So Mr Oliver is falling asleep during his feeds and waking up if I take him off but not interested in going back on if I try and tempt him. But seems unsettled and I'm not sure if perhaps he's not getting enough. He didn't even drain the 2nd side as well as normal early this morning.
Man I wish these boobs had a measuring guide and babies played by the rules.
Hmm, You know best by looking at his cues and what he is doing...
My suggestion would be to feed him for twenty mins then arouse him (Change his nappy, take some clothes off) and then place him on the other side. and get him to feed again.
He could just be being fuzzy and want to feed more times
I agree with MN, DD1 used to be a lazy feeder all the time so i used to try and keep her alert, feed for 15-20min, change her then back on the other side.
If she was REALLY bad then we often undressed her or had to use a cool cloth to 'wake her' it sounds cruel but it worked.
He might just be going through a fussy stage, hopefully he's over it soon.
it's very normal to fall asleep on the breast - one of the best kept secrets of the breastfeeding mother - you always have a way of getting them to sleep.
The signs are there - how is his weightgain going? What are his wet and dirty nappies like?
His nappies have still been pretty wet, but not as many dirty nappies. his weight gain has slowed down but not concerned as it's still above average (1kg one fortnight, 700grams this last fortnight)
The problem with trying the 20 min feeds is that when he's asleep he pulls off very suddenly tugging on the nipple, so I try to remove him before he does this. Once he's off the minute I move him he wakes up and starts showing signs of hunger and is unsettled... it's so frustrating, I can understand that he might want to be feeding more often but this plus him pulling on my nipples when he decides to come off in his sleep are going to start causing problems and I don't think I'm in the right frame of mind to actually keep it up if they become too painful
Wow, they are massive weight gains! Well done. Dirty nappies will slow down from this point too, so that's not cause for alarm so long as he's still doing plenty of wet ones.
Do you use a sling/carrier to settle as well? Sometimes they just need extra comforting and will go for the breast, but being close will do. Or even a dummy if he wants to suck suck suck and that's too much for you (it certainly sounds as though he's getting plenty of milk).
The 6-7 week mark is often a big developmental leap for babies and they can be very unsettled for a while at this age. Are you getting much help at home with other things? Sometimes that 's the keyto getting through these phases
No I don't have a sling/carrier, but I gotta a pretty secure hold down packed :-) but after these feeds no matter how you hold him he still doesn't the whole tongue "I'm hungry" action. His dummy normally requires a bit of "encouraging" to get him to take it but it doesn't seem to work in these situations. As for help I had a great weekend for help, with hubby home, I have a cleaner around home once a week and normally I leave the general tidying for her also.
When you remove him (before he pulls of) have your tried waking him to switch sides?
He's having massive weight gains and plenty of wet nappies so thats really good signs.
And I remember the pulling off with the gums/teeth is hurts alot!
Whatever Mr Oliver's problem is - it's not that he's hungry - as MadB says - he is getting heaps - you don't grow like that on thin air!
It's normal for babies to fall asleep on the breast. For babies, breastfeeding is far more than the milk - when they suck they get a burst of hormones that help them sleep and aid digestion - when they are taken from the breast they will make a mad grab for it as though to say "honestly, I'm sucking, I promise" - who would want to leave the warmth of mum's arms to go to bed alone?
Often slipping the dummy in as soon as you slip the nipple out and cuddling back to sleep (many of us pick up their little arm and drop it dack down - if they don't stir you may be able to transfer them to bed)
A sling is a godsend when you have other busy children - buy one ASAP - the ABA's simplicity sling is fabulous
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