Block feeding and cluster feeding/comfort sucking, my supply doesn't know whether it's coming or going!

[ThatDamnDog]

Sorry, I'm being a bit needy at the moment.

Block feeding for 3 hours per side has helped DD's wind enormously and at 4.5weeks she's gaining weight and mostly content. However, she's been having big cluster feeding sessions for the past few days, and last night's turned into a 7 hour wide awake, panting, kicking, sucking marathon. I'm telling myself it's normal newborn stuff, not a repeat of colicky overtiredness a la DS. So that's fine but my supply's on the up again due to the time she's spent sucking, and she's really not having the dummy at all.

I don't want her to undo my good work at slowing down the oversupply, while overfilling herself and getting sore and miserable. At the same time she needs comfort. I'm wondering if expressing enough for a bottle and letting DP persevere with bottle/dummy and me out of the way would be a good idea?

Please hhelp!

Hi, 4.5 weeks is right on schedule for a growth spurt and you should find that the cluster feeding stops within a day or two. During these times its right for your milk supply to go up again as the baby does it to make sure you have enough milk for its new, larger size.
I remember having problems with green frothy poo for a day or two after the cluster feeding, but then it would all settle down as baby and supply were matched.
I'm only speaking from my own experience though!

p.s. it happens again at around 8 weeks.

Thanks for that. She's been more settled tonight so far. And yes, we've had green poo! Poor DS had green poo and sore guts perpetually but I didn't work out that my supply was the culprit until much later. Also he was such a distressed baby he behaved that way every night when not screaming, so I could never really determine what was a growth spurt!

Amazing how experiences can be so different with different DC. HV was wise when she told me not to spend all DD's early days haunted by DS's legacy :)

She is still very little

All the cluster feeding will help boost your supply

It will settle down - I block fed at times and it was helpful

I think at around 6 - 8 weeks my boobs settled and I stopped leaking so much

Why do you want to express and give a bottle? It sounds to me she's doing a mavellous job of stimulating what she needs.

The expressing would still stimulate, wouldn't it? And don't bottles let in more air usually, not helping colic etc..

I started block feeding early - 2 weeks ago now. I did take advice from a counsellor on the phone, and her weight's been monitored and she's still gaining well (gone from 25th to 50th) and is content. I seem to produce way too much milk and she was windy and sore and unsettled - that's much better since the block feeding. Looking back I feel sure that's what made DS's first 5 or 6 months so miserable.

The expressing would just be so DP could try to comfort her but give us reassurance that she wasn't hungry. She does have times when she wants to suck badly but really doesn't seem to want the milk that comes with it! And when I try to settle her, only the boob will do. So far she's much more content tonight, woken for a feed but was able to fall asleep at the end of the feed :)

Block feeding is great for that.

Glad she's more settled.

Sorry, just realised that wasn't very coherent as replies go - posting from phone so hard to see whole post and edit etc. Basically my supply is crazy excessive and the long spells of sucking are upping it further.

Do you mean you have a fast let down? If so and it's causing problems for DC could you express a little at the beginning of a feed? Or should I just shut up now as she's now perfectly hsppy?

not at all, this is a work in progress! She's currently trying to decide between feeding, grunting and sleeping. And failing to come to any definite conclusions!

I do have fast letdown as well but I'm lazy so I latch her on then take her off as she starts choking and catch the gush in a cloth. It's also improved with block feeding, although good burping sorts that one out for us :)

what is block feeding?

It's when you put the baby on one side for each feed they take in a certain period of time, say three hours, then offer the other side for each feed for three hours instead of offering alternate sides every feed.

here

hi having the sme experience and the same worries. thanks for answering them! green poo smells bad!