Feeding on demand... Every hour!?!?

bornmommy · June 2012

Connor is eating on demand and has started to develop a habit of eating every hour! He gets both breast and takes at least 10 mins each and I know he is eating the whole time because he is actively sucking and swallowing...How do I start trying to spread him out again to 2-3 hours?

88eve88 · June 2012

It sounds like a growth spurt. Don't deny him when he's hungry ... his nursing every hour will help increase your milk supply to meet his growing needs. Just let him nurse for however long he wants to. It usually tapers off in a couple of days.

kel716 · June 2012

Give it time. It definitely sounds like a growth spurt, and it will gradually happen. DD still clusters each day, but nowhere near as much as she did. And remember, because she is nursing all the time, this is helping you establish the right supply to meet his needs. It's a lot of work right now, but it will get better.

tarahnpaul · June 2012

Just go with it. Don't ever try to make a BF baby wait for food, they are trying to up your supply. Get some movies and park yourself on the couch with him and enjoy some cuddle time until the growing spurt is over.

emilyknelson · June 2012

It looks like your baby is really young. I wouldn't try to space it out at all. It takes the first month to regulate your milk supply to what your baby needs and even then he'll still need to increase it during growth spurts. LO not only gets all his nourishment during nursing, but he gets lots of good hormones and feels secure. In time it will change. DS still nurses every 1 1/2-3 hours during the day and he is 13 weeks. They eat when they are hungry. GL

emilyknelson · June 2012

oh also just for reference, DS was eating for 1 hr at a time every 2 hours(counted from beginning of feeding) at 2 weeks old. Every baby is different. At least he is efficient!

jlsimon56 · June 2012

emilyknelson:
oh also just for reference, DS was eating for 1 hr at a time every 2 hours(counted from beginning of feeding) at 2 weeks old. Every baby is different. At least he is efficient!

I know right? I would have loved a baby that ate for 20 minutes every hour. My LO ate for 1-1.5 hours every 1.5-2 hours. Insanity. Looking back....it was pretty nice. :-) To the OP, enjoy this time with your LO.

cecilyandgautam · June 2012

At 1 week, that's completely normal. I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. It'll spread out again on its own in time. The first month of breastfeeding is very demanding and unbelievably time consuming, but it passes quickly and then becomes easy, maybe even enjoyable

Set yourself up with Hulu+ or Netflix and catch up on your old favorites.

stemms8810 · June 2012

My LO does this periodically and I especially remember it when he was around 2 weeks old. In the late afternoons/evenings he would eat constantly. It was a chore for me to be able to eat dinner. I agree with everyone else, it sounds like a growth spurt and he is helping your supply to meet his needs. It will pass!

Jenny952 · June 2012

Just let him continue eating. He's probably going through a growth spurt, which will happen every couple weeks for the first 3-4 months. It is tough to have a baby attached to you all the time, but yes, eating hourly is very normal. As he gets older, he'll only need to eat every 2-3 hours, but he may still eat hourly in the evenings. My DD was eating every 2 hours but nursing almost constantly in the evenings... and then the trade-off is that she was sttn by 7 weeks.