sudden formula feeding for newborn

I have found myself having to suddenly FF my 2 week old DS (at about 10 days he had to be switched to FF very quickly). I BF my first DS for 2 years, so I am really at a loss as to how to handle FF...

I have been advised to feed only 3-4 hourly as otherwise he will get sick -- true? What do I do if he only takes 1/2 but then is unsettled? I have been trying to stick to the 3-4 hour feed -- for a while I was doing 4 hours but he just seems to want 3 hours now -- is this possible or am I being silly? I was also advised to try a dummy to push him through the unsettled extra time. I have tried this -- sometimes successfully sometimes not.

Overall since FF he has been more unsettled but that is hard to really pin on FF as he is so young!

I guess basically I am wondering how to best "comfort" him with bottle -- how to I hold him? Perhaps I am participating in his wind, gas and sitting up because I am not holding properly?

This whole thing has been quite a shock to all of us and we are working our way around how we feed, the sterilising, the number of bottles, the need for more counter space to hold all this stuff!

Sorry if this is too unspecific to answer! Thanks for any help offered!

You can still demand feed even when you use formula. The amount on the tin is only a guide, some babies will have a lot more than the guide and others a lot less and it is all normal. Since I don't know why you are FF him, I can only answer your question about him getting sick from feeding closer together based on a well baby, and no they can't get sick from being fed closer than 3-4 hours. I have had my babies feed up to 2 hours apart and no issues at all.

He could be unsettled for a lot of reasons. It could be because he is having to get used to the formula, it could just be because he is at the age where he is getting more wakeful etc and really letting you know he is around. As for holding them, just hold him in your lap, with his head supported in the crook of one arm while you hold the bottle with the other. When mine were very young, I always had them turned in slightly so they were facing my breast more. They don't have to be all the way back, but reclined to about 40-45deg seemed to work best for me. And if you think he is hungry, then give him some more because if he is hungry, no dummy in the world is going to comfort him LOL, just make up the smallest possible amount (60ml from memory) and see if he will take any more. My DS2 would take 120ml - 160ml at a few days old so maybe your little fella is hungry like that too?

You can demand feed and FF at the same time.
Like Trillian said, all babies have different needs. His unsettled-ness could be due to lots of things (makes it hard hey? )
One thing to check is wind though, as FF babies tend to get more than BF (though mine got just as much no matter which way I fed them - both were b/f and FF)

The smallest amount you can make varies depending on the formula brand that you have, but the tin will indicate who much water per scoop of formula. I know NAN HA is 1scoop=30ml water, and Heinz is 1 scoop 50ml

i demand fed my DS. he used to feed every 3 - 3.5 hrs. which brand of formula are you useing? i know when i changed DS from BF to FF i was useing Karicare as the LC i saw said its consistency was closer to BM. the tin as tril said is a guide. if your little man is hungry offer him some more. when you cuddle your little man after a feed (and is unsettled) have you found him nuzzleing into your breast? i found that was a sign my DS wanted some more. it may also be getting used to the formula as well.

Hi Nox,

Must be hard for you to do this unexpectedly. With my first I was convinced I would breastfeed so never learnt anything about FF. But things didn't work out as planned and now my man is exclusively FF. It did my head in learning it on the fly.

I'll tell you a little about how I do it and try to answer your questions at the same time.

At until about 7 weeks I demand fed. He would feed roughly every 2 hours. However he wasn't eating enough so he was only napping for 40 mins rather than having longer sleeps. I got advice from my MCHN to move to 4 hour feeds and that has worked for us. He eats more so he sleeps more. I've never heard of babies getting sick from having too much formula or from feeding too regularly. Mine just chucks back up what is excess! My view is that at that age they will eat what they need. Mitchell very clearly let us know when he was finished by shutting his mouth very tight.

I used a dummy to help move his feeds to 4 hours whichI did over a few days. After that however, I only use a dummy for sleep. If he is hungry then he eats. When it's hot he will often want feeds after 3 to 3.5 hours so I just go with it. Otherwise his rhythm is now 4 hours and that is when I get the 'I'm hungry so feed me RIGHT NOW mum' cry.

For my son, it doesn't make a difference how he is held as to wind. I generally try to sit him up but tucked in nice and close to me. He is probably on a 45 degree angle but it depends where I'm sitting. At night I find it easier to put a pillow across my lap and feed him on that, so he's pretty flat. I find burping him up over my shoulder and rubbing his back anti-clockwise works the best for me. If he is unsettled whilst feeding I find it hard to get a burp up. In this case, I use Infants Friend and that helps. You can get it at the chemist. He is a pretty good burper now so I use it pretty rarely.

ETA: I found my sling (Close Baby Carrier) a life saver. It really helped with Mitchell being quite unsettled in his first 12 weeks as he would go to sleep pretty much straight away. I only got it when he was 5 weeks and I wished I had it right from the start as it meant I could get things done.

I hope you get your head around it soon. Don't hesitate to pop back if you have any more questions.

Cheers,
Fiona

Thanks everyone for the help!
Thankfully there is nothing wrong with DS he is perfectly healthy little man.It was me with sudden complications that put me on meds that means I can not BF ...

I def think he has wind -- can you use wind drops in a baby less than a month old? Have any of you heard that you should be giving extra water (on top of the feed)?

I am using S26 Gold because that is what the hospital had and a number of my friends recc. However my friends were all FF much older babies. Is it worth changing or should I just stick to it for a while? I like that it has premade also.

finoaw -- I am a big sling user ... with my first it was a shoulder ring sling and Ergo (which I LOVE but is best for a little older babies). Funnily I also have a Close that my SIL gave to me to borrow. I am not quite sure about it and have tried looking up different ways to wear it. SOmetimes this one loves it sometimes it seems too hot and close (haha) for him ... Do you know where I can see instructions? I have tried the website and emailed the company...

Another question I have thought of as he is nearly 3 weeks old -- when do you know it is time to change teats? I use Avent bottles (again because they were given to us) and am using number 1 teats.

Thanks again ladies. x

my bub was on s26 gold in hosp I swapped to the normal s26 on release I found the gold tended to constipate ... him

I hold almost the same as when I tried b/f same simila hold same position

you can use infants friend from birth most others are over 1 month etc, IF is great can be added straight to the bottle, if you find he has a lot of wind things to check is he gulping the teat might be too fast, or is he sucking too hard thus teat is too slow

:comfort:

Thanks Rach75. I'll look into that too then. As silly as this sounds, I am not sure if he is gulping or sucking ... seems like gulping. He is often fuss at the teat, moving his head around. Also always there is dribbling out the side of his mouth as he is drink -- attachment probs?

I'm texting DH now to get the Infants Friend!

sound slike the teat may be too fast for him what brand bottles are you using ??? I found with my oldest he caould only use avent so started to use them with DS2 but he couldn't/wouldn't attach properly he is a legend on Tommee tippee closer to nature ones... so thats another thing the teat may be wrong shape forhim

Oh no I hope that's not the case Rach75! I now have heaps of the Avent bottles! Arrrghhh!

They are only one hole... I will see if the Infant's Friend does anything for us to relieve the fussing first -- let's hope so!

Not to give you more bad news, but I found teh same with the avent. It can take a few goes to see which teats are right. I had a few girlfriends lend me different bottles and we also found that hte tommee tippee closer to nature ones were best. He is still on the newborn teat (1 I think) at three months.

About the water... I think that was a thing in our mothers generation to give water. The nurse that ran my mothers group said something very sensible which was basically if they are thirsty enough to have water they are thirsty enough for breastmilk / formula. The water in the formula will keep your bubba perfectly hydrated. Just keep an eye on enough wet nappies and you'll be fine.

You can add Infants Friend straight to the bottle or give it straight out of the dropper.

oh, re: close baby carrier.

Go onto YouTube and do a search for "close baby carrier". There is a 7 minute ish instructional video that will tell you everything you need to know. I find on hot days I put a small towel on me first before I put on the sling and that keeps him (and me!) not as hot.

i have also had problems with the avent teats, although used them for my first baby, we now also use the tommee tippee closer to nature ones...

interesting about moving to 4 hourly feeds in order to increase the amount drunk, and increase naps... i have a cat napper, but he feeds pretty much 2-3 hourly during the day, drinks about 90ml to 120ml at most, but sometimes can be as little as 60ml on rare occassions.... at night however i do get a good run, and often get a good 5 or more hour block, on occassions 8! he is unsettled during the day and not sleeping much.... i wonder if i should try to stretch out his feeds during the day to see if he takes more, and then naps for longer? i sort of think i shouldn't mess with anything since the nights are so good. he is 2 months old by the way.... what does anyone think? i seem to get 2 half hour naps in during the day, then late afternoon can get maybe an hour or two nap in his vibrating chair, then he goes to sleep about 9pm.