How long will the constant feeding last for?!

[SallyMischievo]

I have posted before about my endlessly ravenous DD, now six weeks and one day. She is still having feeding frenzies of up to six hours, not just during the evenings and nights but often during the morning and afternoon too. Latch and weight gain are good (she has gained over 3lbs since she was born) and lots of soggy and pooey nappies so I'm not worried that my milk supply could be inefficient. However I'm just wondering how long this phase is likely to last for?! At present it is impossible to introduce any sort of routine and tricky to commit to leaving the house to get somewhere at a specific time - plus I am reluctant to go out knowing that DD is likely to want to be constantly on my breast. If you have experienced this, please could you tell me when it started getting better for you? Countless hours spent on the sofa watching 'Dinner Date' and 'Four Weddings' are starting to get me down...

[NovemberRainbow]

There's a growth spurt around 6 weeks, my LO will be 8 weeks tomorrow. The feeding has slowed down slightly. Mainly at night. She roughly sleeps 3am - 11am and wakes once for a feed in between. She's also stopped pooing at night, so no night time nappy changes to worry about.

Completely normal to fed so much, if you think that it's their source of food and drink and compare to how many times we eat or have a drink its pretty similar.

If I do go out I plan where she's going to be fed and changed. If its at a friend or family's house I will feed under a cover.

If out shopping I try and suss out where any feeding/changing rooms are, I usually use mothercares feeding room. Failing that somewhere like a cafe, then I will use a cover again.

Do you have a sling? You could practice feeding in that, you could get out more and still be reasonably covered.

Also I would invest in NetFlix, much better for your sanity than day time TV.

[hotfuzzra]

I don't know if this will help you but I wish I'd figured this out sooner.
I also have a 6wo DD and she is EBF.
I had been going through days and and especially evenings where it just seemed to be feed, feed, feed. I only figured out last week (thick) that she wasn't napping very well, if at all, and when she was crying I'd instinctively pop her on the boob. Since I've looked into it and started making her nap she's feeding much less frequently and is happier and spending more time awake and less time crying! I can see retrospectively that she was overtired but I didn't see that, and was just letting her feed.
She doesn't like napping, I think she suffers from Fear Of Missing Out, but I have to rock her or shush her to sleep, pop her in sling and use a clothes peg to create darkness in there for her... have you been giving her naps?
Just a thought, hope it gets better for you soon

[squizita]

I second Netflix and some "safe" destinations for getting out and about. Most John Lewis' for example have comfy feeding rooms. Starbucks no one bats an eyelid if you feed. Also playgroup type things are perfect as half the women there havE a breast or bottle out. Feeding aprons are cheap off eBay if you fear the flash too!

I would say at about 8 - 10 weeks it started to get more predictable abd dd also started to eat faster. Though for comfort she still enjoys a hour long "snooze with boob" at 17 weeks! But I know that's more emosh than eating - if we're out having fun it's glug glug burp done.

[SallyMischievo]

Many thanks for the reassuring words and the advice. We now have Netflix! Currently embroiled in another epic feed but more bearable with superior entertainment.hotfuzzra I have been trying to soothe and cuddle her and sing to distract her but she bobs her head and cries until I reunite her with my breast. DP has also tried taking her to no avail. Feeling very much like a human cow. I'm sure she must become exhausted during these sessions - we are a very weary household at present. Will keep everything crossed that this will pass...

[777emm]

my Auntie breast fed but she expressed her milk also, this helped because some babies prefer to have some milk then have a break and have more in a few mins/hour or 2 pending on how much they had, but if you express your milk you will know how much your baby is drinking and you will soon find out then you will be able to have more control so to speak of your babies in take of milk

[bexster5]

Hi I hope things get easier for you soon! I think every baby is different I'm afraid. DS didn't really go for the constant feeding though he did feed frequently. DD is nearly 15 weeks (oh my goodness I can't believe how fast it's going I just worked out how old she is!!!!!) and is still feeding for hours. Sorry :(

BUT I've just been looking on the internet for advice as I think a lot of her "feeding" is actually comfort sucking. Could your lo be doing this?

The advice seems to fall into two camps. Stop it or Let them continue... Here are some links from the let it continue front:

nurshable.com/2012/05/04/i-am-not-a-human-pacifier/

www.analyticalarmadillo.co.uk/2010/09/baby-is-using-you-as-dummy-its-just-for.html?m=1

Whilst the Stop it front seem to advise breaking the association with feed and sleep; putting baby down a little bit awake (waking them if necessary); using little finger to break latch on breast and then rocking baby to sleep.

I don't know if any of that's helpful for you. Certainly for me I'm now not sure whether or not I SHOULD be trying to stop the hours at a time that she feeds / comfort feeds?!

[Inpup]

Yes I thought comfort suckling too - maybe try a dummy ?