Cluster Feeding

[Melrose86]

My baby is 4 weeks old and breastfed. I have been enjoying breastfeeding more than I expected however the cluster feeding is so hard! I feel like my baby is cluster feeding day and night. The only break I get is if we go a walk with the pram. Thought we had a breakthrough a couple of days ago when he went 2 hours between each feed but now he's back to only sleeping half hour stretches with the odd hour long sleep if we're lucky. The rest of the time he wants to feed. I've read lots about evening cluster feeding but is all day and night cluster feeding normal at this stage? When will he start going a decent stretch of time between feeds?

Mine went for much longer stretches when out in the carrier. But also once the fourth trimester is done and baby has developed a bit more you'll see a big difference. Remember they nurse for comfort, pain relief, overstimulation, stress etc too so as your baby is so little the world is still really overwhelming and you are his safe place.

Congratulations on your baby. This sounds very very familiar to me and well done, it sounds like you're doing brilliantly. Frequent (and very frequent!) feeding is so normal at this stage but so tough!.

I've been ebf my lo for 8 months now and I love it but I remember being completely floored at the beginning by how constant and relentless the feeding was - no one ever tell you about it! I felt as though my lo was pretty much attached to me 24/7 and we didn't have distinct 'feeds' at that age, it was more a case of just being constantly available to him. For us, it really was a case of cry = boob and it was the only thing that would settle him both day and night. At the time it felt as though this would never change but of course it did as everything changes every few weeks with babies!

At this age, they just want to be held, feel warm and safe and fed with their mum, which is all they have ever known. Feeding frequently is necessary at this stage as the more milk you remove, the more your body makes so baby is doing their job perfectly to stimulate your supply for when they need it - especially with the regular growth spurts at this stage.

I contacted a breastfeeding support specialist for reassurance and she was amazing and basically reassured me it was all completely normal in my case. My lo was gaining weight, plenty of nappies and content during and after feeding so all good signs. I was happy just to accept it and go with the flow, which although still hard work, made it much easier for me. Lots of chocolate, drinks and tv, cuddling and feeding for a few weeks! It's always worth contacting professional support if you're worried though, I found it so helpful and reassuring and they would be able to spot if there were any issues contributing to making baby feed so frequently.

I noticed it start to settle down after maybe 6 to 8 weeks, which will probably sound like a lifetime away to you at the moment but if you can hang in there, it's so worth it. Mine was always a frequent feeder until we got to about 6 months and weaning but after the first 3 months I definitely noticed he could consistently go 2 - 2.5 hours between feeds which helped me with planning my days better and getting out and about more.

You're doing so well, wish you the best of luck.