1 wk old cluster feeding all night

[youlemming]

My DD2 is a week old today and cluster feeds at night from about 11pm onwards and I'm hardly getting any sleep.
It can take an hr and a half to complete a feed as she will fall asleep during and if put down wakes looking for more.
Only way I can get the broken 3-4 hrs I did last night was propped up with her on my chest and I do not want to get into that habit.

I'm also getting over mastitis so don't want to mess about expressing for DH to take over a feed (which he would gladly do) until it's settled fully in case it causes more problems.

Any experiences or suggestions?

While this is hard, it is totally normal, unfortunately.

Babies cluster feed to stimulate your supply to meet their needs. This will probably happen on and off during the first few weeks.

It's exhausting and I think starting at 11pm is a killer (dd at least opted for 6-10pm for her marathon feeds) but get comfy and go with it and things will settle eventually. Just make sure you're drinking and eating enough.

Good luck and congrats on your new baby.

And don't worry about habits forming at this stage. Feeding and getting whatever sleep you can is the priority.

Both of mine cluster fed all night at this age. As difficult as it is, it is completely normal. And it will pass. Dd is now 4 months old and cluster feeds from about 7-9.30 but then generally only wakes once for a feed after that, sometimes twice (obviously we get the occasional bad night where she's up every couple of hours but luckily they seem to be few and far between now).

Stick with it and it will honestly get better. Try and catch up on sleep in the day (I know that's difficult with everything to do). Good luck

Try and see if you can feed lying down, then at least your body can rest. I slept from about 10am to 2pm every day at that stage. It's exhausting isn't it? And take comfort in the fact that it only lasts a very short while, and your baby at least is having a wonderful time!

Cluster feeding and needing to feed frequently are all perfectly normal behaviour for newborns, however as you have recently suffered with mastitis, I would encourage you to attend a local breastfeeding group to check baby is draining the breast effectively. Congratulations

Thanks for the replies and reassurance.
I will put trying to get her down in the basket on hold and just go with what works for now and get more sleep as feeding laying down does seem to settle her more.

I found feeding lying down a perfect solution during this really trying stage. I also considered a daytime nap something to aim for and achieve as many days as possible

Drinking fennel tea will increase your milk supply.
It's available in most health shops and supermarkets.

Drink several mugs of it every day.

Yup, agreeing with everyone, completely normal, extremely tough and most importantly, will not be for ever.

I heard that at this very early and crucial stage, every loooooong and tiring cluster feed is your baby just putting in her order for the next few weeks

So go with it and look at it as a way to create a super supply of mega milk for the future. Feed as often and as long as you can and drink pints and pints of water. And lying down / safe co-sleeping is your friend.

And chocolate. Family size bars. My DD was born in October when shops all had monster tubs of Christmas chocs on offer. I got through a whole tub every night. Apart from the Bountys, of course.