Am I overfeeding my baby?

[thisismyfirst]

DD is 4 weeks old today. Am single first time mum and finding it overwhelming but lovely. However am worried am over feeding her. Most of the time I feed her every 2 1/2 to 3 hours, but at least once a day I feed her more often than that because she's crying and I don't know what else to do. And she always empties both breasts. Is this normal? Am I overfeeding her just because I'm too inexperienced to understand when she is hungry and when there is something else wrong? Am worried I'm doing this all wrong and don't have anyone to ask.

Sounds great she will stop or vomit when full/overfull

sounds about right, you can;t run out of breastmilk, your breasts won;t be empty, the more she feeds, the more milk your breasts will know to make

are you having any help or support? must be really difficult on your own

babies suck for nourishemnt and for comfort, wnating to feed a lot is so veyr normal for a new born

her tummy is so small it does need filling a lot

you can't overfeed her

Hello, please don't worry it sounds like DD is going through a growth spurt so relax make yourself comfy and put on a dvd and just let her feed. My DS fed for upto two and a half hours but it's a great excuse to just relax and let them get on with it and also just think of all those calories you are burning at the same time.

Best of luck you are doing really well - keep it up xxx

Thank you this is helpful. Most of the time she takes an hour to feed, but in the evenings sometimes it last 2 or 3 hours. Is this normal? I feel pressured that I'm supposed to be getting her into one of these 'routines' but I feel too overwhelmed to know where to start.

dead normal at that age (esp as it is a growth phase - I've blanked out hte 2 weeks of constant feeding that was week 3-5 of dd's life )..it does get quicker and a routine does develop in time - just enjoy snuggling up and feeding time with your dd...

re routine I found it more useful to watch dd to see what she liked to - I wouldnt say we are in strict routine now but defo have a rhythm of feeding/sleeping that is micuh easier now (16 weeks)

Don't ever let yourself be pressured into doing routine, you will find your own routine sometime.

cluster feeding is normal

she is way to yuong to even think about a routine, she is a tiny baby and all she needs right now is milk and cuddles

howbreastfeedingworks.com/tag/breastfeeding/

www.kellymom.com

both excellent sources of breastfeeding info

You can't overfeed a breastfed baby. That's the great thing about breastfeeding, you don't need to worry about how much she has as long as you feed whenever she wants. At 4 weeks, my dd fed pretty much constantly and it was very draining but as they get bigger they can hold more in their stomachs so they feed less often.

Sounds like you're doing brilliantly. Do you have any support from your family or friends so you get time to have a cup of tea/shower/a quick walk while someone else looks after your dd?

There are groups around for breastfeeding mothers like baby cafe where you can drop in and talk to other people who are also breastfeeding about how you're coping and make some baby friends.
Have a look here for starters or post whereabouts you live and see if anyone can help.

Oh and CONGRATULATIONS!

Often new babies do something known as "cluster feeding" in the evenings which helps to boost your supply, basically they feed pretty much continuously for hours from early evening into the night and you feel like you must have run out of milk but you haven't so don't worry!
There's something about fussy evenings and cluster feeding on kellymom here

sorry simperingbint (love the name btw) x post.

It's very normal for her to feed for a long time in the evening - it's called cluster feeding and will help fill her up beofre her (hopefully) longest sleep at night.

Your milk supply is still establishing itself at this stage, so let her feed as much as she wants and this will stimulate your boobs to produce what she needs.

As she gets older she'll get more efficient at getting the milk out, so feeds will get shorter. She'll also be able to last longer between feeds as she'll be albe to take larger volumes in one sitting.

For the time being though, you are doing everything exactly right - this phase doesn't last for ever I promise!

Can't overfeed a breastfed baby .
Just feed on demand and you'll be fine.

THANK YOU. Kellymom website a massive help. Feel really relieved and reassured. Thank you to all of you.

Hi all, I have 3 and a half week old baby boy who weighed 8.1 lb when born. He is a long baby and hungry all the time. FF, In his 1st week he was happy with 2/3 Oz but now on 4 Oz and looking for more when the bottles finished. I tried him with 5 Oz he finished all the bottle and seems satisfied, but is that to much for such a young baby?? .. This is also my 1st baby. When I tell people who have had babies they pull faces as if it's way to much.

Hey Stacey. Might be worth starting a new thread in the topic?

That does seem a lot imo but others might be able to advise further. How often does he have his feeds? But then again he may just be a hungry baby!