Length of time nursing?

Stasi · September 2012

I'm not sure if this has been covered, but I'm asking again. About how long in total, whether you nurse with both breasts or just one, does a nursing session take you?

We are going on 45 minutes sometimes and considering I'm getting her up every 2 to 3 hours to nurse it seems very long. How long did you wait, if at all, to go 4 plus hours between feelings?

damabo80 · September 2012

To go 4 hours between feedings? DD is 16m and still doesn't go that long between meals or snacks except at night.

So to answer that question: awhile.

However she did get a lot more efficient at nursing. She could complete the job in under 10 mins around 3m adjusted age.

damabo80 · September 2012

Right now, sometimes he'll eat of one breast, sometimes both. Just depends. In the evening hell feed off one for 20 mins, sleep for 10 min, then want more, so I switch him to the other boob for 20 mins. Then the cycle repeats. Yay cluster feeding.

kvickery · September 2012

We go 20 minutes on one side. She usually pulls off after that. And we go anywhere from 2 to 5 hours in between. She has two 4 to 5 hour stretches, one during the day and one at night. I don't wake her up to nurse and feed on demand. My DS1 was a long nurser. He would nurse for 45 to 60 minutes every 2 hours. It was exhausting!

Stasi · September 2012

kvickery:
We go 20 minutes on one side. She usually pulls off after that. And we go anywhere from 2 to 5 hours in between. She has two 4 to 5 hour stretches, one during the day and one at night. I don't wake her up to nurse and feed on demand. My DS1 was a long nurser. He would nurse for 45 to 60 minutes every 2 hours. It was exhausting!

That's close to where we now, but I'm considering going a longer stretch at night because she is good sleeper. Not getting more than 1.5 hours sleep at a time is starting to wear me down to where I don't even want to do this anymore.

kelbel527 · September 2012

Ds2 is a long nurser we are averaging 45 mins a feeding , but DS1 was more like an hour or more.

we are going 3 hours or slightly more at night and 23 hours during day. We are only a few days in, but yes, its exhausting.

Depending on your child, 4 hr stretches at night might come earlier, might come later. DS1 started 45 hour stretches around a month. but we learned we got lucky with him and he was a really good sleeper.

mobile bumping, so I apologize for any bad formatting

drubie · September 2012

I guess I'm lucky in that he'll eat for around 10 minutes, and only takes 1 side per feeding. I did a before and after weight with him this week, and he takes about 3.5 oz in that time. He doesn't go any longer than 3 hours in between, usually more like 2.

bdbelladonna · September 2012

Usually about 15-30 mins. It depends on her mood and how hungry she is. Sometime she only eats from one sometimes both. I honestly don't keep track of how long between feedings, I find it makes me obsessive if she goes longer then normal.

ilovelife · September 2012

Dd eats every 3 hrs for about 15 minutes. She only eats from one breast at a feeding.

Sparty On · September 2012

I'm jealous of those of you who go 4 hours between feedings at night. I feed DS on demand about every 2-4 hours, but lately I'm lucky if he goes 2. Growth spurts make me want to go play in traffic.

ETA: he eats for 10-30 minutes per feeding. I wish he'd go longer and hopefully would go longer between feedings.

dmfan897 · September 2012

ilovelife:
Dd eats every 3 hrs for about 15 minutes. She only eats from one breast at a feeding.

This for us..he sleeps 3-4hrs at night

TAGSL710 · September 2012

1020 minutes, one side, every 1.5 to 3.5 hours and gaining like a champ.

hmp1 · September 2012

damabo80:
Right now, sometimes he'll eat of one breast, sometimes both. Just depends. In the evening hell feed off one for 20 mins, sleep for 10 min, then want more, so I switch him to the other boob for 20 mins. Then the cycle repeats. Yay cluster feeding.

This is pretty much us too. I will air dry, wrap up, and then he wakes wanting to eat again.

amandad715 · September 2012

Nursing sessions can last between 30-45 min on average, up to 1hr for more of the cluster feeding/comfort nursing. DS eats every 2.5-3 hrs. sometimes 3.5 if he's in a deep sleep nap.

It's definitely not easy BUT it does get better and shorter. Just remember how tiny their tummies are right now. I did it for DS1 for a year and it's completely rewarding to me that I toughed it out. There were some rough patches then, especially the sleep deprivation, and even now DH will be holding DS right after I fed him and I'll have gotten a teeny break and BAM rooting, chewing on hands,etc.

good luck!

watercolor5 · September 2012

Once she's back to her birth weight, you can let her sleep until she wakes herself at night... my pediatrician said it's fine to let DD go up to 6 hours at night if she doesn't wake herself to eat. The every 2-3 hour thing is a rule of thumb for daytime, but a couple of longer chunks of sleep are fine for LO and will help you get the rest you need.

Bighair12 · September 2012

DD is 15 min on each breast every 34 hours usually. Some days it is 2 hours and at night has gone 5 hours.

Flamingemu · September 2012

TAGSL710:
1020 minutes, one side, every 1.5 to 3.5 hours and gaining like a champ.

This is our routine too, except the gaining like a champ. It took a few weeks to get a steady gain. My LC & pedi agree that not much more than 15 mins a side is needed since the breast can empty in that amount of time.

mrsjenni · September 2012

An average nursing session takes 30 minutes. Sometimes he takes longer, up to 45 to 50 mins, if he is sleepy. And that's 20 to 25 mins on each side. But that's not the norm.

And I won't let him go past 3 hours during the day, nor do I think they should go past that length, unless it's at night. I feed on demand, but I don't want him sleeping 4 to 5 hour stretches during the day. He usually wakes up every 3 hours anyway! And sometimes it's every 1.5 to 2 hours.

bosha711 · September 2012

DS would nurse 45-60 min total both sides, every3 hrs.

DD so far is nursing about 20 min, one side, then takes a break, then wants to eat again like 10 min later. That's about every 2.5-3.5 hrs. She is more efficient than DS was, but it ends up being almost the same amount of time spent awake for a feeding b/c of her taking a break.

bosha711 · September 2012

damabo80:
Right now, sometimes he'll eat of one breast, sometimes both. Just depends. In the evening hell feed off one for 20 mins, sleep for 10 min, then want more, so I switch him to the other boob for 20 mins. Then the cycle repeats. Yay cluster feeding.

lol, yeah, this is pretty much us right now

jlh2716 · September 2012

It varies. Most of the time, she takes about 10-15 minutes, mostly closer to 10 these days. However, she still throws in a 30-45 minute long session on occasion. As for 4 hrs between sessions during the day...yeah, that's not going to happen for awhile. She's consistently giving me about 2-2.5 hr stretches, though she does give me one 4-5 hr stretch at night.

cmumama · September 2012

I think for us, we're at about 30 min on average. He usually does about 10-12 min on each boob every time he eats. But sometimes it takes us awhile to get a good latch. I wake him every 3 hours during the day to feed him and let him sleep as long as he wants at night, Right now, he goes about 4 hours at night, occasionally he'll go 5.

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