we have gone from feeding every 3/4 hours to every 2 and nights are horrendous - reassure me please!

[mabel1973]

DD is only 2 weeks old, so I realise I a probably expecting far too much of her, but I am SO tired.
For the 1st week or so she fed regular as clockwork, every 3 hours or more through out the day and then going 6 hours at night!!!!
She is my 3rd child, so I realise I was very lucky!
However for the past few days she has been feeding much more often, any pattern we had is out of the window, she seems to be awake more at night than she is during the day, and feeding almost constantly through the night. My nipples are so sore and I am knackered. Dh has gone back to work today and coping with the DS's who are 2 and 4 is proving to be a challenge as it is, without the tirdness on top.
Could it just be a growth spurt?
I don't feel as if i am producing enough milk for her at each feed, it feels almost as if she is drinking me dry!
TIA

Aw, mabel This is absolutely normal behaviour for a 2 week old - trying to change it risks making her unhappy, and impacting on your milk supply. It is far easier (and kinder to you both) to change other things....3 children under 5 inc a newborn are (IMO) too much for one person to look after all day without help. Is there any option for you to i) hire someone for a couple of hours a day to play with your older kids, do housework, shopping? ii)ask for help for the next few weeks from a friend or relative for whatever time they can spare but it has to be help you can rely on and be often enough to make a difference iii) persuade dh to take more time off, as holiday if need be?

The tiredness is prob not resolvable at the moment, but the daytime pressures can be eased.

See a breastfeeding counsellor about the soreness, and think of ways to make night time feeding easier (safe co-sleeping, for instance).

Hope these ideas help a bit.

yep - could be a growth spurt and she's boosting your supply.... can you co-sleep - its the only way i get sensible sleep with DS.

thanks tiktok, i do have family locally who can help out, although this is only odd days here and there.
i am concerned about my milk supply, she seemed happy enough feeding from one side, but i am now having to feed her from both sides to satisfy her and for example i am feeding her now while typing, yet i fed her at 3.15pm. so ony 1.5 hours

re co-sleeping, i am doing that anyway, she doesn't settle otherwise

But mabel - feeding both sides is normal. We have two breasts to allow for the fact that we may have i)more than one baby or ii) a baby who may have appetite spikes from time to time.

There is nothing wrong or worrying about a baby needing to feed more often than before, or needing two, three or more breasts per session.

Think of yourself as a fast food restaurant. When your customer(s) come in droves, your back kitchen works faster to produce the goods. MacDonalds is never gonna run out of burgers or fries as long as the customers keep asking for them, as they are set up to respond to customer demand. You are the same. The only way you would dry up would be if you stopped 'serving' - and the only way you keep up is to continue 'serving'

thanks - i think I have forgotten how to BF - it seems like such a long time ago, even though it's not even 2 years!
It makes sense when you explain it like that!