How much does a newborn need?

[EvenFlo]

My little boy is 5 days old and I am totally thrown by breastfeeding...

We had a difficult time in hospital with episode where he would scream for hours and despite rooting etc would resist feeding (pushing head away, refusing to latch). The team at the hospital felt this was just frustration as milk hasn't come in and so I persevered.
On day 3 he cluster fed almost constantly for 24h and also has a tongue tie release (even though his latch was always good).

Since then we have no more angry feed me now screams and he is much calmer, my milk has come in now too. The problem is that he now feeds for no more than 5 minutes at a time and then falls asleep with no chance of recommending. It's also getting increasingly difficult to feed on the R side as his latch on there isn't as good now my boobs are massive!

I'm just worried he isn't getting enough milk?

Any thoughts or advice? I am really struggling not to switch down the formula route because I want to know he is being fed enough....

My newborn only fed for 5 minutes. The important thing is that he drains your breast (does it go soft after a feed?) and that he is satisfied and gaining weight. I worried a bit too before realising I just had a very efficient feeder

Congratulations on your new baby!

I'm not an expert at all but am bfing dd who is 12 weeks. It was tough at the beginning but has now got much easier. How much is he weeing and pooing? That is really your best market and if it's plenty you just have to trust it's enough.

Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be along son with more advice.

What you describe is exactly what my DD did and now my DS (although he's only 3 days old so far) did. I just kept offering frequent feeds and doing what I could to keep DD awake enough to feed for as long as possible, but she soon started feeding for longer again.

If you keep an eye on nappy output that will tell you your baby is getting enough without needing to know what went in. Obviously weight gain is a good indicator too, is your baby being weighed today?

Evenflo, sounds like the difficult first days have affected your confidence :(

All you describe is normal - has someone told you he has to feed longer than 5 mins? That may be what suits him at the moment and as long as he feeds frequently then this is fine (5 min feeds 3 times a day and no more would be very bad, but i'm guessng it's not like that!).

Trying to get him to feed more, and to wake him up, is prob not a good idea. Let him nap, and then offer the other side when he wakes up again (probably after a short time anyway). Ask the miidwife about the enormo-breast on the right side - she will be able to judge if this will sort itself out in a day or so or if you need to be proactive about it.

midori is right about having your baby weighed - 5 days is a sensible time for him to be weighed and you will be able to judge if he is getting sufficient that way. His poos should be soft and yellow today, and happen 2-3 times or more in 24 hours....poo is a great sign of bf going well :)

Thanks for the replies, I think you are right tiktok my confidence was affected by those first days...

He has fed quite a few times today (pretty much hourly) so maybe you're right and I have an efficient feeder, nappies are also as they should be.

Coincidentally the midwife just came round for my 5 day check, he has lost the expected post birth weight (recorded yesterday) but has now gained some weight again since yesterday - so I guess that must be good!

It's so good to have forums like this, think I will be using them rather a lot in the coming months.

Mine were / are all efficient feeders (DD is three, I bf her till she was two, and I have 3.5 week old twins). None have EVER fed for more than ten mins or had the "other" boob. Just fed for anywhere between 5 and 10 mins and emptied a boob. I have a good fast let down, which may have doge thing to do with it...?

Hi
I would suggest you talk to your mid wife, or you you have a breast feeding counceller in your area. I have found them to be really helpful.
My dd is now 7 days old, my nipples & boobs in general and killing me!
Advice I was given about the falling asleep was to put them
Back on the same boob once they wake - think of it like a 3 course meal, they need a chance to get to the fatty milk which they find harder work but it's what fills them up. Stroke under their jaw to keep them sucking.
I too am finding it really hard. With my first it took 2 weeks for it to get much easier - this is the hard bit. Just follow your baby's lead and spend your day sitting around topless! X

This is so hard, there is absolutely nothing I can do to keep him awake for longer
I am worried he is only getting the first bit of the milk and not the thicker stuff (?hindmilk), if I offer him both breasts he may have a half hearted attempt at the second but usually falls asleep so it's not very often he takes anything from the second go.

My boobs are now very heavy and full so I imagine this means he is not 'emptying' them. I am tempted to express and give via bottle or something but this is really not a route I wanted to go down.

If you give a bottle at the moment, it will only make your boobs feel worse as they operate on a supply and demand basis. Have you tried stripping yourself and your baby down to allow lots of skin contact during the feed? I used to do this and snuggle under a blanket with my daughter to keep warm. Sometimes if I blew gently on her face, it encouraged her to wake up enough to latch on again. Keep at it - it all sounds like normal newborn behaviour. You're already doing well to keep going after a stressful start.

Could you try nappy change when he first falls asleep. Then rather then switch sides offer same side again.

Breast compressions are really helpful in this situation. Don't worry too much about foremilk and hind milk at this stage, it's best to swap breasts regularly.

Just keep up with what you are doing, weight gain is a great indication that things are going well.

I wrote an almost identical thread the other day. My boy is five weeks and only feeds ten mins on one side at a time.
It's hard because you read so much about long feeds in the early days but lots of people came onto my threads saying they had babies like ours.
I had to express/bottle for a bit as my ds's TT wasn't snipped till three weeks but we don't need to anymore. Is there a bf clinic in your area? I found them very helpful.
I was/am worried about the fire/hind milk thing but was told on here not to worry so much and just lately he has finally started to cluster feed both sides in the evenings.

Please don't give up just because you don't know how much he's getting. If he's healthy he will be getting enough.

gt that's what I have to do frequently.

I'm feeding 12 day old and he constantly falls asleep so I change his nappy.

Also you could try nipple shields? I found ds latched well for a few sucks then stopped. Using the shield seemed to help him keep his latch.

Good luck :-)

My dd would only ever feed for five minutes at a time frome one side. She piled on the weight - she was just a really efficient feeder. If you ignore the quick feeds, is there any other reason you think baby isn't getting enough? Some babies take 5mins some 45-1hr per feed.
Also, you are quite likely to be full a lot of the time when your milk comes in. Your body is still getting used to regulating how much milk your baby needs.
It sounds like you are doing great!

Have tried the mid point nappy change but that doesn't make a difference. Blowing on him etc will work mid feed but when he is done he is done. I might try extending my skin to skin after and see what that does - i think he will just carry on sleeping but it's no hardship to have extra cuddles!

tarka - no he seems to be doing well, lots of nappies, looks well, very contented on the whole. I think maybe I have been a victim of over- reading about what should be happening. I suppose also him being a bit skinny makes me really focussed on feeding him up.

Evenflo I assumed that babies were born knowing what to do instinctively. But they only know to root - it will take him time to figure out how often and how long he needs to feed for (and it will change over the coming weeks and months anyway). If he is generally thriving, try not to worry about times and how much or little he is getting.

I wasn't prepared for quite how much of my life would be taken up with feeding in the early days, but do persevere, and feed whenever he seems to want it. It will get better very soon (I know it seems endless at the time, but it will settle soon, honestly).

Are you still under the midwife? Mine was awesome when I was worried like you - she told me to always look at the big picture - i.e. if the baby is fine, then things are going well, even if they don't feel like it.

I second breast compressions. With the littler of the twins, she was v v sleepy and so I would basically squeeze my boob / hand express into her mouth while the nipple was still in her mouth iyswim... She would always swallow it and then often do a couple of sucks more on her own.

EvenFlo - if he's feeding frequently on both sides then don't worry about the hindmilk, he will sort it out himself! It's fine to let him feed til he falls asleep, then put him on the other side when he wakes, then a nap then back on the first side etc. Lots of newborns feed like this.

You say he is already putting weight back on?

Little feeds often is very normal!

Watch output, wet and dirty nappies.

If you are worried about latch see a bfeeding counsellor.

Many babies are quite sleepy in the first few weeks and then they wake up!

Is he jaundiced at all? That can make babies more sleepy but honestly its very normal.

BTW boobs feeling full does not mean he isn't emptying them!

She your mil comes in they will feel full and you can get engorged, a lot of this is not the milk as such but just swelllign etc as your breasts get used to having milk in them! It will settle down but can take weeks.

If your breasts are hard and lumpy then you can try combing them with a wide toothed comb, down from under your arm towards your nipple.

But it all sounds very normal and DO enjoy all those newborn snuggles!

Yes he has put some weight on already, he will be weighed again on Thursday so will get a better view then.

And no, he isn't jaundiced. He was checked with the monitor at hospital and was weigh below the levels. His colour has stayed good too so I don't think that that's a problem.

And I'm not sure he is sleepy on the whole - he has a deeper sleep from midday to 5ish and then intermittently sleeps after that until bedtime. At night he just seems to wake every hour like clockwork for a feed and then goes back to sleep.

My boobs do feel a bit better today so maybe my body is getting used to it. This is all so new and alien to me, I just want to make sure I am doing things right for him. I also keep hearing really conflicting things from people which is hard - for example some people say he should be sleeping a lot, others say he shouldn't, some say wake him to feed more during the day, others say let him sleep.

Sounds like you are doing brilliantly! This page really helped me with what is normal for the first weeks.

Sounds like he is doing fine, babies are normally not weighed until day 5 when they are expected to have lost up to 10% of their birth weight, weighing earlier than this often gives a larger weight loss and often disturbs and upsets families particularly as the milk has only just come in. If baby had gained on day 3, or even day 5 breastfeeding is almost certainly going well. Also baby feeding at night and more so is really good, your breasts invariably will feel softer and the milk naturally richer and more calorific coupled with the milk making hormones being more active, will ensure a very healthy milk supply. You are doing superb and shouldn't worry :-)