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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

Advice on how to get 6 month DD to bf awake.

12 replies

Gina1981 · 21/05/2012 17:09

For a long time now DD has been reducing her feeds as she will only feed when asleep. I find myself waiting to feed her and it takes over my day. Weve started weaning but I keep switching to purees and blw as I don't know what one is best!! I've got myself into a right mess with it all.

I need to break this habit as it's not good for our family. Am I being unreasonable?

My breast are always feeling uncomfortable and engorged! I don't know how to find a fine balance between milk and solids!!

Please help x

OP posts:

Original poster

Gina1981 · 21/05/2012 18:32

Anyone??

OP posts:

olimpia · 21/05/2012 20:06

ginaI'm not sure I can help you but didn't want your post to go unanswered.
How old if your DD? What do you mean that she feeds only while asleep and as a consequence you find yourself waiting all day and it's taking over your life? Sorry I don't think I understand what the problem is.
RE weaning. I think you can pretty much do what you like as long as you avoid certain foods that are a no no before a certain age. Take a look at this document guidance from NHS
Also have you tried asking your HV or GP?

Hunterj · 21/05/2012 20:34

Gina, do you have OS/OALD? There must be a reason why a 6 month old is reducing feeds and only nursing whilst asleep. Can you tell us a bit more about what has been happening?

Original poster

Gina1981 · 21/05/2012 22:38

Hi olimpia thank you for replying. DD is 27 weeks old. From around 4.5 months old DD became quite difficult to feed. All her hunger cues disappeared and we got in to a habit of only feeding when she was tired and would have a 30-40 min feed asleep. It's got to the point now that DD won't have a feed awake! For example DD wakes up 7.30am but refuses to bf. After an hour or so she will become whingy and I'll offer her the breast and she will take it and fall asleep instantly and them feed for 30 mins or so. She will then wake up once she has finished. Then every feed after that is exactly the same!!

She use to feed anywhere between 8-12 times a day awake and asleep. But now I can just about get 4 maybe 5. I get anxious to leave her if she fallen asleep to just let her sleep without feeding as I see that as an opportunity to get a feed in. I have left her in the past just to sleep in the hope she will be hungry when she wakes but she isn't. Hours will go by and she won't show that she is hungry until she gets tired again and then will feed whilst she sleeps. I hope I'm making sense here.

OP posts:

Original poster

Gina1981 · 21/05/2012 22:48

Sorry posted before I finished.

Weaning isn't going particularly well at the mo as
Im struggling to get milk feeds in let alone trying to fit solids it with it all. She still wakes up at night between 2-4 times a night. Sometimes it's for feeding and sometimes it's for a cuddle!!

Hunterj what does os/oald stand for? Im trying to figure our whether it's habit or developmental or if there is any other explanation for it!

OP posts:

Jakeyblueblue · 21/05/2012 23:18

We went through a stage where feeding was always when ds was asleep. Although This wasn't his choosing, it's just I found it was the only time he was not distracted enough to take it. It lasted about a month I think and now he feeds whenever, wherever.
I personally never really saw the benefits of BLW as ds wasn't really interested in feeding himself early on so I did purees. I know what you mean about struggling to fit it all in! I was the same as you to begin with.
What I did was to give 3 meals a day regardless. If you are worried about milk intake then express and cook with it, use it on baby's cereal etc. i would then just feed in demand. If there was no demand then he didn't have it. Ds fed every 2 hrs through the night as co sleeping so I was happy he was having all the milk he needed.
I wouldn't worry. 4 to 5 big feeds sounds fine to me. Add some into his food and let him have as he likes overnight.

Original poster

Gina1981 · 22/05/2012 08:33

I thought milk was the main nutrition in the first year! This is why I'm so hesitant to feed her solids as I spend most the day trying to get milk in her! I wish I could ignore the milk thing but my breasts get so engorged and so painful!! I really want to get the night feeding down to one a night as I can't handle waking every 2hrs or so! I'm sufferi with long term exhaustion and with other 2dc i can't keep going on like this!

I feel like I'm never going to get her on solids and find a fine balance between the two.

OP posts:

tiktok · 22/05/2012 10:30

OS/OALD = over supply/overactive let down.

Yes, IIRC this is what you have, Gina, isn't it?

4-5 feeds in 24 hours for a baby of this age who is gaining weight and who is healthy is ok.

Switching between purees and BLW is fine - neither 'system' needs to be purely one and not the other.

It sounds to me that you are managing ok, and if you regard this as a phase that will resolve itself if you just go with it for the moment, then things will get better.

Being stressed about it makes it harder to bear :(

Original poster

Gina1981 · 22/05/2012 12:29

I think I've always had a problem with os and that it's never corrected itself no matter what I do!!

Do you think it's a good idea to let my supply settle down before I start introducing solids? DD has gone from feeding 2 hourly to now 3-4 hourly! If I do to many things at once my supply is all over the place!!

DD is napping at the mo after having a 15 min feed which was mainly done awake, so fingers crossed we are making some progress.

I can't believe I've survived 6 months of EBF. Although I have to say that I wouldn't have been able to get through it without the help of all you lovely mnetters. A BIG thank you to you all.

OP posts:

olimpia · 22/05/2012 13:36

gina as she's 27 weeks old it is recommended that you start introducing solids now so I wouldn't wait to let my "supply settle down" as you put it. Besides introducing solids is usually a factor in reducing supply because baby gets her nutrition from other sources and your body is clever enough to adjust and make less milk.
Do you have any RL help with weaning? If you're of an anxious nature perhaps purées rather than BLW will work best for you? Sorry hope that doesn't sound patronising, it's not meant that way

Original poster

Gina1981 · 22/05/2012 16:12

I think I will stick to purée. Gave her a little something today so just waiting for her cues for a bf!! I feel like such a prat as I've done this twice before but didn't bf before!!

It's very different everytime.

OP posts:

olimpia · 22/05/2012 16:40

Oh no don't feel like a prat gina. We've all been there and forgot all (or almost!) the second or third or fourth time round!
Did she like her food then? Fruit is a good one to start with, they usually love it. Just make sure it's nice and mature. Beware a lot of bananas can cause constipation. :)

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