3 day old - feeding trauma

[sleeplessinthecity]

Milk just started coming today and we're (this is DH if I'm getting the acronyms right) struggling somewhat. The books we have (so many...) seem to suggest that DD should be hungry all the time but we're struggling to get her to feed for longer than 5-10 mins, even after a 3 hr sleep.

Are we just too early in the whole thing to be expecting any consistency in behaviour?

Should we wait and try the whole 3 hour routine thing after, say, a week? and therefore just go on demand for now?

Any help gratefully received

my policy was when they were so young....up to about 6wks if they cry try the breast first....my 2 only ever fed for 5-10mins as i had a fast let-down reflex....

is dd crying for food between feeds at all?...if not i think you may also have a good let-down.

Demand feeding is the best thing to build up a supply. It can be hard work, but it's really best to ignore routines. Don't forget, all babies and all boobs are different, so what one person/book says is normal, won't fit every baby. Is she peeing? Are her poos starting to turn a bit more mustard yellow? Is she a bit more alert, or is she sleeping all the time? It's important she gets enough milk. And as for consitency in behaviour...maybe when they're 21 (years, that is!)

(oh and congratulations, BTW!)

Congratulations!

Imho, the term "demand feeding" can be a bit misleading if you don't have a very "demanding" baby.

Newborn babies should have a good feed at least eight times in a 24 hour period iirc, and if your dd isn't "demanding" than you may need to take the initiative.

The 5-10 minutes thing could just be that she's a very efficient feeder, you have a strong let-down, and she gets the milk out very quickly.

However, does she come off after 5-10 mins and look satisfied (milk dripping down chin, big full face) or does she fall asleep after that time and "nibble"? If the latter you might need to get her to feed longer using breast compression.

chuck the books out - or ignore them. DD won't hvae read them so she doesn't know! lol.

it's possible that you have a fast let down, it's also possible that your DD gets as much as she needs in those 5-10 minutes.

for me the whole 3 hourly feeding came after about 4 weeks I think - it was every 2 hours prior to that. at such an early age I shouldn't worry about any set routines just enjoy your DD . they change so much in the first 6 weeks.

also she won't be consistant yet - my DS seemed to settle down into a pattern and as soon as I thought right i've cracked it he'd change it again! lol - things will be hard enough so go with the flow and trust your instincts - you'll nto go far wrong there.

also when your milk comes in iirc DS was feeding for about 5 mins a time - was just more frequent - think it was due to my boobs being a little slow for him! lol. but it all worked out fine.

Demand feeding cuts both ways , if you feel full then offer her a feed even if she isnlt squawking for it yet. She may or may not take it but it all helps stimulate supply. Also if your milk has just come in she may find it hard to latch on, in which case expressing a little may relieve some of the intial pressure and help her relax. She will behave erratcially forsome time to come but don't leave her longer than 3 hours to feed. Her tummy is about the size of her fist and needs regular top ups! Good luck.

Congratulations!
my ds didn't get in to a clear routine till about 2 weeks. One think i did find is, when i was trying to feed him every 3 hours (as told to in hospital), quite often he just wasn't interested and would go 4, sometimes nearly 5 hours before crying for a feed. i found what helped was, if he wasn't interested to put him back in his crib after trying cause if i carried on holding him and trying he would get really cosy and warm and sleep even longer and not want to feed and would be impossible to wake. Once i put him back in the crib he would often wake shortly and demand a feed. So basically i would wait about 2 and a half hours, try him for a feed, if not interested put him back, wait until he cried and then try again. They tend to be quite dosey for first few weeks, then they seem to wake up and realise where they are! Sorry if this info is no help at all but thought i'd share my experience in case it did, main thing is, the baby will know how much it needs and will cry when hungry. Enjoy!

Hi, sleepless. Midwife should be helping with this sort of stuff, and should be better than books which can't see or know your baby. Babies are not hungry 'all the time', ever, but many of them like to be near or on the breast a lot of the time, even when sleepy or actually sleeping. Mostly, babies are best off held closely for much of the time in the early days as this is a good way to ensure they feed physiologically ie according to need.

3 days is much, much too early to expect consistency - your baby will change every day for a long time to come, and that's ok!

5-10 mins in a baby a few days old is just fine. No need to 'struggle' to wake her to feed her more unless there is soome indication she is not transferring milk effectively.

By now, her poos should be changing to greenish brown - that's a good sign.

By tomorrow/the next day, they should be at least 2-3 x a day and yellow - more good signs

wow, So many responses and all so helpful thank you very much indeed. I didn't think anyone would be around over the Christmas period! You were all right of course. DD has been feeding erratically sometimes 20 mins sometimes 5 mins and when you're up in the middle of the night waiting for 1.5 hours for her to feed for only 5 mins i really felt I was doing something wrong. I think you're right MerryXmos my let down is extremely fast. Her poos are now mustardy yellow and she pees lots. Thanks again for all your help, no one really writes about the first week or two and my health workers failed to turn up on day two. Anyway all your experiences are similar to mine and i don't feel totally lost and the only person awake at 1am and 4am feeding a dozy yet gorgeous baby.
Thank you again!