feeding while asleep...

[squizita]

My dd is awful at this. Either doesn't sense the boob at all or latch is ridiculously bad and milk dribbles out - and she only suckles for minutes.

Are there any tricks to this or is it something they just can or can't do?
Only useful because sometimes I get a bit engorged and she's having a long nap/good night sleep wise and I loathe to wake her! At the moment I grab a sterile tub and hand express for later. Can't stand waste!

[Innocuoususername]

You can time it to fit with their sleep cycles - about 45mins for a newborn I think, so if you try to feed after 3 hours you might be more successful than after 2 when they might be in a deeper sleep.
But if your dd is going longer at night I'd stop expressing then (unless you need to build up a stock for the freezer or something): by doing that you're continuing to stimulate your breasts and so you'll continue to get engorged even if you're not feeding. Just squeeze off a few drops if you absolutely have to, just enough to feel comfortable.

[squizita]

She's 2 months and I think starting to space out night tines more - waking twice not 3 times. The HV made a face about this but actually the nurse at her 8 week check up said not to worry and pulled a face in turn about the HV worrying me!

I'll stop expressing so much I think. My milk still comes and is plentiful if she wants a big old feed in the morning!

[squizita]

...The only other reason I wanted to do it was that she clusters like mad after a long/unusually timed nap. She likes 15-20 min every 2 hours. If she naps across a mealtime or for 3 hours, the hour after is a write off.
All well and good but always happens on busy days never tv and tea days!

[Heatherbell1978]

You might find that she just does it one night! My LO wouldn't wake for a dream feed when we kept trying it and we kind of gave up. Then one night my DH decided just to give him one (when he was 10 wks) and he took it! No idea what changed....

[squizita]

Will keep trying! :)

She had 2 long naps (bad night last night due to jabs) and then hasn't been off the boob for more than 20 mins since! Would be much easier if I could get her to feed asleep.