Managing growth spurt with ebm

[islandbaby]

I have been expressing 24/7 for my 5.5 week old for the last two weeks (clearing thrush, waiting for tongue tie op).

He usually takes a 4oz bottle every 3-4 hours on average. For the last 24 hours he's been waking up demanding food every 1.5-2 hours. I assume this is the 6 week growth spurt?

Trouble is, he still seems happy to take 4oz at each feed, which I can't always express enough in time for.

I'm hapy to top up with formula, if it's what he needs I don't want him to go hungry because I can't express enough.

It just seems like a LOT of food, even for a growth spurt, and I feel uncomfortable because he can't regulate it himself as he would on the boob.

Does this 3 or 4 oz every 1.5-2 hours sound normal? Am i overfeeding him?

Can't wait to get him back on the boob...

'normal' is whatever your baby needs/wants. Tbh if he was bfing you'd have no idea how much he's taking, you'd just be knackered from feeding every 90 mins or so. You won't be overfeeding him, if he didn't want it you wouldn't get it down him Well done for expressing for so long, it's not easy at all and you seem to be doing really well. The growth spurts are a nightmare, how long til he can get back on the boob? If you can avoid the formula it'll be better for your milk supply but obviously it's harder work for you.
Fwiw feeding ever 90 mins is 'normal' and it does settle down (eventually) :)

Thanks for the encouragement. His operation is this wednesday, I'm hoping that it's the answer to my poor mangled nipples. I can cope with the pain of thrush on its own if we can improve his latch with the op, but the two together was just too much.

Hopefully that'll sort out a lot. I've had thrush with both of mine and it's agony. With DS I only just managed a pain-free bf at 24 weeks and 5 days. One side's been fine for a while but the right side had a huge milk blister on it that would bleed every couple of days. I've had that since he was born, he never wants to latch well on the right buuut, 6 months down the line I'm finally pain-free :) So there is light at the end of the tunnel and you totally have my sympathies, thrush/bad latch is horrendous. Hope the op goes well and you're both cracking on with bfing for a long time to come!