How to decide when very sleepy baby has eaten enough?

704bride · April 2012

I'm not sure how common this is, but DS will literally eat for an hour + at night. His typical feedings (breastfed) are anywhere between 5-20 minutes long, depending on which feeding it is. I've been doing sleep training and actually don't want him to fall asleep eating, but it happens when his last nap was too early or I can't get him down for a last one. Anyway, he often closes his eyes right away, but will actively eat. Eventually, I notice that he's sucking periodically and not even really swallowing much. I feel like I'm being mean cutting him off, but how much more is he really going to get at that point anyway? I think I've hesitated stopping him because I hate to have to pick him up again once he's in bed, but there have been several occasions recently where he ended up being hungry still after I put him to bed. I'm assuming it's because he's too sleepy while eating. His bedtime routine has been taking a minimum of an hour lately and the whole process took me THREE hours the other night, with on-and-off eating for that whole time. Do you find that you need to cut your baby off during sleepy feedings?

EveryNameIWantIsTaken · April 2012

DD is bottle fed, but even if she's practically asleep, if she isn't done with her bottle she'll move her mouth a whole bunch when I take it out. Sometimes she likes her pacifier too so it's really trial and error. Does your baby use a pacifier at all? That could help the need to suck because if its just a few sucks then pausing for a while, they aren't really eating anyway.

yssej7 · April 2012

my DD is bottle fed to sleep and she does this too. When her sucking starts to slow down to a couple sucks and then a long pause I slowly pry the nipple out. Sometimes she will root back and really "EAT" and sometimes she'll root back and only suck a little bit and then I can pry it out again. Sometimes shell eat a 6oz bottle and I'll have to text my DH to make another 3oz or so because she still wants more. Its give and take, trial and error.. Personally I want DD to eats as much as she wants before bed so shes nice and full and hopefully sleeps longer

Lara0802 · April 2012

I used to nurse DD to sleep, which was awesome... but now I pump and bottle feed. I stopped nursing to sleep because my supply was dipping at night and she'd get very fussy at the breast. Since we switched to bottle, it takes a little less time, and most of the time DD doesn't fall asleep on the bottle. But, occassionally, when she's just sucking it and falling asleep, I'll take it away. If she wakes up, I'll give it back, but if she continues to just suck and not eat, I'll swap her with bottle with a paci. Same thing if she's finished with the bottle, I give her a paci, and then she puts herself to sleep.

And, I agree with PP, I let DD eat a lot more at night. I used to actually nurse her twice to make sure she was full, and once I stopped nursing, I realized she was getting anywhere from 7-8 oz at night, but it was spread out. Now, she gets 8 oz all at once and then sleeps.

l_elizabeth · April 2012

My LO is exactly the same-- I EBF and his last feeding of the night he always is semi sleeping/semi eating. I never know when to cut him off, because if I don't he'll just eat all night (seriously, he'd probably use me as a pacifier the entire night). One night I fell asleep in the chair feeding him, and my DH came and got me after an hour and a half and he was still sleeping/eating. I usually give him 30 minutes at his last feeding, max. If he stops on his own, I lay him down. If he's really out, and not really swallowing much, I lay him down. If I can't really tell and I think he might still be really eating, I give him 30 mins. He'll often root around for me again, but I lay him down anyway (he'd eat anytime, day or night if I let him). He's like your DS, and normally eats 5-20 minute sessions during the day.

704bride · May 2012

l_elizabeth:
My LO is exactly the same-- I EBF and his last feeding of the night he always is semi sleeping/semi eating. I never know when to cut him off, because if I don't he'll just eat all night (seriously, he'd probably use me as a pacifier the entire night). One night I fell asleep in the chair feeding him, and my DH came and got me after an hour and a half and he was still sleeping/eating. I usually give him 30 minutes at his last feeding, max. If he stops on his own, I lay him down. If he's really out, and not really swallowing much, I lay him down. If I can't really tell and I think he might still be really eating, I give him 30 mins. He'll often root around for me again, but I lay him down anyway (he'd eat anytime, day or night if I let him). He's like your DS, and normally eats 5-20 minute sessions during the day.

This totally made me laugh because it so reminds me of my DS. The last few nights have been better because he was more awake to eat and ate for a much more normal amount of time. We still have the issue of him deciding he'll have some more after a few minutes in bed, but I think he might just be looking for comfort.

How to decide when very sleepy baby has eaten enough?

Re: How to decide when very sleepy baby has eaten enough?

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