How to get a breastfed baby into a routine and feed for longer at each feed

[Newmummy0306]

Hi mums,

I have a 4 week old who feeds every 2ish hours in the day and 3-4 hourly overnight. Not horrendous I know but she only has a 5 minute feed at a time and only one boob so I’m sure if I can get her to take more she might at least stretch to every 3 hours in the day?

Any tips?

Thanks in advance x

I was advised (correctly) to feed my then 6wo DS on a three- or four-hourly schedule specifically to reduce my very excessive milk supply which was causing him a lot of problems. It worked, and very fast too. So that could happen. I don't think I would change anything much if I were you.

DS2 is 18 weeks old and I don’t think he’s ever gone three hours in the day without a feed. It just is what it is. I don’t often go three hours without food or a drink either.

3 hours is a long time to go without food and drink in the day, I know I rarely manage it OP. You could try sone breast compression but it could just result in baby taking the same amount but feeding for a shorter time.

Her tummy is still tiny, so that may be all she can manage at the moment.

What happens after 5 mins? Does she fall asleep or unlatch herself? If she falls asleep you can gently rouse her by tickling her feet or talking to her, or as PP suggested some breast compressions to simulate letdown.

If she is unlatching herself and seems content she may just be full up.

My 4.5 month old is BF and feeds roughly every 3-4h during the day, and every 2h overnight (boohoo). It won't be long before she can take more and last a little bit longer in the daytime. Just go with her flow :)

Blimey! My 4.5 month old often feeds every 1-2 hours (she’s quite chubby baby!). At 4 weeks old she was still cluster feeding. She will be taking what she needs when she needs it so there isn’t much you can do except wait for her to get bigger at which point she may feed less often.
In the meantime, enjoy feeding snuggles and remember that it doesn’t last long x

That sounds great actually. That’s exactly how mine was. Most people complain about 45 minute feeds (every 1.5-2 hours). As long as she’s gaining weight, 5 minutes is fine and it will stretch out a bit in time. My 2nd was feeding every 2 hours at night at that age, but started to sleep through around 10 weeks. So it will likely get easier soon, though every 2 hours really is normal until closer to 3-4 months.