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Infant feeding

Dreamfeed...should I stop? Opinions and experiences greatly appreciated!

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summermummy2016 · 29/09/2016 15:53

Sorry for the long post and I know it's been done to death but just wondered if I could have opinions on the dream feed please. My DS is 15 weeks, growing v well, on 91st centile (under 25th at birth). All going very well and he is EBF. At 6 weeks we started giving him a bottle of expressed milk at 22.30. Lots of reasons but primarily so husband could give a bottle and to make sure he would take a bottle, also because people told me a "dream feed" would help reduce night time waking/feeding. He goes to bed at 7pm and has done this really well since 5 weeks old so I know we are very lucky. Recently he has been waking before 22.30 (sometimes as early at 21.45) anyway. Otherwise it's a true "dream feed" We don't wake or change him etc. I express 5oz but he often only takes 3oz.
After a couple of weeks of him feeding at least 3 times overnight (every 2-3 hours) and then not being hungry in the morning (GRRRR) I'm starting to think the "dream feed" is not necessary, not working and possibly adding to the problem. Before we started it, he used to do a 5 hour stretch from 7-12 and sometimes a little longer. Whereas now he doesn't get a long stretch in and I feel like we are disrupting his sleep without giving him any benefit. 2 nights ago he woke anyway at 22.00 so gave the bottle, then slept till 1am, then till 7.30. Last night we didn't do the dream feed and wanted to see if he woke again. He didn't wake until 00.30, fed and went back to sleep. Then woke at 6.30!!! So it seems he's dropped from 3 feeds to 1 overnight. What would you do??!!!!

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