Feeding newborn at night

[Ellebel]

I have a 3 week old who is a mixture of breast and bottle fed. Initially he refused the breast but things are improving on that front slowly. At night we bottle feed (varies between breast milk to formula although he seems to settle better with formula) we were advised to feed him 60-80ml per feed- he weighs just over 8pounds. But he still seems hungry and is very hard to settle after feeding. Would going to 90-100ml a feed at night he ok? Would we need to feed less in the day to make up for it? Also if anyone has any advice on how to break the cycle of it taking so long to settle them at night that they are then almost ready for their next feed by the time they’re dropping off, would be much appreciated!

I would give baby what he wants so , yes, increase ff if they are still looking for it. No need to change amounts in the day. One thing I would say is that nursing at night is important for supply , are you pumping to keep this going?

Hi. FTM to an 8wo here so by no means an expert but have been through that phase. Our LO took to the breast but I wasn't supplying enough and she lost so much weight she was admitted to hospital. She is fine now but I was constantly told to feed on demand and as much as baby wants to take. I certainly feel your pain of each feed ending just as the next one starts but it will get better and your LO will become more efficient at feeding and hopefully you'll have more of a break between feeds. Good luck!!!

By the way , baby is still vv young so the settling process is slow, go with it.

Baby is cluster feeding, have a Google, it’s really normal for them to want to feed feed feed at this stage. It supports their rapid growth and development.

Also if you want to breastfeed please try and breastfeed at night rather than giving bottles. Breastmilk supply is highest at night and feeding then helps to build your supply. Baby cluster feeding is also telling your body what it needs, but if you’re giving bottles instead your body won’t be getting these signals to produce more. At the very least please try and pump every missed feed.

Also on the settling - your best bet is to bedshare with baby. They're biologically wired to not want to be separated from you at this stage, so just keeping them close will save a lot of hassle

Mum to a 4 week old, also combo feeding. Similar situation - I think it's wind with mine.

If they want more, I'd offer them more, but try to have some breaks so they're not wolfing it down too quickly in one go, and I also give him a good wind on my shoulder regularly during feeds too. I try not to lie him flat straightaway after, I hold him in my arms upright for 10 mins or so (again to help the food settle/combat wind).

If I do the above he's usually full and sleepy enough to go to sleep in his Moses basket/cot ok.

Feed the baby as much as they want day and night. Make sure you are doing paced feeding (look it up if you are not already doing this) and burp part way through as PP says. Try swaddling (can use a swaddle sleeping bag - much easier than actual swaddling) and they might sleep a bit longer but very young babies should be feeding frequently (every 2-4 hr). Best way for you to get more sleep if combo feeding is to do shifts with your partner eg partner does 8pm-1am and you do 1am-7am. Once mine got over an initial nocturnal phase she became easier to settle by rocking in my arms or on my knees. She’s 12w now and usually falls asleep straight after her bottle.

Others are probably right about needing to pump during the night but it will not help your problem of no time between feeds. I couldn’t manage it on top of feeding my baby and trying to get some sleep and never managed anything close to EBF. I decided to embrace the advantages of combo feeding and then FF instead.