ds2 is 3 weeks old, really scratchy and irritable in the evening and hard to settle

[sarahblue]

my ds2 is 3 weeks old and gets really hard to settlein the evening. I am breast feeding but it feels like i am totally empty by 9.00pm. Could it be because i am not producing enough milk. I couldn't bf ds1 so its all new to me!!

Soudns like you are doing fine Lots of babies cluster feed in the evenings and "fullness" is no real sign of supply. The more he feeds the more you will produce for him. It will become less frantic in time but growth spurts may dictate similar behaviour again from time to time. hth

If you are feeding on demand there will not be a problem with your supply. As LIZS mentioned, just cos your boobs may not feel full, it doesn't mean there's nothing there. If you keep up with the demand, the supply will be there - have faith in yourself!!

My philosophy was, if you feed as much as you can in the day, you're putting some in their tank for later.

This is utterly normal. Your breasts will always feel less full at the end of the day. There will still be plenty of calories in there though if you keep feeding our DS because although they arent burgeoning with foremilk, your breasts will keep on producing milk every time your DS feeds.

You have an older child, so i am assuming that you remember that it can take Quite Some Time for a baby to get into any form of 'pattern' in the evenings or night time?

Thank you, my ds1 was bottle fed as I was quite poorly after he was born and he was a piglet and i couldn't produce enough, he subsequently went straight into a 3 hourly routine by himself and never really had a grumpy time of day.

Tried to fill him up as much as poss last night and we had our best evening/night yet so it seems to have worked.