Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Infant feeding

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

Flip

Original poster

4 month old eating like newborn

15 replies

snookie28 · 04/02/2007 14:49

My dd hads been exclusively bf since birth and has thrived (91st centile at 18 weeks). I have been waiting for her eating pattern to calm down as she has grown but it is as bad as at the start. She now eats about 12-14 times a day. Only has one side at a time apart from bedtime as she is very sick when she has both.

She was going 3 hours between feeds at night but this has deteriorated in the last couple of weeks. She goes to sleep about 8pm then sleeps until 12am. It then goes downhill with her waking every 1 1/2 to 2 hours until she wakes at 8.30am. During this time she gets bad wind and needs winded, cuddled and her nappy changed and is awake from 3-4am

The lack of sleep is killing me and I am starting back at work this week so cannot continue with this pattern. I am cosleeping so am trying to reduce the upheaval during the night. Is this encouraging her?

Is this a growth spurt or should I introduce hungry baby formula or solids. She is a big girl and is she needing all this food?

Thanks

OP posts:

hercules1 · 04/02/2007 14:50

THEre is a growth spurt around this time hence why lots of people thinking they are ready for solids. It will pass.

winestein · 04/02/2007 14:53

I can't really help you with the breastfeeding side, but if you do end up switching to formula, please don't use Hungry Baby Formula. It is very hard to digest and can cause constipation.

Sorry about your lack of sleep. I remember those days well. Hope someone comes on to give you some good advice soon

lulumama · 04/02/2007 15:12

IMO, do not introduce hungry baby milk...it can cause tummy ache, also, it is about 10 weeks to early for solids...

at this age, milk and more milk is all that is needed.....it might be she is having a growth spurt, and also, babies don;t tend to stick to routines for very long at this age......just when you think you have cracked it, it changes !

persevere with the breastfeeding if you can.if she is a hungry baby and you switch to formula, you will just be giving her more bottles and there will also be the washing, sterilising and making up of feeds....!

have a look at kellymom- great breast feeding support website...

lovelybird · 04/02/2007 15:39

I know this won't be a popular opinion but I introduced a teaspoon of baby rice to my son when he was 18 weeks old as he was exactly the same. I know the current guidelines advise waiting until 6months but I didn't as my DS was so hungry all the time and feeding every 1-2 hrs. He nearly snatched the spoon out of my hand that first week, and I'm convinced he would have eaten more, but I only gave him a spoon and then slowly increased it. It was babyrice mixed with milk and he loved it. he is now 2 and is a healthy boy with a good appetite. My DH was given babyrice at a few days old by the hosp 30+ yrs ago, which I'm sure didn't do him much good as a newborn but he has no health probs. Don't beat yourself up if you do decide to wean early, only you can decide what's best for your baby. I know of a few people who have done the same as their babies were ravenous. I would do the same again if I really felt my baby was hungry, as DS was.

lulumama · 04/02/2007 15:41

if there is a history of IBS, IBD , food allergy and intolerances, then it would be better ,IMHO, to delay weaning until 26 weeks or as near to that as you can...

16 weeks is very very young to think about introducing solids..

mears · 04/02/2007 15:44

When did you last try her both sides? Babies do change as they get older and she may need that now. Alternatively, feed her on one side and offer the same side again after winding her - she will get extra 'fatty' milk then.

There is absolutely no need for formula - she is just upping your supply for her needs. Have confidence in your body's ability. You are doing brilliantly well to still be exclusively B/F still

Original poster

snookie28 · 04/02/2007 18:58

Thanks for the reassurance. It just feels like it is neverending. I had mentally braced myself through the first 2 months by saying to myself that by 3 months she would be eating less frequently and sleeping longer stretches then I changed that to saying that by 4 months things would be better. Now I guess I will try and hold on another month and get to 5 months before trying her on solids.

I might have to introduce formula when I go back to work as I don't think I will be able to express enough but I will def avoid hungry baby formula

OP posts:

Swizzler · 04/02/2007 19:08

My DS has akso gone a bit haywire at 4 months - seems to be common. In his case, it's a growth spurt plus teething. He seems to be settling a little bit better now (fingers crossed!) so I'm sure it will pass. As others have said, you've done really well to get so far . I don't think their behaviour now is going to set a pattern for months to come, so don't worry

PrettyCandles · 04/02/2007 19:13

In the attempt to get more sleep, are you feeding her lying down? I love feeding lying down, defo my prefered position, and of course we can both fall back to sleep easily that way. Unfortunately it's not a good position for us at night, as (1) ds2 falls back to sleep before he's had a full feed and so ends up waking to feed more often, and (2) he never gets properly winded and so gets distressed as the night progresses. I find that it's better for me to wake properly and sit up to feed (still in bed) because then I can concentrate and ensuring ds2 feeds well and burps adequately. Ultimately it's less disruptive and we both wake less often when I do that.

wads · 04/02/2007 20:52

no advice to add but sympathise as my 4 month old has also regressed big time, feeding more often, waking at night etc. Just when you think they are starting to settle into more of a routine - ha!

Original poster

snookie28 · 04/02/2007 21:04

I do feed her lying down and do find that she gets more fractious as the night goes on. Tonight I will try to feed her sitting up to see if this helps

Anyone know how long this growth spurt is meant to last? Why do the books say that at 4 months they should only be feeding 5 times a day? Is this ff babies?

OP posts:

lulumama · 04/02/2007 21:07

i;d forget the books for the time being...your baby might not fit what the books say, as it is based on an average, what most babies might do..take your cues from your baby..and get to know her individual needs...

PrettyCandles · 04/02/2007 22:29

5 times a day at 4m may work for some babies, but definitely not for all! My mix-fed ds1 certainly only fed 5 times a day at that age, but fully breastfed dd fed about 6 times a day, and fully bfd ds2 is still feeding 3-hourly round the clock at nearly 4m (this thread ).

Does she have reflux? Does she have a dummy, or suck her fingers?

bensmum4 · 04/02/2007 22:53

I agree with prettycandles, tried feeding lying down and was very relaxed, but dd settles much better if I sit up and she feeds and burps, takes nearly an hour, but then I get 2-3 hours sleep. My dd is 4 and a half months and still bf every 3 hours, at least we will all be awake tonight knowing we're not the only one.

mears · 05/02/2007 09:29

Snookie - in preparation for going back to work it is really helpful to have milk banked up in the freezer. Now that does not mean expressing full feeds at a time. It means expressing off 1-2 oz at a time and collecting drip milk (if you have any) when you are feeding and/or expressing. These small amounts soon mount up to full feeds. When I collected milk I expressed for short periods whenever i had the opportunity. I kept the milk in the fridge for up to 48 hours and then froze it when I collected 4 oz. It is amazing how much you can get. That way you are ahead of the game when you start working. At work you will be able to express a full feed because you have missed a feed. HTH

And yes - 5 feeds a day is a rough guide for FF. If you talk to ff mums, they probably are doing more than that. Try not to stress about numbers of feeds if you can. Best just to go with the flow of the baby.

Flip