My 8 wk old wont go longer than 2 hrs 4 a feed unless he's sleeping through it... How can I make him go longer when he's awake? PLEASE HELP XX

[louloupoo]

If he's awake the max time he'll go is 2 1/2 hrs b4 he starts bawling :-(

When he's asleep he can go 4 hrs so he's definitely capable.

And he still isn't going any longer stretch during the night. In fact today he's slept about 6 hours already, is that right?

He woke at 6, fed at 7 and slept from 8-8.40 ish, then had another feed at about 9.15 and fell back to sleep at about 9.30 until about 11. He's been asleep now since about 1 and is still sleeping.

He only feeds for about 10 mins at a time from one boob and wont take a second. He never drains my boob either.

Nights tend to start with a 4 hr stretch from about 7.30, then feed about 11.30-11.40 and straight back down for about 2 1/2 hrs til about 2 ish, feed then awake for 1/2 hr b4 falling asleep for 2 hrs again. He tends to wake between 5.30 and 6 and stays awake until around 8 ish.

Its far from an ideal routine. I'm fairly happy to follow his lead but I'm concerned he's getting things the wrong way round.

Any thoughts or advice welcome ... Please xx

He's a baby. Feed him whenha asks to be fed. Honestly, this stage doesn't last long and it's really no use worrying about it - by the time you've thought of a possible solution , the baby's moved on to the next stage!

Relax, enjoy him, rest when he sleeps. Before you know it, he'll be a hulking teenages that you';; be unable to wake before dinner time!

it's impossible to drain the breast, it's never empty

with breastfeeding, trying to make the baby go longer is going to potentially make issues with your supply, your baby has freqwuent grwoth spurts and needs to feed in order to satisfy his hunger and to ensure your supply and demand are in sync.

you really are expecting a lot for an 8 week baby to be in a routine of 4 hourly feeds

it is tiring and it is exhausting, but there is no cause for concern, he's not got things wrong, this is how babies are

also, he needs that closeness and cuddling with you when you feed

if you try to stretch out feeds, he will , a you have seen, become upset and cry, and a baby exhuasted and full of air of crying will not feed well and will set up a worse pattern

respond to his needs as and when and you'll both be happy!

I think this is fairly normal. My DD is 14 weeks corrected and occasionally goes as much as three hours between feeds in the day. But never as long as four hours (except at night)

Sounds fairly normal, I used to make sure mine fed every 2-3 hours between 8am & 7pm including waking them if they were asleep - this seemed to encourage less feeding at night for mine.

Completely normal.

And tbh 4 hrs of sleep in a row is good!

Oh I don't think I'm expecting anything from him. Like I said I'm quite happy to follow his lead. I just keep reading on here about routines. Be it the unmentionable GF, Jo Frost or anyone else. Plus other mums I know, including my own mum, keep going on about it. He's a very healthy 13 pound 2 so 'he should b able to take more'. I just wanted some other opinions on the subject so thanks for your speedy responses ladies :-)

Sounds usual and about right for an 8 week old

Breatsfed babies feed little and often - It boosts your supply for a start

Why do you think it is far from an ideal routine?

Please don't thinkn you or your baby are doing something "wrong". Most babies do not slot into a 3 or 4 hourly routine especially not at 8 weeks

As lulu says you can't drain a boob - he may be a very efficient feeder

Totally normal - has someone been telling you otherwise?!

4 hour feed routines are so last century

Forget the routines, your life is meant to be upside down for this bit. Seriously.

It's asking for trouble if you try and make an 8 week old do anything to your timetable.

He is in a routine - his

'should be able to take more'? Seriously?

Oh my word.
Tell your mum, 'yes, thanks mum, I'll bear it in mind' then ignore all that claptrap (all due respect) and go with what your baby tells you.

he sounds like he's thriving and gaining weight, he is taking the right amount at the right intervals for him..keep doing what you are doing !

Mine fed 2 hourly until he was 6 months old...

Sounds normal. Grandparents have selective memories and neither they nor anyone else had your baby, they had different ones.

Babies are all different. Do things the way you're happy, not the way everyone else will be happy with. At the end of the day you can't please everyone so sometimes you just have to think Sod Them All and make sure you please who counts - which in this case is YOU (and your ds).

Sounds normal to me too. 4 hours at night is great and I wouldn't even bother watching the clock in the day, just tank him up as much as he wants.

I had exactly the same advice from similar sources when DS was little. Everyone seemed to be obsessed with getting him into a routine but he was having none of it. He fed 2 hourly at least until well past 6mo and he was MASSIVE. They just all have different feeding habits.

I'm sure your mum means well but he sounds like he's thriving on what you're doing already so you can cheerfully ignore her suggestions :)

The only thing I would have said is, in a 10 minute feed, does a baby get the good stuff- or just the fore-milk? the thinner watery stuff before the 'gold top' kicks in! However, DS sounds like he's thriving weight wise so I should shut up!

DS1 fed, badly, for 45 minutes at a time, cried for maybe 2 hours, fell asleep exhausted for 35 minutes (you could time it) then wake up looking for more boob. All day and all night.

He wasn't latching properly and often drifted off to sleep on the boob- not an issue in a 6 month old but it was in a 6 week old! We needed to wake him with a wet flannel just to get the feed into him!

My 9 week old sounds quite similar - he was feeding every 1-2 hours but we've recently moved to more of a 2.5 hour routine. He feeds roughly 8am, 10.30am, 1pm, 3.30pm, 6pm, 8.30pm, 11pm, and then once or twice in the night (though I'm not sure exactly when). He also feeds for around 10 minutes at a time, although he has recently started taking the second breast sometimes when offered.

I have a friend with a ds the same age who is formual fed and is now on a 4 hourly routine, but I think with breastfeeding it's just not going to happen!

god, yes, grandparents and their selective memories...
you and he are doing just grand

humans bf babies before they had clocks! so take off your watch and enjoy your baby. i am finally doing this with my ds3, and am much less stressed about lack of routine. and i have learnt to ignore grandparents/friends/hv etc.

mine have all fed 1-2 hourly for months. 4 hours at 1 go sounds good to me! the pattern you describe sounds fine.

why would you try to stretch it?

he will bawl. If you keep trying to stretch it, eventually you will bawl.

If he bawls that's him telling you "feed me mum".

Simples!

You and your baby have it sussed...don't let others interfere.

On the duration of feeds, my DD is such a speedy feeder. A ten minute feed would be long for her! And she is gaining weight fine and starting to feed less in the night ( at last - she was nine weeks prem so I feel like she was in newborn stage forever!)
I dont think you can read too much into the duration of the feed, so long as baby seems happy etc. In my non expert opinion!

Stretching him in the day would in all likelihood lead to him going less time at night. Its good that his longest stretch is in the night...

Breastmilk is digested v quickly.

I found I could do the GF sleeping routine though, eg

7am first feed
8.45am quick top up before sleep
9.45am wake up
10.30 am full feed.
12pm top up
12-2 sleep
2pm feed
4pm top up before sleep
4-4.45pm sleep
6.30pm bedtime feed
7pm bedtime
10pm dream feed.

I see what you are saying MumNWLondon but I think the OP is worrying/anxious about doing things "right" due to pressure from others
and therefore a schedule like you have offered is likely to make her feel MORE and not LESS anxious, iyswim?

Don't you think that "on demand" will continue to be helpful in these early days?

Look at it this way:

I can go 12-14 hours a night without feeding, so I am capable. I would struggle in the daytime, though...

As an adult, I probably eat something 3 hourly (even if only a banana) and I drink much more often. Milk is both food and drink.

Maybe thinking about it in these terms can help when you are getting tired with the frequency.

Don't worry OP, my 8wk old DD is the same...it varies day to day as well. I'm just going with the flow! (In more ways than one I guess!) She doesn't sleep much during the day and tires herself out though, I've taken to strapping her into the sling and going for wanders to encourage her to rest.