Newborn feeding worries - help

[daisy86]

I have a two week old DS who is formula fed (I’m not able to BF at the moment but that’s another story).

I have been told by my midwife that he needs to be fed between 8-12 times a day, and woken every 3-4 hours to achieve this if necessary.

The problem is, I’ve struggled to get into a routine on this timetable as if I wake him for a feed when he’s fast asleep, more often than not he’s drowsy and not particularly interested.

However, if I leave it up to him to determine when he’s fed he seems so much more content. He will typically sleep for four or five hours before waking and wanting to be fed, and takes between 75ml-100ml per session.

Is it best to stick to the midwife’s recommendation or can I feed him every 4-5 hours (meaning he gets six to seven feeds a day)?

Any thoughts?

Sorry, that should say five to six feeds a day!

He seems to be thriving on his own routine - he had jaundice at birth which has now gone.

He’s also doing 1 poo a day on average which the midwife said is normal for a two week old, and about 6 wees a day.

I did Gina Ford routine & it worked really well. It's not popular on here but it seemed to work for both mine & it gave times & amounts. I liked it as I had no clue what I was doing & so found it useful.

If his poops and wet nappies are okay, he's gaining weight along his centile, happy and not jaundiced, then I would say be guided by baby. He's clearly getting enough nutrition and he knows what he needs. You don't need to be stressing both of you out when everything is well!

I think it depends on his weight. If he's a healthy weight and moving along centiles as expected I wouldn't wake them up personally. But if they're looking for more of a weight gain I would

If you need him to wake up, sometimes undressing them a bit helps. You can then have a bit of skin to skin which is beneficial for both of you.

What does he weigh and what's the total amount of milk he's taking?

The worry with newborns is that they don't always wake themselves to feed - if they are not getting enough milk they can become more sleepy and feed less and it becomes a vicious cycle.

Personally I would try to wake and feed every 3-4 hours in the day and then leave him to sleep a bit longer at night, as you also want him to start to run on the same body clock as you and get most of his calories and awake time in the day and sleep at night.

What does he weigh and what's the total amount of milk he's taking?

@CaryStoppins He weighs 7lb 10oz and is taking about 500ml of formula a day, which is in line with the recommendation on babycentre.co.uk:

“From around two weeks to two months, he will probably want between 75ml and 105ml at each feed. He’ll consume anywhere from 450ml to 735ml in one day.”

www.babycentre.co.uk/a9136/how-much-formula-milk-does-my-baby-need

Rough guide is 2.5oz formula per lb of weight so around 19-20oz (540-570ml) at his weight.

I'd definitely be encouraging more feeds in the day and letting him sleep at night so long as he keeps gaining weight.

@CaryStoppins thanks - sounds like I do need to up it a bit in that case.

I must say I never woke mine as me and dp were under the impressions if they were hungry they would wake up.

If he is taking in the recommended amount that's great and it must be working I understand you want to try and get into a routine where he is sleeping at night though!

I remember my little girl not wanting to wake, until 3 weeks old I set alarms to wake us up and feed during night but she just wasn't interested. I finally gave in and decided if she was hungry she'd wake, she slept through from 11pm - 6am each night and continued to gain weight and increase sleep.

@ChunkyButFunky87 Interesting, thanks. 11pm to 6am - your DD sounds like a dream!