C.M.
You son reminds me of my nephew. He was born about 5-6 weeks early and ended up being tube fed. I don't know if he would have been able to breastfeed since my sister never tried but it is possible that he would have done it just fine. Once he reach the age that he could start on solids, they tried everything to get him to eat and he just wouldn't do it. He was in occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speach therapy at one point in time and none of it really made any difference. They did swallow studies and everything and could not figure out the problem. To make a long story short, when he was about 5 years old, there was a new specialist that moved into town that they took him too. I think he was an ENT specialist and this guy finally figured it out. The poor little guys tonsils were so big that they said it was amazing that he could swallow at all. They ended up removing his tonsils and adnoids and within a couple of months he was eating everything and got the feeding tube removed about a year later and now at about 10 years old, you would never guess that for the first 5 years of his life he couldn't eat. The swallow studies didn't come up with anything because he could swallow but it was really hard for him to do. So, for your son, there could also be something physically wrong that is hendering his progress. Talk to your doctor about this and let her know that you are very concerned. Ask her to refer you to someone that can look him over. My nephew could have been helped a lot earlier if the doctors could have pinpointed the problem earlier. This is not normal behavior and don't stop looking for an answer and a solution until you get one. Trust those mom instincts and find a doctor who can help your son.