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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

More advice pls ....

25 replies

ChaCha · 15/01/2006 20:00

Apologies in advance, it's me again! Get more help and advice on MN than I do anywhere else. It shows!

Feeding DS (6wks) every 2 hours until around midnight. Just woke him up for a feed, he was quite frustrated, wouldn't latch on at first, finally did and only stayed on for 15mins. Then took him downstairs where he fell alseep.

Common sense tells me that he was just tired. Started to get paranoid that due to expressing earlier and giving him a bottle he was refusing my boob. Hopefully not the case, just a tired baby. Anyway...he was definitely sucking, I was watching his jaw..so is 10-15mins enough to constitute one of his 2 hourly feeds? I know I probably sound OTT but in trying to increase his weight I'm doing everything I possibly can (and doubting it too). Dr said at the hospital, bring him on Tuesday to see if he's gained any more weight and if not we'll see about topping up with formula. I have no qualms with that but I want to exercise all options before I have to go down that road. So expressing and 2 hourly feeds is what i'm doing now as well as new technique.

Have worked out (thanks to link for Kellymom) that the amount of times he's feeding a day he needs 2.75oz of expressed milk. Now, if he's only had 10-15mins now, then I should give him more bottle milk for his next bottle milk feed?

Really sorry. I know i'm asking common sense questions. Just you begin to doubt your every move at this stage. Thanks x

OP posts:

hunkermunker · 15/01/2006 20:09

ChaCha, I'm a bit confused - are you feeding him direct AND expressing and feeding him from a bottle?

foundintranslation · 15/01/2006 20:10

why are you expressing?
fwiw 15 mins sounds fine.

MerlinsBeard · 15/01/2006 20:15

sometimes they just feed quickly try not to panic...i don't really understand the background here, eg why wake him? and why every 2 hours?

NotQuiteCockney · 15/01/2006 20:19

ChaCha did another thread about this, here . Her DS hasn't gained much weight since birth, and has been ill.

Have you tried breast compression? That's meant to help a lot and be less fiddly than all this expressing and waking him up.

(How often was he feeding before you started waking him to feed?)

MerlinsBeard · 15/01/2006 20:24

thanks NQC

Original poster

ChaCha · 15/01/2006 21:01

Sorry, I guess this is a bit of a follow up from my 'advice pls -b/f' thread. Trying to get his weight back up post illness. He is being weighed again on Tuesday.

What is breast compression pls? Yes, I'm b/f him and have just started expressing thanks to hiring an electric pump. Just doing a couple of feeds via bottle, one during the day and on for the evening feed. And 15 mins sounds fine? Blimey, I'm so thick...it wasn't surprising that the nurse looked at me in shock horror when I said he fed for over an hour sometimes 80mins Think I was oblivious to the fact that for the most of that time he wasn't really suckling at all. I have learned sooooo much, what a learning curve this all is!

Really, thank you for the replies. I'm so happy to think that 15 mins is enough for a feed. And there was me pushing for over an hour - no wonder I was ratty before.

OP posts:

Original poster

ChaCha · 15/01/2006 21:03

He's asleep now. Fast asleep.
If i'm to wake him, he is due to be fed in 17 minutes!!
What should I do??

OP posts:

Tipex · 15/01/2006 21:09

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

ChaCha · 15/01/2006 21:11

Thanks Tipex. It's as I said before, I start to doubt the smallest of logic. Plain common sense has gone out of the window.

Just want him to put on the necessary weight
I know I'm OTT.

OP posts:

hunkermunker · 15/01/2006 21:11

Are the feeds you're doing with bottles replacing feeds you'd be breastfeeding for? When are you expressing? Between feeds or instead of them?

NotQuiteCockney · 15/01/2006 21:12

I really wouldn't wake him. He needs food and sleep to grow. I might consider waking him if he goes 4 hours or something, but not for less than that.

There is no magic "long enough" for a feed. Just as there is no magic "long enough" for a meal. I'd let your baby feed for as long (or short!) as he wants.

This looks like a good page on breast compression. I haven't used it myself, but our local BFC tells me it works well. I wish I'd known about it with DS1.

Racers · 15/01/2006 21:12

ChaCha I know what you mean about those long feeds! My feeding notes from the second night in hospital have 2.5 and 3hr feeds!! The midwives said it was fine and normal as she was encouraging the milk to come in etc. And for weeks later we had hour long feeds but looking back I have no idea how much of that was actually drinking rather than suckling! Not that I mind too much, I got a rest at least.

I'm sorry, I don't know what breast compression is. I just wanted to say it sounds like you are doing really well and learning much more quickly than I did (though I didn't know about MN then!)

hunkermunker · 15/01/2006 21:13

CC, you're not OTT, you're worried and bfeeding is often hard work to establish, especially so when you're having problems.

You're doing really well and asking for advice is exactly the right thing to be doing. Don't worry you're pestering - just ask. People are more than happy to offer help!

NotQuiteCockney · 15/01/2006 21:23

What HM says! It's not like you're making anyone help.

You want to do the best you can, to make sure breastfeeding works. That's a goal many of us understand and share!

Long feeds aren't a problem, if they happen, but they're not a requirement.

Tipex · 15/01/2006 21:29

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

linabolton · 15/01/2006 21:39

My little one only fed for 5 minutes, sometimes less every 2-3 hours. I was really paranoid that she was not getting enough, so I weight her on a regularly basis. She put on weight as normal. So my answer is that you can breastfed for less than 15 minutes and still be all right. It sounds like your baby is an efficient feeder.

suzi2 · 15/01/2006 21:48

ChaCha - don't feel bad about asking . I'm sure I asked all manner of (what I thought were maybe) daft questions on here in the first 12 wks! I can't remember what about now, it's all a blur...

I'd say that if he's feeding every 2 hours during the day, then he can go a bit longer (up to 4 hours) after 10pm if he's sleeping. One day I decided not to wake DS for a feed and just go to bed myself. And he only slept 20 mins longer than when I would have woken him anyway!

I know you're trying to build him up a bit, but NQC is right that he needs sleep as well. Take the pressure off yourself a bit. I would continue with the 2 hour feeds during the day and 4 hour apart feeds at night and just see what happens on Tuesday. Then take it from there. You're doing and amazing job and in all honesty, I would be surprised if he hasn't gained weight.

DS was a long feeder for the first few weeks - well over an hour. But then suddenly went to 20 min (or less!) feeds. He just got more efficient and my milk got more efficient too. The fussing suggests to me that he's tired and not hungry.

I understand your need to express and bottle feed - you can see exactly how much your DS is taking in. But you must be shattered! Take it a wee bit easier on yourself.

Now stop posting on here and go and get some sleep while you can

suzi2 · 15/01/2006 21:57

Also, remember what some very wise mumsnetters once told me... (sorry can't remember who!)

Let go of logic and let nature take over. Be with your DS as much as possible and feed whenever he wants.

Trust your body to give him what he needs.

tiktok · 15/01/2006 22:37

cha, answring here with the info you have shared on your other thread.

It's not the length of time on the breast that drives the supply - and 15 mins can be ample - it's the effectiveness of what he does when he is there and the frequency with which he does it.

His frequency sounds ok, but 8 times in 24 hours is the minimum, truly - and if any of those times are expressed breastmilk meaning the breasts are stimulated less often, with longer gaps, then that's not good, sorry. Any EBM should be in addition to very frequent, direct feeding, maybe as a top up after a feed. It would not harm to add more feeds to those 8, for the moment.

Your baby is not gaining weight well, and he needs to make up the steback he had when ill.

Reassurance from people here to go with the flow and leave it up to the baby is absolutely fine for a baby who is 100 per cent well and who is gaining normally, but this does not apply to your baby....and it makes sense to manage the breastfeeding by making sure there is a lot of it. It's hard work, and needs a lot of motivation - good luck

Original poster

ChaCha · 16/01/2006 11:10

Firstly, thank you for all those replies. Thank you for the support and sharing experiences.

TikTok - I appreciate your post. I will now be using the EBM as a top up rather than an individual feed. Hadn't thought of that. You are right about the motivation, I seem to lose it at the end of a long day but everything seems so much clearer after a good few hours sleep.
Thank you.

OP posts:

tiktok · 16/01/2006 11:54

Good luck, cha. Glad you are going to use the EBM in the 'right' way. Use of EBM can be undermining to breastfeeding if it allows longer gaps between breastfeeds - and this isn't explained often enough or even asked about when mothers are given the suggestion to use it. It's fine of course when there are no problems and babies are gaining weight like the clappers...but that's not the case with you and your baby.

Karmamother · 16/01/2006 13:59

just popping in to say good luck, chacha. I've seen a thread that talks about boosting your supply with fennel tea & fenugreek tablets. I'll have a look & do a link.

Karmamother · 16/01/2006 14:06

Here it is

Tipex · 16/01/2006 20:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

ChaCha · 17/01/2006 18:53

Thanks Tipex, I'm on my way out so I'll just copy and paste what I wrote on our post natal thread.

Well, the good news is He has put 100g on since we were weighed last Thursday I am sooooo chuffed! That means the b/f has been going well and I can relax a little now, though still have to stick to the every two hours (yawn). I will give him a topup after each feed if i still feel he is hungry. Dr. said try eating more, drinking more liquids and getting plenty of rest before considering the goats formula. We shall see!!

Thanks for listening. A very happy chacha xx

Thank you all for the support...I'll be back!!!!

OP posts:

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