Baby won't wake for feedings

kelnate22

My 12 day old won't wake up for feedings. We've do everything - stroke her back, feet, talk to her, undress her, use a cold washcloth, etc. She'll wake up for a little, latch on, then back to sleep she'll go as she nurses. We also supplement with the bottle because she wasn't getting enough from me in the beginning and my milk supply is low, so we're always trying to wake her up for that as well. She's passed her birth weight now and the pediatrician says she looks great but we're just concerned (and exhausted) with having to wake her. She is not jaundice and was born at 38w3d. Any advice/experience is appreciated!

mamakculb

How long is she going in between feelings?

BBEA2006

If her weight is up and no other issues, I'd let her sleep. Then my guess is she will start to eat more during her feedings, imo.

alisongem

My baby goes about 5 hours without waking up at night. When I would try to wake her she wouldn't even latch, she's good on weight and not dehydrated (according to her diapers) so I let her sleep.

carlyhammond

I would let her sleep. She might eat more that way.
If she goes longer than 5-7hrs id talk to the pediatrian
Enjoy sleep

babym418

I'd let her sleep. My LO is 4 weeks and eats every 2-3 hrs exactly. We did have a week or two that she was horrible to wake up we would let her sleep just didn't let her go past 5 hours. I'm sure she will start wanting to eat more often soon. Have you tried lactation cookies or smoothies to increase your aupply. Both are delicious. Do you pump regularly, that should help increase your supply especially if she's not eating often

jeanbug12

My DD did that. She started sleeping through the night her first day home. I would get her out of bed, take her in the other room, turn on all the lights, undress her, put a cold washcloth on her feet/back, and she would not wake to eat! After about 4 nights of that I gave up and started getting up in the middle of the night to pump instead. She gained weight slowly, but was perfectly healthy, and for her the sleeping through the night only lasted about 4 months, then she was keeping us up!

nickicb7

I agree with PP's if she has passed birth weight you should be able to feed on demand. She may not be hungry yet. If you let her sleep until she wakes she will probably feed better. Although I wouldn't let her pass 5hours max. 5 hours is considered sleeping through the night.

kelnate22

We still feed her every 2-3 hours since she lost some weight in the beginning when my milk wouldn't come in. I do pump every 2 hours as well to try and increase my supply. Thanks for the advice, ladies!

MamaHolland

I had the same question for our first appointment. My pediatrician said do not let them sleep longer than 5 hours at a time.

tfrangul

I was having the same problem and was very concerned as well. My daughter was up every 2 hrs on the dot to nurse. This little guy is just like his dad apparently and would rather just sleep. Lol but he is gaining a pound a week so far so I'm not worried at all anymore.

kelnate22

@tfrangul she gained 11 ounces in a week as of Friday so I know she's eating like your little guy, but still concerned with her always sleeping! How old is your son and is he still like this?

FunnyGal18

My babies were in the nice for a month bc they were orn at 32 wks gestation.  so, they were always sleeping.  We were taught to always change their Diapers right before feedings.  

amargaret24

My LO sleeps a lot and falls asleep anywhere between 4-10 minutes into a feed lately. It seriously varies though... Some days he feeds for 25-30 minutes & sleeps for 3 hours after every feed, some days he feeds every hour for 5 minutes and barely sleeps. But any night we usually get a 3-5 hour sleep from around 7 pm - 12 am. 

I just listen to his cues and feed when he's hungry and let him sleep when he wants. I've noticed when he has an extra long sleep he feeds more during the day. I appreciate his lengthy naps. It helps me!! I think he cluster feeds all day sometimes to make sure my supply stays up so we can all sleep! Who knows....

edit to add: I started changing his diapers between switching breasts to wake him up and encourage a longer feed. So I start on one boob, change his diaper, then go to the next. That usually gets another few minutes of feeding at least.