yet she was over 6 months old (after she started solids) before she stopped doing those 3 hour nursing sessions and started taking about 12 oz in bottles at daycare.

Other than wanting to hang out on my boob, she was and continues to be a very happy baby.

Hugs to you!

[catroddick]

Have you tried different pacifiers? DD was particular in the beginning, and kept refusing until we found the right one. It was a huge help, as I had the same going back to work concerns.

[wellyes]

Is she actively hungry or just self-soothing? If she's hungry, of course you address that - it's the tail end of that "Fourth Trimester" thing where you're just a walking buffet.

If she's just wanting something in her mouth then it's GREAT she's discovered her hands and I'd really encourage that. And maybe she's old enough for Sophie the Giraffe?

[wendibird22]

Wish I could judge better if it's hunger or self-soothing.

We do have a Sophie but so far the dog likes it more than DD2!

I think I have a new package of pacis from DD1 who never took one. Maybe I'll give that a try.

[TwoBees]

Have you tried different pacifiers? DD was particular in the beginning, and kept refusing until we found the right one. It was a huge help, as I had the same going back to work concerns.

Sorry to jump in a bit off topic, but how many pacis did you go through? we've tried 4 different ones...DD would take each for a bit for a few days, and then wants nothing to do with them. She sucks on her hand sometimes, but not consistently, and honestly, I'd rather she suck on a paci. DH thinks it is ridiculous for me to keep buying different pacis.