Bottle feeding for baby in GF routine

[Melly]

Have been trying to keep my four week old ds in GF routine and am currently in process of weaning him off breast feeding and onto bottle feeding. In the CLBB the routines are largely aimed at breast fed babies and there isn't much guidance for quantities of milk for bottle fed babies. I know you should be guided by your baby and most tins of formula say 4 oz per feed, approx 6 feeds per day. This doesn't seem to be enough for ds. He guzzles his bottles so quickly and then looks for more. Currently he has:-

7 am (ish) breast feed - no idea what he is getting and he isn't normally satisfied, so I end up topping him up before his 8.30/9 am nap with a couple of ounces

10 am - Bottle feed - 4 oz

2/2.30 pm - breast feed - am currently gradually dropping this feed so difficult to know how much he is getting. I top up with formula (about 2/3 oz in accordance with dropping the feed guidelines by GF)

5 pm - split feed - 3 oz before bath and 3 oz after bath at 6.15/6.30 - this definitely doesn't seem to be enough for him

10/10.30 pm - I express and give him about 5 oz, this settles him usually but then he is awake looking for another feed by about 2 am.

I find the split feed very difficult - he quickly gulps down the 3 oz bottle at 5 pm and then is crys on and off until after his bath when he gets the next feed. Can't think how to sort this one out - I can't see him being happy to wait until 6.15 pm for one larger bottle, perhaps I should give him two 4 oz bottles?? Oh it's so difficult isn't it! Was also thinking of increasing his feed at 10 pm to maybe 6 oz.

I am getting conflicting advice from well meaning friends and relatives and getting more confused and fed up. I'm trying to follow GF but it all seems to be going wrong at the moment.
Last evening ds wouldn't settle at 7 pm, he cried on and off until about 8.15 pm, I thought it was colic but in the end I breast fed him at about 8.15 pm, he guzzles as if he hadn't been fed for days, settled beautifully and slept through to 3.30 am!!

Sorry for this lengthy rambling post but I would be grateful for any advice as I'm getting really down about this.

[SamboM]

What sort of formula are you using? My dd had Aptamil, which was fine for her but I know they make a special one for "hungrier" babies. Might be worth trying that, it is made with something that fills them up more. Think it's called Aptamil Extra.

Also I would take the GF stuff with a pinch of salt at 4 weeks - he will slip into it soon enough but he's still finding his feet at the moment so don't be too upset if it doesn't work!

[mears]

Melly - I am not sure about GF routine, but does he need to wait so long between split times for the second part of his bottle (and no I am not going to go on about breastfeeding
Could he have some milk to have him happy in the bath, then let him just have the rest of it immediately.
Have you tried making larger bottles - if he is completely finishing the bottle then you would be best to offer a larger feed but do not make him finish it if he doesn't want it. It would be better to give him larger volumes rather than a second milk which can lead to constipation and colic. Hope you can get him into a better pattern. Best wiehes, mears.

[Melly]

Thanks SamboM and Mears. I am giving him Omneo Comfort but it is a bit early to say whether this is making any difference as he has only been on it 24 hours. I did increase his split feed at teatime today and he was slightly better, I gave him 4 oz before the bath and offered another 4 oz bottle at about 6.40 pm - he drank 3 oz of the second bottle and settled well at 7 pm and touch wood is sleeping well at the moment.
Four weeks is quite young I suppose to be imposing a routine on him and I think you are right SamboM he will slot in to a better routine eventually.

[griffy]

Melly, I'm not nearly as knowledgeable as Mears here - so feel free to take this with a big pinch of salt - but it seems to me that you're not feeding him very often. My DS at that age was feeding every other hour for an hour around the clock, and this wasn't unusual at the social gatherings that I attended. He was breastfed, though, so god knows how much he was actually getting - it was probably all just comfort sucking - but I know that the minute I stopped worrying about when I was feeding him and just fed him whenever he was hungry, he truly did become a 'contented little baby'.

I, on the other hand, was truly totally knackered, but c'est la vie - the night feeding stopped at 6 months, and things improved.

So, my advice would be ditch GF for now, feed him when he tells you to, as much as he fancies, and go back to GF another time if you feel like it.

[gingernut]

Melly, my ds at this age drank a lot more formula than the packs suggested he should. I asked HV about formula for hungry babies and was advised to continue with ordinary bottles but make up larger amounts. This worked well for us. The `hungry baby' formula that I looked at didn't actually contain more calories per 100ml anyway, so it just makes them feel fuller rather than providing more energy.

Sorry I can't really advise about the split feed or the GF routine.

[gingernut]

I mean I was advised to continue with ordinary formula.

[Ghosty]

My DS was drinking full 8oz bottles at 6 weeks ... it was too much for him but my HV insisted (what is it with these people) ... but when we started GF at 9 weeks... it was perfect ... and he thrived on that ...
I say make up bigger bottles Melly ... up it by an ounce and see what happens ...

[Melly]

Thanks for the advice. Yes, I think you're right about giving larger bottles because it seems to have worked today. Last night ds slept from 7 pm until midnight.....very naughty, didn't wake him as per Gina, but I did crack in 3 hours kip between 9 and 12, fed him at 12 and he slept through until just about 5 am, small breast feed and slept till 7.30 am. Felt quite refreshed this morning Made him slightly larger bottles today and he has been really very good. Settled beautifully just before 7 pm and hopefully will sleep through until at least 10 pm. DD was also much better behaved today, the tea, bath and bedtime went so smoothly, I think mainly because I kept things very calm, didn't even raise my voice when dd tipped water on bathroom floor. Now on my second G & T and feel quite chilled......long may it continue