Very new sleepy baby not feeding...

[MrsGravy]

I had a beautiful little girl at 2.20 this morning - she had a big (breast) feed not long after being born, conked out at 4am ish and hasn't fed much since. I gave her a bath to wake her up and she fed for maybe 10 minutes after that but she's conked again.

Midwife says to give her 1oz of formula in a syringe if I haven't managed to feed her much more by this evening.

Stripping her doesn't seem to work, she wakes up then conks out again as soon as I put her to the breast - before she's managed to feed! Apart from skin to skin is there anything else I can try to get her feeding? Or should I just chill and accept that she'll wake up and take an interest when she's ready?

TIA

just a quick update - she woke up at 7 last night and has barely stopped feeding since! careful what you wish for

thanks so much all - no community midwives available yest afternoon so would have had to take her into the hospital to be seen! All your good advice saved us that hassle.

Glad she is fine!

I've said this before but I think it's awful when the parents of newborn babies have to turn to the internet for advice because of a lack of midwives.

Hope her check up goes well today, and you can enjoy your new baby!

What's her name?

Elin Kate

Not looking forward to having to trek to the hospital with her. I don't know how mums who've had stitches and are feeling ropey manage - I am thankfully feeling v well. We're having to impose on a friend and leave our elder 2 there.

Apparently some people have ended up waiting 4 hours. I'm thinking I might give it an hour and then leave and insist someone comes to see me at home.

Gald to hear all is well

Was going say neither of mine fed much on the first day....i thought it is because when they are born they are already 'full' (or not necessarily hungry) as they have been fed in the womb IYKWIM.....

ANd congratulations

Very pretty names

I hope you don't have to wait for hours, you may be feeling well now but it may catch up with you in a few days.

I think it is a disgrace a new mother has to go to the hospital on day 2 after a home birth for the paeds check.

No comm mids avail. to do it? Well....that's a poor show, indeed, but they will become available later surely and can do the check then, I would have thought.

If it was me, I would just stay at home, close to my bed or in it, not getting dressed, and just staying close to the baby.

It makes no sense at all otherwise - it's not in your interests, the baby's interests or your family's interests to do this

Agree Tiktok, I would phone, say that I am not feeling well, and that someone has to come out - midwife or doctor on call.

I think the mother and baby checks on day two are vital, you both need to be seen.

Neither of my dc fed properly for 24 hours.

Ds also had formula foisted upon him 8 hours in by well meaning ill informed ward assistant. I was trying to exclusively bf and being a bit uncertain anyway allowed this but sure this contributed to me thinking bf didn't matter that much.

Luckily with dd the ward staff were much better informed and just said keep trying and basically left me to get on with it, within 24 hours she was feeding and I went on to exclusively b/f for 14 months.

Congratulations, sure it will be fine.

Oh and I wouldn't go in for visit either, knowing what I know now but I did with ds. First time mum so woefully lacking in knowledge, scared my baby would break if I didn't do exactly what medical professionals told me the second they told me to do it.

Belgo, you are prob right that it's good to be seen on day 2 (though without obvious problems, I would have thought day 3 or 4 was ok!). But a mother who has the problems they have to check for (from memory, high BP; major bleeding; fever) is not gonna help herself any by dragging herself and baby to the flippin hospital....

Grrr.

Before your milk comes in 10 mins at a time is enough, there isn't much there in the first few days. Babies are not born hungry, but take your top off and strip her down to nappy and try again. In the few day DS fed but only for a few minutes at a time before falling asleep, so as soon as I saw him awake i'd try to fed!

Tiktok - where I work community midwives can't do paed checks, it has to be a paediatrician or a GP but all the GPs refuse to do it so women have to come back to the hospital.

stripey - I know this is something that varies across the country. In some areas, community midwives do these checks, and in the OP's case, I think it was staffing that was the issue. I still think it's a poor show to drag some poor woman and her baby out to the hospital....