Still a growth spurt, or just a habit now?

[Laugs]

DS is 7.5 weeks old. From 6 weeks he's been feeding very frequently. If we're in the house he feeds about every hour until 11 or 12 at night. I have a 3 year old so try and get out and about, but that's normally from 3pm at the latest, so around 10 hourly feeds. I had been thinking of this as the evening cluster feed, but it's a bloody long evening! On Sunday we stayed in all day, and he just fed hourly all day long.

If he's out in the pushchair his feeds are less frequent - probably every 3 hours or so.

Normally he sleeps ok once he gets to sleep around midnight, although last night he fed hourly too - except for a period of three hours when DH was holding him and he slept fine.

I'm pretty sure in the first few days this was a growth spurt as he seemed ravenous. Now I wonder if he's just got into the habit of feeding for comfort. Oddly, at night after his feeds he can normally settle himself back to sleep, but not in the daytime.

Part of me thinks that if he needs that comfort, at such a young age, then I need to let him have it. The other part is exhausted, in pain and trying to look after an increasingly frustrated/ demanding 3 yr old.

Any thoughts or suggestions please?

Oh, also meant to say that if it could still be a growth spurt, then I don't want to give him less milk if he really needs it, but how do I know?

DD was like this

she fed and fed and fed in the day AND cluster fed

he is so little that i think if he wants the breast then he wants it

it is exhausting - i have a 3.5 year old DS to entertain

things which have kept me going are co-sleeping and feeding laying down

DD has stopped cluster feeding although she feeds more in the evenings and the last feed before bed (she is now heading for 16 weeks)

Thanks for replying rubyslippers, and I'm glad things are getting easier for you now.

Did you feel like she was really hungry or that she just needed the comfort?

I don't want to co-sleep as I sleep really badly whenever he's in the bed with me, and I need all the sleep I can get.

I'm also finding it really hard having so much less time for DD (the 3 yr old). She's starting to look quite sad

she was and is hungry!

she is a little and often feeder

TBH, my DS watched a lot of TV during the first few weeks and it hasn't harmed him - i couldn't get the hang of feeding in a sling but if you could this may help you

i was wary of co-sleeping but actually it has really helped me get more sleep

i wrap myself in the duvet so i am separate from her when i unlatch her

i mix fed and then entirely bottle fed DS from 7 weeks so am still getting used to breastfeeding and how different it is from bottle feeding especially with the comfort thing which i don't think you can separate from the feeding thing

Thanks Ruby, he has settled down a bit the last day or so, so it's getting easier in that respect (though no less painful).

I can't work out BFing in a sling either. I had this image that I could play with DD while BFing hands-free in my sling - nope, I don't think that will happen!

I'd like to be able to co-sleep but every time I've tried it I've woken up in a panic, frantically searching for baby in bed etc... too stressful for me!

Hi there, sorry to keep going on about this (I have in other threads) but it is possible that your baby isn't latching properly. If he is feeding constantly and it is painful then I wonder if that might be the case. My baby was feeding all the time and I got mastitis - it turns out she was latched all wrong. The breastfeeding clinic/cafe sorted it out in a couple of visits and I was so pleased that I went!