Every two hours at night at a month old someone help...

Mrs.HMommy

Anyone else's 1 month old eating every 2 hours at night?? I'm trying my damndest to EBF but I am EXHAUSTED. I have a 5 year old thats home a half day and I am at my wits end with being tired. I'm so moody I'm snapping at DH and DS. I'm just tired. Is every 2 hours normal? LO  has some long stretches during the day, but she's pretty erratic. Sometimes its 3 hours, sometimes 4, sometimes 2.....

 I'm just wondering if she's getting enough when I BF her. If she's up every 2 hours then she's obviously hungry. I think I'm going to start keeping a log of her awake time, sleepy time and when she eats and see if I can try to nail it down. When DH bottle feeds she eats A LOT...last night she ate 4.5 ounces!  I'm letting her latch as long as she wants unless she starts getting really sleepy then I'll switch her to the other side to wake her up but she's still on for a good 12-15 mins. 

Any ideas? Am I expecting too much? DS was every 4 hours at this point at night, but I know every baby is different. 

sbuxsweetie

Has she always done this, or is it a recent development? She could be having a growth spurt. They typically happen around 3 weeks and 6 weeks, but my LO started sleeping less at night and eating more around 1 month as well.

mariannerules

I find the log really helpful.  We kept one for DD, and started one day one for DS too.  DS has good 4 hour stretches overnight, and DD was up to 5 hours overnight by 5 weeks old.  I FF so I'd be no help with the BF stuff, but does she have longer spans between feedings after she has a bottle? could be its easier for her.

Mrs.HMommy

This has been pretty much the status quo. We've had a couple nights when she's gone pretty long stretches - 4 hours or so. But those nights are few and far between. She does better when we swaddle her for sure. And tends to sleep longer in the swing then in the crib (swing not moving), but overnight I won't allow her to be in the swing. Not at this point, first couple weeks I think whatever it takes, but now I'm trying to keep her in her crib all night. Still though, swaddled or not, 2 maaaaybe 2.5 hours is all I get. 

Mrs.HMommy

marianne - yes it seems she does! Thats what makes me think she's not getting enough when I have her on the boob. I FF DS - and I do think it fills them up a bit more that breast milk, thats what I've been assuming the difference is. I wouldn't consider going to formula just because LO isn't sleeping well - but I would consider supplementing if she's not getting enough when I feed her. I pump but I'm not super committed  to it so I don't keep a huge stockpile like a lot of others. 

sarag0116

Have you tried making her eat more often during the day (like no more than 3 hours)?  I know it's controversial to try to establish a routine and all, but it may be worth a try.  That's what we do and we've had several nights where she has gone from 7:30 pm to 2:30 am for feedings.  I'm new at this, so it could be just a lucky coincidence, who knows!

Mrs.HMommy

Sara - I know saying routine is a bad word buuuuuuuut....I can't help but want a lil bit of normalcy established. Feeding her more during the day may be an idea. She's been awake more and more during the day after feedings which is great! I'm def going to start keeping a log.

BabyNSR

What you described sounds just like what I was going through a week or so ago. I started to supplement with formula, and then started to pump. Arlington always gets my breast milk from a bottle now so I know how much he is getting. He is like a different baby! He is so much happier and sleeps so much better. I can't even tell you. Plus, when breastfreeding, my nipples were so sore, he was on them all the time, and he would latch, unlatch and cry. It was horrible. Now that I'm pumping, we've got a pretty good routine going. I know he was not getting enough when just breastfeeding. Maybe try supplementing with formula or pumping. Worked wonders for me! GL!

Mrs.HMommy

BabyNSR:

What you described sounds just like what I was going through a week or so ago. I started to supplement with formula, and then started to pump. Arlington always gets my breast milk from a bottle now so I know how much he is getting. He is like a different baby! He is so much happier and sleeps so much better. I can't even tell you. Plus, when breastfreeding, my nipples were so sore, he was on them all the time, and he would latch, unlatch and cry. It was horrible. Now that I'm pumping, we've got a pretty good routine going. I know he was not getting enough when just breastfeeding. Maybe try supplementing with formula or pumping. Worked wonders for me! GL!

This is exactly what I've been considering. My fear with exclusively bottle feeding/ pumping is that I'd lose my supply slowly. This is what happened with DS. I would pump when I was home and store it, and bottle feed, but then I'd be out and about and not be pumping and slowly my supply went down and we ended up supplementing, then eventually FF full time. By 8 weeks old DS was FF. BUT I think we may try it - like you said that way you know how much LO is getting.  

emg213

I am only bottle feeding and she is still eating about every 2 to 3 hours.  There are a few occurrences of her stretching it out until the 4th hour, but that is very few and far between.

danayandcory

DD was a month old on Saturday and she is still up every 2 hours round the clock eating. We've tried the pumping and feeding with a bottle, she will eat 4 oz. but she will still only go only 3 hours. I've toyed with the idea of doing a bottle of half BM and half FF before bed to see if she goes longer, but she hates the bottle so I doubt it will work. For both our sakes I hope they start sleeping longer!! If you find something that works, please share!

TiffanyTheMom

My LO used to eat every 2 hours at night when I breastfed. She'd only nurse for a little while, 10 min, then sack out... I think she was nursing because she had gas pains and was nursing to make her belly feel better. When I started giving her a bottle of EBM she started lasting more like 3-4 hours. (Compared to 2 hrs, 3hrs feels like BLISS!) Maybe you should try a bottle at night. It's faster and will give your boobs a break. (Just pump after you bottle feed to keep your supply up.)

BTW, nursing more often doens't mean you're not giving her what she needs from your boobs. Is there a possibility you might need to curb your diet? I've been slowly testing out certain foods and finding what I can 'have'. It sucks to curb your diet, but when you see the difference it makes in your baby it's worth it. Plus, when she weans you can have chili hotdogs, In'N'Out, and as much Dr. Pepper as you can take.

AnneEB

My DS usually only goes about 2 hours at night as well.  One time he went four hours and I almost threw a party!  I don't think it's super uncommon for one month olds to still be up like this.  

I think a lot of what DS's problem is my diet and we found out last week he's allergic to dairy and possible soy.  So I cut both out of my diet and am really hoping that helps him sleep longer at night, but it takes a couple weeks for the milk to get out of my system.  

I also think that newborn babies use nursing for comfort, not just food.  So if my new baby wants some nursing comfort in the middle of the night, I don't worry too much.  When he's older, I'll care more, but for now I just want to make sure he feels secure and comforted. 

JessiRaye

I am at a loss myself because my little guy seems to have turned his nights and days around. He is sleeping great, but he likes his long stretches during the day and then wants to eat every 2 to 3 at night. I want some sleep:(

Jennabug25

My LO was turned 3 weeks yesterday and he is up every 1.5-2 hours! I totally understand how you feel! I am starting to go nuts and cry just because I am so tired! I try to nap during the day but between pumping, feeding myself and a shower(which he gets a bath more then I do), by the time I lay down he is awake! I am at my wits end! I have almost given up on pumping just so I can sleep!

He gets BM and FF I was on an antibiotics after my labor and had an infection which majorly upset babies tummy. He got FF during that 10 day stretch and I had to pump and dump. He sleeps just as long whether it's BM or FF. every 2 hours around the clock...he slept 3 hours one night and that was amazing I woke up in shock! I have been keeping a log and I thought he was sleeping every 2 hours and yesterday he slept 1.5hours around the clock.

I pray our LO start sleeping better!