Thanks ladies.
Just hearing that its normal is a huge relief. DS1 did cluster feed. Just not to this extreme. He was a vacuum cleaner and screaded my nipples so totally different problems last time.
We dont have a sling. But I will try the lying down while feeding and feeding him every 2 hours during the day. I phoned ABA.. and they where saying similar things to all the great advice from you ladies. So ill give it all a go. I hope that this knowledge will at least keep me some what sane tonight! Knowing its all normal and there will be an end to it.. just not sure when!
Hi
Just so you know there are others out there, my DS feeds about every hour if not in the sling. He also cluster fed at night, often from about 8pm till 2am but this seems to be calming down now (although he is sleeping less at night now!!) In the daytime, I have been putting him in the sling just to get him to sleep as he won't sleep anywhere else and he will sleep in the sling for about two hours (sometimes 3!!!) and wake up for a feed. The cluster feeds are shorter now at night but he has reduced his night sleeping from 5 hour stretches to 3-4! I co-sleep so feeding lying down is a godsend. I often fall asleep before DS!!! So my pattern now at 6 weeks old is perhaps 2 hourly feeds in the daytime and hourly feeds in the evening with a bit of a 2-3 hour cluster just before bed then a nighttime sleep from 2am to 5am or 6am a feed. (It used to be 2am to 7am Luxury!!!!)
Tascha, the first weeks are so difficult and it's great that you are doing all the right things. You might find that the 6 hours of cluster feeding was more of an adjustment than a trend. As Marcellus mentioned, babies generally feed 8 -12 times in 24 hours at that age, so 3 - 4 hourly might not have been quite enough. Your little one might have been doing some catch up feeding, and if this is the case it might settle down in a day or two (fingers crossed for you).
I really don't have much to add to the fantastic advice you have already received, just to reiterate that you are doing a great job and that if you can try feeding lying down or anything that makes your life easier, then go for it.
You might like to think about getting a sling too. I found it not only helped with these unsettled times, but it was much easier to get out and about with baby in the sling rather than a pram, especially with two little ones. I found that more often than not the bag was in the pram with DS1 and DS2 was in the sling, or if DS1 walked then I didn't even need the pram. DS2 never really liked being in the pram until he was able to sit up, so the sling was a life saver, but it would have been easier anyway.
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks