To not wind DD halfway through a feed?

[Lightsoutandawaywego]

DD is 4 weeks old and I’m struggling a bit with feeding. She’s formula fed, and the advice is to wind halfway through a feed and at the end, but my problem is that when I stop feeding halfway through and rub her back to wind her she falls asleep and then won’t finish the rest of the feed (she goes into a really deep sleep and I can’t get her to take the rest of the bottle). This means that she wakes up hungry for another feed within 1-2 hours and we carry on like this all night (and it’s bloody exhausting). I’ve tried waiting until nearer the end of the feed to wind her but more often than not she vomits up alot of the milk she’s just had, which results in her being hungry again! I can’t think of a way to get around this. Does anyone have any ideas?

In fact when he moved into formula he was probably only having 5oz when he was about 4months.

My Midwife suggested upping to 5oz as after a 4oz feed she still seemed to be hungry. EAch baby is different and mine certainly appears to be healthy and growing well so I’m not concerned that I’m giving her too much.

Thanks to those that have given constructive advice, she has fed a bit better today.

Sometimes they're hungrier than others, they won't always finish the same amount at each feed. If she's puking then chances are she's too full.

Mine were taking 5oz really early too... always great eaters thank goodness. Babies will stop when they are full so if she's taking 5oz she must need it. You are making me broody again!

At 4 weeks, her stomach will be 150 ml (5 oz) at most. So she'll really struggle to keep a 5 oz feed down. Babies don't have a very strong sphincter at the top of the stomach, so milk comes back up easily, even when the stomach is not totally full. If you fill the stomach to the brim, the milk is bound to come back, so what's the point? Just accept that feeds need to be more frequent at the moment.

They work out formula on weight and OP has already said its what the midwife advised.
I agree, wind her half way through and then change her nappy before the rest of the feed. It gets easier OP

Feeding every 2 hours is normal for a 4 week old, their stomachs are tiny!

pickles they work out the amount needed over 24 hours on weight. More frequent, smaller feeds are better for babies.

I would imagine that a formula fed baby who is gaining well could go at least 3 hours between feeds at 4 weeks.
I'd say to feed 1/3 of the bottle, decent wind, then another 1/3 and little wind then finish the bottle off.

My DD2 always threw up after a night feed if I lay her down. She had to sleep propped up/on me for about an hour before I could lie her down. It didn’t have anything to do with wind )as far as I remember) just a positional thing. It meant we coslepted very careful as I didn’t want a bed full of milk either.

My youngest is 2 & I was never told to wind mid feed. I always waited until the end. In fact I was told the more you move them the more windy they are as the bubbles don't get a chance to rise to the top making it easier to bring up.

Maybe try feeding her while she's naked (except nappy) or flick the soles of her feet to wake? Saying that, tried both with DD when I was trying to BF and it didn't work

Quack - yes I also have to keep her propped up for a bit after a feed if she finishes the whole bottle otherwise she does tend to throw up. Makes the night feeds extra long!

Thanks to the rest of you for your advice on how much to feed my child. I was actually only asking for advice on winding, but will certainly take your expert advice on board. 😑

Found dr brown bottles didn't cause as much wind

Thanks to the rest of you for your advice on how much to feed my child. I was actually only asking for advice on winding, but will certainly take your expert advice on board. 😑

I get that you're feeling a bit defensive but surely you can see that the amount of food and needing to wind are directly related? They aren't two separate issues.

I would try a faster flowing test and more regular winding. Try winding sat on lap and supporting chin rather than cwtching over your shoulder to try and keep her awake. If mine fell asleep during winding I would lie them down flat and the wind would wake them up again. 9/10 when I picked them back up and tried again they would burp and be more alert to have more. Hope that helps.

Beware though that a faster flowing teat could potentially make the puking worse!