DS2 is 5 and a half months. He is pretty much taking all his feeds between 6pm and 6am.
Our day and night looks something like this:
5.30/6pm - BF (not never very good, so express and then give bottle at 7.45 with this and morning milk)
7.45/8pm - 6oz of this EBM
10.30/11.00pm - BF or 6-7oz of EBM
2.00am - BF (in bed)
4.30am - BF (in bed)
6am - BF (in bed)
8am - offer, but takes nothing
11am - offer and will usually feed fairly well (but often refuses)
between 2 and 3 - offer and he will feed if he hasn't eaten at 11 or refuse
The night feeds are very big. I can feel that as he feeds and last night it was confirmed when someone helped me overnight for the first time and gave him bottle and he drank 6-7oz at 8pm, 11pm, 2am and 4.30 feeds. So at a "normal" breakfast time he is full so takes nothing, then will refuse either late morning or early afternoon feed (changes his mind as to which one he turns down). Today, he fed at lunchtime and took nothing till 6pm and cried and pulled away everytime I showed him a boob during the day.
This problem started just before 4 months but is getting worse. He does have a bit of reflux and I did read the link for distractible babies so am aware of these things. have tried to make feeding as calm as possible (DS1 is at nursery). But the only way to get him to feed properly during the day is to take him to bed and feed him semi asleep.
Has anyone been through this and have any suggestions as to what might work?
I am now under huge pressure from DH to stop breast feeding as bottle fed first guy did not have these issues and he thinks that its all my fault for wanting to BF. It probably is to an extent as DS2 ends up in bed with me from 2am-6am and those big feeds in the dead of night are lovely . But we are at the point where while lovely, something has to change. I would prefer that its not me abandoning BF but finding some way of changing his night consumption into day.
My thoughts are
-
No BF for a few days and just express and give him bottles on the assumption that he will take ozs from bottles easier during the day
-
the exact opposite of 1! No expressed BM bottles and just purely offer breast to try and stop him rejecting
-
Wait until he starts solids properly and hope that he will switch from night mile onto day solids. But I fear that he will just have no appetite for solids instead.
-
Try to not feed him during the night? Sounds fine in theory but can't figure out how to do this. I can't see how I can hold a screaming baby from 2am until 5 or 6am and not feed him.
Would welcome any help in trying to make BF work normally! Better go to bed as 2am wake up call is not that far away!