feeding less at night reducing supply - tips please?

[theslumbertaker]

hello just after some advice really

i've been bfing my dd2 for 10 weeks now, and it has been going really well up to now. feeding on demand, supply has been fine, I've been expressing a bottle a day for the freezer (have to return back to work when she's 5 months), and generally we've been ticking along with no problems (except things going a bit all over the place during the 6-8 week growth spurt).

anyway she has recently reduced her night feedings down to one per night, so she goes down in the early evening (around 7-9pm) then wakes at around 3-4am to be fed, straight back to sleep until 6/7ish. This has been lovely and much appreciated by me . BUT, i now seem to be having supply problems. She is hungry more often during the day, I can't seem to express anything between feeds, and she is not settling as well after feeding (seems still hungry often).

I really don't want to start waking her to feed during the night as the extra sleep has really done me a lot of good, and I have felt human again for the first time in ages! Just wondering if this has happened to anyone else, and what you have done about it?

Thanks in advance

bump

Is she having lots of wet/dirty nappies? Is she happy and alert? Apart from feeding more often, is she happy in herself? Is she gaining weight?

If everything else is going well, it may well be that she is having a growth spurt and feeding a lot to up your supply. I also find that when my DS feeds less at night, he feeds more in the day to make up for it IYSWIM.

As DS has got older, the amount I can express and the amount I leak has drastically reduced which I found a bit scary, but I spoke to a Baby Cafe HV, who said your supply just becomes more efficient as you and your baby get more into the swing of it. Apparently it is normal to feel like you have less milk, but really you have just the right amount for your baby.

If you are worried maybe you could go and see you HV, or a Baby Cafe/LLL meeting to speak to a professional to put your mind at rest?

P.S. I am very jealous of your sleeping baby, my 6mo has given up sleeping entirely! Well done you!

thanks for your reply gtps. plenty of wet nappies, slightly less dirty now, but i thnk that happens as they get bigger anyway? she is more grumpy than usual, not sure about weight as it has only been this week that it has happened.

Do not worry about not being able to express between feeds. Does not mean that you don't have enough, just means your body is producing the amount your baby needs. I have never been able to express anything at all between feeds. if you really want to express try at 10.30pm - esp if she went down at 7pm or in the morning from one side while she feeds from the other.

If you think she need more in the day feed her more often. eg On Tuesday DS2 (3.5 months) fed at:

7am 10.30pm 2pm 4pm 5.15pm 6.30pm 8.30pm 11pm (I woke him for this feed) and then he slept until the morning.

hi mumnwlondon. i was trying to keep the momentum up with expressing to avoid having to use formula when i go back work in 2.5 mo. i'll try to do what you suggest and express late evening and see if that works!

i have been trying to keep up with her the last few days, but it has gone back to every 1-2 hours during the day. wouldn't mind but have extremely 'busy' little 3yo dd1 to keep up with too....