thrusting of tongue and still not sucking much bottle

[DammitJanet]

We had McKenzie from dinnertime yesterday till dinnertime today. We really had a chance to notice quite a few things about her. The biggest things is she does this thing we have named is the "fish face". It is funny as all get out to watch her doing it and when we laugh at her she will smile and laugh right back at us but I do think there might be something weird going on about it. She barely drinks a full 4 oz bottle at a time and that is if you really force her. She will be fussing for more more to eat in less than 2/3 hours because she hasnt eaten enough. Of course she doesnt sleep through the night.

The fish face is where she sticks her incredibly long tongue out and sucks on her upper lip. I wonder if she has something wrong with her pallet. I have checked her gums and cant feel any teeth coming in. I have attempted to google this and I dont find anything that sounds like it.

She is fussy still and doesnt seem to like me much though she has taken to Tony just like Keyana did. I think baby's just know instinctively that I am not a baby person. I like toddlers. Give them to me when they can walk and talk.

Anyone have a clue.

 

[InsaneCdn]

Is there a clinic around for infant feeding issues?
They have one of those here, on the "wrong side" of town - where people mostly literally walk in.
And it has a multi-disciplinary team that includes PT, Occupational Therapist (OT), Speech Language Pathologist (SLP), pediatrician., etc. - along with students from those same fields, who do most of the work (which is why the clinic ends up being free, even though some of the services usually are not covered)
This would be exactly the kind of kid they are looking for.

 

[DammitJanet]

I dont know. I dont think so. I will try to find out. We are not close to any major universities.

 

[Hound dog]

If there is an issue with her pallet, you'll usually be able to see it, or feel it by running your finger on the roof of her mouth. I had a niece with cleft pallet and it was a nitemare for her parents to feed her until it was corrected, which crippled children's fund will do for free, all they have to do is ask. If fact, you can maybe call them and see if she should be seen by one of their specialists, because at her age, 4 oz of formula is not cutting it. There is an issue going on somewhere. Now if crippled children's fund takes her on......they pay for the correction, then from then until she's an adult they take on her medical care/fees. No clue why. I just know they do, they are still doing it for my niece who is now 14.

Now as far as Mandy is concerned: Tell her hon, you ever wanna sleep through the night again, then we get this eating issue figured out. That ought to motivate her to cooperate. lol

 

[DammitJanet]

Mandy does sleep through the night, she cant hear the baby. Cory gets up with the baby.

 

[Hound dog]

OH well geez! Push it with Cory then. He needs his sleep too. lol

 

[LittleDudesMom]

Janet, when was the last time they took her to the pediatrician? Her weight will have been charted and I'm sure the pediatrician would have said something if he/she was alarmed? Additionally, a pallet issue should have been picked up on during routine well-baby check ups.

Sharon

 

[buddy]

Does milk come out of her nose?

 

[tiredmommy]

Have her checked for a tongue-tie. Duckie has a very slight one but it made it extremely difficult for her to nurse because she had to work so hard to coordinate the muscles.

 

[buddy]

Cant see her but if she is sticking a long tongue out far then I doubt it is a tongue tie....

could be anything, motor coordination, (suck, breathe, swallow... seems easy enough because so many kids do it, but it is a lot to coordinate well without getting too tired to finish)

If she is fussy so much, could be she is always a little hungry or it could be she is uncomfortable and can't eat as much as she should.

Clearly worth a visit to the doctor esp. if weight is an issue while she is so little.

 

[hearts and roses]

I vote for a visit to the pediatrician with your concerns. At four months easy child could just about handle 4 oz. at a time and I hadn't yet introduced cereal or fruit. Every kid is different, but if she's a skinny think and can't drink her her bottle properly, it's worth asking about. difficult child used to make that fish face you're talking about, turned out to be one of her earliest tics (we just didn't know it yet).

 

[donna723]

Janet, are they sure she can breathe properly thought her nose? If she can't breathe through her nose enough while taking a bottle, it will be very difficult for her to suck on a bottle more than a few seconds at a time. My grandson, Ethan, had a perpetually snotty nose when he was an infant and it was sometimes very hard for him because he couldn't take his bottle and breathe at the same time.

They might want to check with the hospital where she was born. They sometimes offer help with feeding problems, etc. But they really need to have the pediatrician check her out and see what's going on.

 

[DDD]

I'm not a "baby" person either, Janet. Somehow nobody in the family knows that, lol, but it's true. Have you tried googling to see what is common for that age? I used to have the neatest book when difficult child#1 was added to our family and it listed every single pattern and behavior from eating, sleeping, rolling over etc. It really helped me get up to speed after a couple of decades out of the baby loop. It went from newborn straight into school age. There are alot of differences in habits and behaviors but I found it reassuring to check it out. DDD

 

[AnnieO]

The tongue tie is a very good catch, I know Onyxx had this and had to have it clipped. She refused to nurse apparently. She also had a VERY long tongue (she grew into it, LOL!)

 

[tiredmommy]

Duckie can stick her tongue out, but apparently she had trouble raising her tongue to nurse properly.

 

[DDD]

easy child#1 had that membrane clipped when she was an infant also. I'd forgotten. I don't remember why because she had no problems eating like a horse. I think the Pediatrician just noticed it and told us that it should be done to avoid future problems. DDD

 

[witzend]

How is her growth chart?

 

[ThreeShadows]

Janet, does she do this?

[video=youtube_share;EUPvKXNAgXY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUPvKXNAgXY[/video]

 

[ThreeShadows]

She may not be able to take much in at one time, due to silent reflux. It's painful, poor kid.

 

[tiredmommy]

Duckie was like that... and had reflux.... Oh, dear! You may have a Duckie on your hands!!!!!!!