Breastfeeding General Chatter #15

My DD is 5weeks old today & we are currently demand feeding.

I was wondering at what age do you move away for demand feeding and onto more of a schedule?


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Do you need s chedule for some reason Rosey?

Rosey - i pretty much demand fed my ds the entire time until i weaned him at 20 months. That said, he really only wanted feeds before sleeping or through the night from probably 12 months. Im not sure what the 'right' answer is but i wouldnt want to mess with things until 3 months had passed. Once they start solids at 6ish months it does often become more predictable anyway.

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Oh no I don't need a schedule at all, I just didn't know if I 'should' be moving onto more of a schedule. All very new & I feel a little uneducated with the whole BF.

Thank you Sloane ... Well stick with the demand feeding too :)



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You just do what you feel comfortable with - some mchns will suggest stretching out feeds but if you and your little one are happy, then keep doing what you're already doing. I think the big benefit of demand feeding is that fussy days can be so much easier to deal with! As they get bigger & more efficient feeds are over so quickly anyway :)

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I still deman feed my little man but he has started to get to some kind of a schedule. We have morning feed when we wake up (about 7am) and then a feed sometime around 10am then 2ish and then a snack at 430 and bed time feed at 6pm. The 430 and 6pm feeds are more schedule than anything kinda like stocking up for overnight and he will have one feed overnight between 2-4am usually.

He has only just started getting this kinda routine in the last few weeks or so - and hey it could all go out the window tmrw for all I know!! Lol

I couldn't have put him on a routine if I tried - when he is hungry, he is hungry! There is no putting it off until later lol

My girl has her own kind of feeding routine but aside from nighttime it's not number-on-the-clock based but time (as in passing of hours if that makes sense as something different to clock based) and pattern based. As in she wakes up around 6:00-30 of her own accord then if she is content I wont feed her until 7am or as close to it as possible. Them she feeds 2-3 hourly through the day after that, usually after a nap.

I feed her last feed of the day around 6:45-7pm then she wakes up once or twice in the night, usually 12-1 then 3-4.

Her daytime sleep is another story altogether and it drives me a little crazy. She tends to be awake and alert for an hour, hour and a half at a time. But she rarely naps for more than an hour at a time but even an hour is rare and she mostly naps for 20-40 mins at a time.

I have been breastfeeding for 2 years today! :leap: We never fed to a schedule, i just feed when bub is hungry or thirsty or DD just needs some mum time.

Woohoo Hot1!!! Well done to you and your bbs!

Ladylove, up until this week my DD2 rarely napped for more than 40 mins. If I wore her in a sling or wrap she'd sometimes do two naps in a row. She's three mths now and I can now expect one long nap of up to two hours once a day and the others are just short still. DD1 was completely different and slept for at least two hours each time.

Throw "should" in the bin :) Just listen to your baby and your heart, then you'll figure out what you need to do (and trial and error is all good)

Hi gals, mind if I get some advice?

Lately DD has been wanting to feed and trying to take a mouthful, but pushing the breast away at the same time. She does this repeatedly, sometimes managing a few sucks but mostly getting really frustrated - crying out and kicking against me. It's killing my nipples but more making me concerned that she won't eat. It's not every feed but a couple of times a day.

Any idea what could be going on? Tummy ache or over-tired maybe...? I wish she could tell me!

Jennifer yeah, it's surprising how many mums say their babies only sleep for short stints at a time. Problem with DD is she screams before every nap. Doesn't matter if she's just become tired or is overtired or whether or not I've prepped her for bed before or after her tired signs. She will scream hysterically for 5-10 mins then pass out in my arms.

Hotl- that is an excellent achievement!

Buffy1, when DD2 was really little if I waited too long from when she was giving those first hungry signs to actually get to feed her, she'd be quite frustrated, just as you describe. Also, she doesn't like waiting the whole 5-10 seconds for my letdown to happen (impatient little miss). Once my letdown has occurred (and I can feel it very strongly this time around) she settles immediately and sucks contentedly.

If it's a let down issue, you can try putting a warm compress (washer) on your bbs or hand expressing just a little first to speed it up (that may or may not work). Or, just take a deep breath, relax your jaw and your shoulders and wait for her to calm down and your bbs to do their thing. Once I figured out that was what was bothering DD2 I quietly tell her to get over it and be more patient! It doesn't stop her fussing but it helps me stay calm!

Ladylove - that is exactly what my DD2 does, with the notable exception of when I am wearing her on my back. Most of the time up there she just nods off quietly without a fuss. It's amazing the difference and when I've had enough of the OMG-you're-killing-me-I'm-so-tired yelling, I resort to this. Have you tried wearing her in a sling or similar at all?

It might be that she's trying to hurry up the letdown. Or maybe she isn't really hungry?
If it seems like an issue, give the ABA a call :)

Jennifer I'm so glad to hear mine is not the only one that does that! It happened in my mothers group the other day and she was her usual top-of-her-very-high-pitched-lungs self and the other mothers were astonished when I tried to tell them she was just tired and does this all the time. Her cry is VERY shrill.

Buffy hello! I can't help you but waving and smiling from WA. :)

Thanks Jennifer, I thought it might be let-down but my flow has been pretty fast. I wonder if that's it? I do get very tense when she's frustrated, am sure that isn't helping things! Good tips, I have to remember to relax my shoulders.

MadB, you could be right. I might give the ABA a call tomorrow anyway, see what they reckon.

Hi LL! Picturing your LO screaming and then sleeping like an angel 5 mins later :)

Yeah Buffy- she puts a LOT of energy into her pre-sleep antics for a 40 minute catnapper! A lot of trouble for such a tiny sleep.

Random question: if I think my baby has drained a breast will milk still come out if I squeeze/express from it? Or should nothing come out?