help! am I doing it right?

[cuppy]

Dd is 8wks, stopped bf at 6. She drinks approx 4-5 oz per feed but she doesnt seem to be settling into a pattern at all. She will sometimes only go 2hrs between feeds, but then is not finishing bottle as she falls asleep.Dh says we should still demand feed but I think she cries when shes tired(she only sleeps about 2hrs a day)and we are just sticking a bottle in her mouth thnking shes hungry.She then falls asleep! Should we make her wait longer between feeds or is she too young? I hate to let her scream as she so little (or is she - should i leave her now?) At night she will sleep for 7 hours before waking for a feed,finish it all but then wake again 2hrs later and only drink 2 oz! How do I deal with that? I ve tried offering water - no go! Would appreciate advice from been there done that mums please!

Never bottlefed but as far as i know with formula because it takes far longer to digest you dont "demand" feed with is as you need to allow it to digest. if I did bottlefeed I would use a dummy in between feeds. I'm sure someone with more experience will give you better advice though.

Thanks Hercules - but I am worried about giving a dummy also, as she goes to sleep happily at night without one - what if she becomes dependant on it? The thing is - I know she only wants to suck because when I have tried giving her a dummy ( I've done this twice to see if she really is hungry) she has drifted off to sleep. Maybe a dummy is the answer - I just dont know!

I personally wouldnt give a dummy then but it sounds like your dd is used to sucking for comfort on the breast so is finding the shorter time on the bottle unsatisfying.
Sucking for babies is very comforting.

I'd use the dummy during the day and not at night if she doesn't need it then. A dummy won't harm her and it sounds as if she has a strong need to suck.

alternatively, put her down when she's tired and see if she goes off after a brief cry (a few minutes). Babies do cry when tired and some babies (like mine when younger) do need a very short cry to get themselves off to sleep. 8 weeks is still very young so don't panic about routines or patterns yet. IT will get easier. The seven hour stretch at night is fantastic though! You are very lucky to have that at this age. I wouldn't offer water after that long stretch - just feed her again when she wakes.

Also, make sure she's not awake for more than two hours after she wakes in the morning - put her down after one and a half to two hours and see if she will sleep.

Get the 'Contented little baby book' by Gina Ford and follow it to the letter!!!
V. unfashionable advice i know, but it kept me sane...

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Twiglett- I was waiting for someone to post that! Too scared to myself.

Sorry to be controversial (no, i'm not really), each to their own, but I found Gina Ford's book an absolute godsend. It bought me sanity, relief, control and SLEEP!!!! (and it does exactly what it says on the tin, namely gives you a contented little baby, at least in my case it did). Glad i bought it. She is very old-fashioned but you can overlook her rather matronly style and use the sound advice to suit your own circumstances. Her routines work IME.

Agree ... GF does work ... with bottlefed only children ...
I did GF with DS (Bottlefed) but there is no way I can do it with DD (breastfed and has to fit with DS's day) ...
What I do take from GF is the '2 hour rule' ... if DD has been awake for 2 hours then I put her down for a sleep. In fact I start the going to her room and changing her nappy thing after about 1 and a half hours.
I swaddle her, I do let her cry (she is 9 weeks) but not for long ... I pick her up, let her calm down , then put her down again (before she falls asleep in my arms) ... and keep doing that until she falls asleep in her cot. This can sometimes take 20 minutes or so but it works.

thanks. I think I will go and get gf ford book just to see what its all about!
Ds doesnt really cry when shes put down for snooze in the day - she lays there really happily but just doesnt drop off - Im starting to think she doesnt like me and is glad to get away!
She had a feed at 4am this morn, and then woke again at 5.30 i fed her and she only had 2oz, and when i put her back down she cried but i left her and she dropped off. I think tonight if she wakes again after only a few hours i wont offer her anything- just cuddle her and put her back down - does this sound right?