Community› The Bump Message Boards› Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding
New Discussion

length of bfing session

meganet22meganet22
in Breastfeeding

My dd is nursing anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour at times.  I've heard different things about the length of time necessary. Some people say 10 minutes on each side is fine, others say let them go as long as they want. The problem is that 45 minutes to an hour is way too draining sometimes and I'm not really sure she needs to be on that long and think she is doing a lot of pacifying. If I stop nursing her after 45 mintues she will sometimes cry and want to be back on but her cry is very whiny and sounds more like she does when she needs to be picked up not like when she wakes up in the morning or after a nap and is really hungry.  If I distract by walking her around or playing with her she will calm down and will be content for the next two hours. 

I'm always afraid that I am not feeding her enough so I was just wondering what others thoughts were on whether or not I always need to be nursing her for so long or if it's ok to occassionally cut her off. There are times where I am perfectly fine with letting her pacify and stay on that long but other times I have things I need to do, like eat and take caer of myself, that make these sessions difficult. 

Report Reply to Post

Re: length of bfing session

  • MrsAHoffmanMrsAHoffman

    Does she take a pacifier? Babies need/want to suck even when they're not hungry.

    I can usually tell when let down occurs and when I'm not full anymore. If you can tell when she's done eating, take her off and let her suck on the paci.

    GL!?

    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • Pacheco825Pacheco825 member

    Is she gaining enought weight? If she is still eating I would let her eat as long as she wants. You know your baby best so if you feel like she is just pacifing her self try to swap it out for a paci.

                     7/08, 1/12, 2/14, Due with baby #4  2/12/16 
    Lilypie Pregnancy tickers
    Report Reply
  • bv27bv27
    I have the same issue. I was told that if I can hear the baby swallowing, she's eating and to let her continue. Some babies do take longer to nurse because they like to take their time.
    Report Reply
  • bessqbessq
    The lengths of our BFing sessions vary by time of day.  DS tends to have shorter sessions in the mornings - about 20-30 minutes per time. However, in the evenings, he will nurse for a good hour total, and sometimes still act hungry even after an hour of nursing.  In these cases, I sometimes supplement with formula.
    Report Reply
  • rosebud1256rosebud1256
    It depends on your baby, depends on your breasts.  For example, when my little one was real young, I wasn't nursing long enough on either side, and as a result she wasn't getting enough hindmilk, which is the fatty milk, so she was real gassy.  She was just getting the watery stuff.  As soon as I started nursing 2x in a row on either side her gassiness (and screaming) went away.  That's not the case for everyone (I had an overabundant milk supply,) but my point is that you have to do what's best for both of you.  To me it sounds like sometimes your dd is going to need/want to nurse a little longer, and sometimes you're going to need to take care of you!
    Report Reply
  • gilmoremamagilmoremama member
    Listen for swallowing.  My daughter has a habit of falling asleep during our night feeds but will keep sucking.  I listen to see if she is swallowing.  If not, then I break the latch and see if she looks for the nipple.  If not, then she's done.
    I give up trying to add my kids' photos. Just know that they are adorable.
    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"