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Breast feeding at night - am I doing it wrong?
Hello everyone
Just have a question about night feeds and sleeping through.
At the moment Liv (who is 9 weeks) has a dream feed at about 10pm, then wakes at about 1am, then again between 3 and 4am. This I can handle. But then she wakes up at about 5am and cluster feeds until about 7.30am, which is killing me!
Am I doing something wrong? I don't have a problem with the feeds at 1am and then 3/4am, but I just wish she would go back to sleep until 7 ish after the second feed! I did think that maybe it was a sort of habit thing that I had created so sometimes I try to ignore her noises in the hope that she will go back to sleep but she doesn't - instead she gets louder and louder until my heart is breaking for her!! So maybe it is a bit chicken and egg - I cluster feed her cos of the noises she makes BUT is she only making those noises cos she expects the cluster feeding???!!!!!!
Could it be something to do with the time of night she goes to bed? At the moment she has a feed at 6pm, bath at about 7pm and then is pretty much sparko from 8pm onwards, until "waking" for her 1am feed. So she sleeps 5 hours straight, then another 2 or 3 hours straight. I think that is good myself, and it gives me some respite in the evening, but is it having a knock on effect in the wee small hours??
And while we are on the subject of sleeping through, at what age did your baby sleep through, and what exactly constitutes sleeping through anyway? I would say it would be something like 7pm to 7am, but maybe I am wrong! Does it differ depending on whether they are boob or bottle fed?
Thanks for your help on this one ladies. I am feeling really rather insecure about it at the moment as people keep asking me if Liv is sleeping through and when I say no they look at me all pityingly, but she's only 9 weeks!! Plus my mil assumed we would be switching to formula soon simply because I am "still" feeding twice in the night. I would love to be able to come back at her with pro-boob feeding statements, as she is doing my flaming head in!
Hope you all had a lovely Chrimbo xxx
Just have a question about night feeds and sleeping through.
At the moment Liv (who is 9 weeks) has a dream feed at about 10pm, then wakes at about 1am, then again between 3 and 4am. This I can handle. But then she wakes up at about 5am and cluster feeds until about 7.30am, which is killing me!
Am I doing something wrong? I don't have a problem with the feeds at 1am and then 3/4am, but I just wish she would go back to sleep until 7 ish after the second feed! I did think that maybe it was a sort of habit thing that I had created so sometimes I try to ignore her noises in the hope that she will go back to sleep but she doesn't - instead she gets louder and louder until my heart is breaking for her!! So maybe it is a bit chicken and egg - I cluster feed her cos of the noises she makes BUT is she only making those noises cos she expects the cluster feeding???!!!!!!
Could it be something to do with the time of night she goes to bed? At the moment she has a feed at 6pm, bath at about 7pm and then is pretty much sparko from 8pm onwards, until "waking" for her 1am feed. So she sleeps 5 hours straight, then another 2 or 3 hours straight. I think that is good myself, and it gives me some respite in the evening, but is it having a knock on effect in the wee small hours??
And while we are on the subject of sleeping through, at what age did your baby sleep through, and what exactly constitutes sleeping through anyway? I would say it would be something like 7pm to 7am, but maybe I am wrong! Does it differ depending on whether they are boob or bottle fed?
Thanks for your help on this one ladies. I am feeling really rather insecure about it at the moment as people keep asking me if Liv is sleeping through and when I say no they look at me all pityingly, but she's only 9 weeks!! Plus my mil assumed we would be switching to formula soon simply because I am "still" feeding twice in the night. I would love to be able to come back at her with pro-boob feeding statements, as she is doing my flaming head in!
Hope you all had a lovely Chrimbo xxx
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Replies
mine was more alert at 5am too but i read the gina ford book and realised i was the problem. i was more alert and was causing her to stay awake. so i started treating it exactly like at 2am feed and she then went straight back to sleep once i put her down.
as far as im aware as it's harder to digest formula, a ff baby will go longer.
my lo sleeps from around 8 - 8.30pm untl 8am. this works for us as hubby is out of the house from 5am until 7pm so wouldnt see her otherwise!
go simple with a pro-breastfeeding statement, breast milk is better for them!!!! tey cant argue with fact! and i also find lying keeps people happy. does she sleep through? yes. oh. converstaion over. all they want to do anyway is tell you what you're doing wrong!
hth
Can I ask - what do you mean when you say you treat the 5am feed the same as the 2am feed?
btw she doesnt sleep though! she gets up at 5am for a full milk feed (2 boobs) and then wakes for weetaix at 8am. she's 9 months. recently she's been waking at between 1 and 2, i think cold.
Thanks hun xx
i have a friend who put her baby into his own room before 4 months and constantly asks me when im putting lo in her own room. ive told her ive no intention of doing before she's 1, as disucssed with hv and my own research and it's actually what myparents did with us, but she still asks all the time. i think it's out of guilt tbh. :roll: i dont let it bother me.
But why shouldn't she?? She's not even 5 months old and has a stomach the size of a pea which needs to be topped up regularly.
I HATE the look people give me when I say she's not sleeping through.
I really don't know why people are so obsessed with it.
Just go with the flow hun. Hopefully the 5am cluster feeds will just be a phase.
You're doing great!
Vic x
Matilda is 10 or 11 weeks now (am a bit lost with week counting lol) she feeds 10 pm, 4 30 am and then 10 am and basically sleeps all that time from 10 pm till 10 am - as she boobs the 4 30 am basically asleep.
Are you changing your los nappy? If so dont, unless it is a really horrid poop. I have stopped doing that so not to disturb her at feeds much. I also do not switch on the light, use the light from my phone to hook her on boob. I dont even talk, or look at her (as it is dark). Also at your 3/4 am feed maybe you wait a bit too long to feed her and she just becomes too awake. Maybe wait a wee while and do not let her get too wound up?
Also try to make the gaps in between the clusters gradually longer, like starting 10 - 15 mins at first and then stretching them? I think you have to be strict a wee bit, not have her cry, you can hold and comfort her (as she is only little) but do it in the dark with no talking and all, try putting her back to sleep.
I hope this helps.
Good luck!
xx
My lo seemed to go through an amazing amount of growth spurts, she also seemed and still does have times (not too often)where she just wakes up around five and now she plays with her teddy (7months) but when she was tiny she wanted the comfort or was having a growth spurt.
I'd say just go with it.. I'm sure it's still dark then so doubt the light disturbing her is an issue?
I had some people asking me at two weeks old if she was sleeping yet, very irritating, I count sleeping through as going from what ever her normal bed time is till after 6am, she doesn't seem to wake at the same time every day still, this morning it was 7.30am. She slept through early at a few months old for about six weeks but then stopped for a few months and has only recently started again. (she wasn't feeding, just stiring but if we left her she'd cry and wake up properly)
Good luck, your doing a fab job xx
could you try not giving the dreamfeed to see if it made a difference, I found that as he got older he didn't need it and it didn't help him sleep. Hope the cluster feeding in the early a.m. stops soon, but have you tried feeding lying down and dozing? If you look into cosleeping etc it can be safer than its made out to be xx
and drinking in the night is a good idea too.
like you i used to hate the 'is he sleeping through yet' even from people who didn't have kids like wtf would you know any way but tbh I think it is just 'one of those questions' similar to the 'well how was your labour' - oh it was fricken fantastic I was able to have a tea party in the middle of it kwim!
Also I have to say I really craved sleep and was so happy when he did start to sleep better, as after all, so do you, but I really really missed our wee midnight feeds together, it was our wee special time and so cosy and nice, saying that now he gives great big slobbery kisses (tongue and all dirty wee man) and they are great too lol
Btw I don't think mums feeding formula are any more "obsessed with adult sleeping patterns". I think all new mums are desperate for sleep no matter what they may say!
Before you all hate me tho I should mention that the boy will not nap!! hence some of the long feeds I think he's dozing, and we often get a very grouchy second half of the day!
Gxx
PS moonandstars, hope you're well. William was 14 weeks on xmas day. isn't this a lot different to last year
If your LO does 5 hours from 8pm if you could introduce a dream feed about 10pm, maybe that would take you to 3am and then your usual feeds would adjust so that the cluster feeding time is at a more managable time of the day? x