Dreamfeed?

[NoTeaForMe]

Hi all,

I wondered if you can explain a dreamfeed to me? My 5 week old baby has her last feed around 7ish and generally then sleeps til 1/2/3am. I wondered if a dreamfeed would make her sleep through a little more. How do you go about it? What time would I do it? Do you literally pick them up and get them awake enough to feed but not too awake?-not sure that would work with my baby! Is it something most people do, does it work for most?

Any advice or experience for me?!

Thanks.

[MoonUnitAlpha]

I've started doing a dreamfeed with my 3 month old - he was doing similar, feeding at 7pm then sleeping til 3am. I had hoped feeding him again when I go to bed at 10.30 would at least get him to last through to 5am!

I've only been doing it for about a week now with mixed success - sometimes going til 5am, sometimes waking at 3am anyway. I'm going to continue a little longer though.

At first I was changing his nappy to wake him up to feed, but actually I'm found just picking him up and sticking a nipple in his mouth works fine without waking him.

[MarmaladeNPie]

Hi NTFM, the plan is that they have a dream feed around 11pm (regular feed amount or even slightly more than normal) with the hope that then the big sleep is then from 11 to 6/7

It can take a few days for baby to drop the early am feed they were used to.

And yes, you keep lights dim, no nappy change unless smelly and feed, burp and back into bed.

It can be earlier or later depending on your bedtime, but if you and baby are able to go straight to sleep after her am feed then it might not be of help if she sleeps till 7/8am

HTH