My baby won't burp, and then she spits up when she lays down. What can I do?

You mentioned that you have some questions about burping your little girl. You burp her for up to 20 minutes and she never burps, and you think everything is fine, so you lay her down, and she spits up everywhere and wakes herself up. So you're wondering, are you doing something wrong? Now burping is very important, but not all babies burp. Some don't swallow much air and don't have any air they need to burp up, especially if your baby is breastfed. Breastfed babies may not swallow much air. If they're crying during a feeding though, that can increase their chances of swallowing air, and burping and spitting up is more likely. If your little girl gets fussy during a feeding, then stop, and just by changing her position, and putting her up on your shoulder or sitting her in your lap, and gently patting her back, that alone might get her to burp. But if not, just gently pat her back, do it for a couple of minutes, and if everything is fine after that, then you can start feeding her again.

A good rule of thumb is to burp her in between each side. So if your starting a feeding on the left side, then burp her in between before starting her on the right. If she drinks from a bottle, then she is more likely to have gas that she needs to burp up, because they do intend to inhale more air through the bottle. So again, burping your baby frequently during a feeding is important. A good rule of thumb for bottle-fed babies is to burp them every 2 to 3 ounces.

Now you did mention that you're concerned because she spits up after laying her down, and generally speaking, most babies will keep everything down if they're kept upright for 10 to 15 minutes after a feeding, but some babies struggle a little bit more with reflux than others. It's pretty common, especially for young babies, and so maybe you need to just keep her upright for a little bit longer, like 20 to 30 minutes, and see if that makes a difference. If you have more concerns or questions about it, don't hesitate to ask your pediatrician, because they have the ability to ask you more specific questions, and perform an exam on your little girl, and make sure she's growing well, and address any other concerns you might have. If you have more questions in the future for me though, feel free to ask them on our Facebook page at   / intermountainmoms  , and recommend us to your friends and family too.