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Bottle feeding newborn

14 replies

mn999 · 10/08/2022 14:29

Hi, I have a 4 week old and she has been having around ten bottles a day. If she’s asleep and being held she will go 2-3 hours between feeds but if I put her down she wakes up straight away and wants a bottle. She is demanding a bottle every hour at some periods but only having small amounts of like 40-50ml. I am feeding her on demand, but not sure if this is something I should be changing to try and get her to have larger amounts less frequently? I try and distract her and see if there’s other ways to comfort her first but she will just cry…the bottle is the only thing that soothes her. So not sure if it is hunger or comfort as like i say she will go 3 hours sometimes even 4 if she’s held! Any advice??

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Oneforposy7 · 10/08/2022 14:29

Does she have a dummy?

moiraandthebebe · 10/08/2022 14:30

Try her with a dummy. Newborns have very tiny stomachs so will often feed in small bursts very regularly but a dummy can also help soothe.

Nat888 · 10/08/2022 14:35

How long has it gone on for? My boy did the same around 4 weeks - HV said cluster feeding. Lasted about a week.

Doesn't explain why its only when put down though so I agree with the above - a dummy may help. She may just be looking for comfort

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mn999 · 10/08/2022 14:46

Hi everyone. No I haven't used a dummy and I don't want to introduce one preferably. I worry about weaning her off it then and the difficulty that could come with that!

She has always fed small amounts she was 6lb at birth so not small but not huge. But it seems the last week she has started only going an hour or so at some periods. And like I said definitely doesn't go longer than 2 if not being held! Apart from sometimes during the night but she is extra fussy between 7-9 so stashes up lots of milk then lol

OP posts:
Nat888 · 10/08/2022 15:01

It could be a cluster feeding period but if you aren't keen on a dummy maybe you could try putting something that smells of you down with her so she feels close to you.. it didn't work for me but worked wonders for my sister.

BertieBotts · 10/08/2022 15:04

It's likely to naturally consolidate into larger less frequent feeds as she gets older so I'd just go with it for now. Following their lead is recommended :)

bogoblin · 10/08/2022 15:08

I would continue to feed on demand. Their stomachs are SO tiny so they empty almost as fast as they fill up. If she's leaving a little bit of milk at the end of her bottle then you know she's getting enough. Trying to give her more at less frequent intervals will probably result in reflux, sick, and a grumpy baby!

Honestly, babies are whack. Some days they want loads, some days not as much. Just keep feeding her on demand and responding to her cues and you can't really go wrong. In the fourth trimester as it's called babies will often sleep better on you, it's what she's been used to for 9 months

Toddlerteaplease · 10/08/2022 16:03

Some babies are sucky babies and need a sunny. If that's what she wants then Just give her one. I don't see the issue.

Sbena · 10/08/2022 16:20

She could be having a growth spurt. Maybe give little amounts more often for a while so you can be sure she's genuinely hungry and not just seeking comfort. But yeah, feed on demand. If it is a spurt/cluster period it should normalize in a few days

Maray1967 · 10/08/2022 16:59

Dummy. Simple as that. Both of mine were like this - my brilliant HV said it’s our choice - either put up with this constant waking and not settling or use a dummy - I had no intention of using one but I took her advice , what an improvement.

DS(1) - thumb sucked soon as he could and abandoned dummies by 3. Months.
DS(2) - loved dummies and yes, it was a battle to get him off them later on but I still don’t regret using them.

Youcancallmeirrelevant · 10/08/2022 17:04

Sucking is a comfort to babies, thats why dummies are god sends, and they also reduce SIDS.

as others have said, babies stomachs are tiny to start with which is why they feed so frequently, as stomach gets bigger they should go to bigger feeds, but if ypu have a baby who likes to suck they are going to keep wanting a bottle for sucking not feeding, then you risk overfeeding

Removing a dummy when they are 2.5/3 is relatively easy.

gotelltheoldmandowntheroad · 10/08/2022 18:40

Paced feeding is very important.

When baby gets milk it comes out slowly and only comes out via stimulation, which is the innate suckling action babies do which they have to do as it's biologically ingrained, it's so that they build supply during growth spurts.

So when you feed a bottle it comes out quickly and it's too much at one time, it's not what would naturally happen. This can stretch the gut leading to gut issues and mental health issues given the gut microbiome is a huge part of the gut/brain axis.

So either paced feed, which is a pain and I did not have the patience myself, instead I got a Mimjumi bottle which mimics the breast and released milk slowly and only on suckling.

It was a godsend. After formula my girl seemed so bloated and red and even in pain. I was combi-feeding as I got no latch, so primarily she got expressed breastmilk and so I was able to note a palpable difference.

I used to give the formula at night as it made her sleep through, which is not good really because they are not meant to sleep through, they have to wake, again to build supply and to know they are safe and regulate their heartbeat.

So the way we feed can be really detrimental and stretch the gut and distress the baby, whose tiny stomach is too full from a whole bottle at a time.

I think feeding on demand is a great idea because it mimics nature. I did this too, I did not just give a proscribed amount of milk at a time, I've seen people do this and the baby kicks their legs, they are basically being force fed and you can see after they are in pain, that's the gut being stretched.

I would definitely recommend the Mimjumi bottle. I would do that over paced feeding, which is really taxing, the bottle just does it for you.

mn999 · 10/08/2022 19:42

@gotelltheoldmandowntheroad

Thanks for the advice and suggestion of bottle! I do pace feed as she has reflux and I don't mind doing so as time consuming as it can be. I'm used to it from my first who gas such bad reflux too. Never heard of those bottles tho! So will check then out!

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Melisande90 · 10/08/2022 21:20

My DD was like this as a newborn too, we just fed on demand and gradually she started to take more at a time and go a little longer between feeds. She’s 4 months now. At the start we kept track of her feeds in a notebook and I recently looked back at those early days of 1oz every hour and I don’t know how I kept up with the bottle washing haha Smile as a PP said also, during 4th trimester they often do prefer to sleep on Mum, again that also improves gradually and now my DD won’t nap on me at all and I miss it a little! Enjoy the snuggles for now Wink

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