Awake how long for night feedings EBF mamas?

kailanick · August 2015

How long are you ladies up for nighttime feedings? I have been getting up with our 9wo, unswadding, feeding, burping, sometimes changing (if poop), reswaddling, then rocking. It takes about and hour! Once, sometimes twice a night.

Wondering if any one has had success getting LO back down for a good stretch of sleep without it taking so long? Do you keep LO swaddled and just feed then back to bed?

We EBF and do not sleep train. I can appreciate everyone doing things differently in these departments, but I'm looking for tips from other mamas who also EBF and don't sleep train since that advice will be most helpful for us. TIA!

CanadaMom17 · August 2015

I'm up about an hour too. She hates swaddling, so I just change her diaper, feed (she's slow at this), and head back to bed. She's very good at falling back asleep though (falls asleep during her feed). I also co-sleep though, and she's fine to go back to bed, as long as she's snuggled with Mommy. Sorry that wasn't much help! She's usually asleep around 9, then up at 3, then back to bed by 4. She dream feeds usually from 6:30 to 9ish off and on and then we're up for the day. I only get up at 3 for her to have a good feed because otherwise she'll snack from 3am on.

mrscimino914 · August 2015

My apartment is so warm so I feel the baby doesn't need to sleep with a blanket if she wears a pajama cause they're pretty warm. For the last two weeks I've been getting up 2-3 times a night usually 2 which has been wonderful but yea I check diaper, change her if needed, then feed her for about 15-20 minutes let her sleep on me for 15 minutes then try to place her in bassinet. Which sometimes she wakes up, I swear she has a sixth sense when I place her down. She hates sleeping in the bassinet so I was co sleeping with her for a little (please no judgement) but it was making me so nervous and I wasn't sleeping because I was worried for her. I read somewhere for moms to sleep with the baby's sheets so your scent is on it. And I did that and she's really been staying asleep in her bassinet. But yea it take about 30- 45 minutes usually to get her back to sleep with feeding, changing and cuddling.

kby721 · August 2015

It takes us about an hour for night feeds as well. DD eats less quantity than she does during the day but it takes longer because she is in and out of sleep the entire time. Tonight she ate around 10:30 then started fussing in her RnP around 3:30. I never let her get hungry to the point of getting upset at night because then it's all over. Tonight I unswaddled, fed her and she fell asleep during the feeding, changed her while she was still pretty out of it then put her back in her RnP but didn't reswaddle as she usually fights the swaddle and wakes up completely. She loves being swaddled but doesn't like getting swaddled so after the feeding I just tuck a blanket around her bottom half. As long as she doesnt wake up completely it's pretty easy for us to get her back down. I also don't turn lights on in the room. I leave our bathroom light on down the hall which gives me just enough light to see to change her diaper but it's not enough to bother her. Now she will probably wake up again around 6:30 / 7:00 for another feeding and then will likely go back to sleep until 9:30 / 10:00. As tired as I am when feeding her I just try to enjoy the quiet time with her. There's nowhere to be, nothing to do but feed her and cuddle her. Strangely enough we will probably miss these times in a few months when they sleep through the night!

kailanick · August 2015

@kbradley721 I think you are right about missing these times! I love our nighttime snuggles. But whew... Mama's tired!

I get the swaddle thing. It helps us to change and reswaddle between sides. She is wide awake after the change and swaddle (in the dark) but letting her nurse the other side puts her back to dreamland. She always wakes up around 5:30/6 though and is DONE with the swaddle. She will not go back to sleep unless she is on my chest or in my arms unswaddled. So weird! I think it's bc she can't poop in the swaddle as by that hour, she's gotta go.

mars8k · August 2015

1 hr here too, lo falls asleep mid feeding and then it takes her twice as long to feed, if she doesn't it takes an extra hr or maybe 2 to put her down

michellemybelle915 · August 2015

Now I'm up for about a half hour with DS. Unswaddle, change diaper (most of the times twice bc he loves to poop in the middle of the night lol), then reswaddle, and boobie time for about 15 minutes. He falls right back asleep. I consider myself very lucky!!

justkeeptrying · August 2015

One hour on the dot. I unswaddle, feed both sides, change diaper (he pretty well has a poopy diaper every time so I just do it at each feed), reswaddle and rock to sleep. Then I have to hold him in my arms for a while after he falls asleep. So I lay him back down in his bed at exactly the one hour mark. This kid has a crazy internal clock I swear. If he falls asleep more quickly than usual and I try to lay him down before one hour, he wakes up and then it takes me an hour and 15 minutes.

Last night DH was up during the midnight feed. He convinced me to put DS down after 45 minutes. As soon as his head touched his bed he was awake. So I gladly went to bed and made DS get him back to sleep

I don't mess with my hour long feeds at night. It's not worth it. Once he's older and I don't have to rock him to sleep anymore then I anticipate the feeds will be closer to 20-30 minutes.

kuschelbrianna · August 2015

I also ebf and sometimes it takes me over an hour! She's still waking up every 3-4hours. I change, reswaddle and feed. Sometimes she falls right asleep, other times I have to rock her to sleep before I put her down. If all else fails, I bring her to bed with me and she usually falls right asleep. I try not to do that very often.

gtellier · August 2015

We EFB and it usually takes 15-25 mins during night feeds, because it's business lol feeding is all we do! My daughter is now 11wo, but this has been our routine for a while. She has never soiled her diaper overnight, so I don't change her diaper. I leave her swaddled, and feed in the dark (light in bathroom across the room). I offer both breast, so she wakes up a little to feed more during the switch. Once she is done, and in a milk coma, I put her right back in the crib (no rocking), adjust the swaddle a little, and she falls right back asleep. Maybe the diaper change/reswaddle wakes your LO too much?

NPReed10 · August 2015

We are only up 30 min on average for a night feed as well. I only change her diaper if its soaked & she doesn't poop at night. We also dont swaddle so thats not a factor for us. She's a lot faster at feeding these days both day & night so she's up less at night to feed. I keep stimulation to a minimum. No talking, lights out, she falls asleep after eating so she goes right back in her bassinet.

montanchelsy · August 2015

kailanick said:
@kbradley721 I think you are right about missing these times! I love our nighttime snuggles. But whew... Mama's tired!

I get the swaddle thing. It helps us to change and reswaddle between sides. She is wide awake after the change and swaddle (in the dark) but letting her nurse the other side puts her back to dreamland. She always wakes up around 5:30/6 though and is DONE with the swaddle. She will not go back to sleep unless she is on my chest or in my arms unswaddled. So weird! I think it's bc she can't poop in the swaddle as by that hour, she's gotta go.

My LO is done with the swaddle at that time each morning too!

harpyogi · August 2015

We are up about 20-30 minutes at night time feeds, but DS is not a great sleeper. He'll sleep the first stretch 4-6hours, then usually doesn't need a diaper change so I just pop him on to feed in bed (we co-sleep with cosleeper bassinet and then in the bed after that first feed). He usually needs his diaper changed at the early morning feed (2/2:30) and is out again once he feeds and snuggles with momma. The co sleeping is the only way we get any sleep as we both can fall right back asleep once he's burped and out. By 6/6:30am he's ready for the day with a big feed (both sides).

lestes1121 · August 2015

10-15 minutes. My LO is a fast feeder and I have a fast flow. So she only takes 5-6 minutes to eat and she doesn't poop at night anymore. I try to dream feed her a lot and that has helped. Plus I keep it really dark in our room she is usually fed and burned and back down before she even knows what has happened. She is only eating twice a night too so I feel like we are on a pretty good roll! Good luck to you!

HeatherC21 · August 2015

Our night feed is around 11ish depending on when I go to bed. Ive been trying to put her to bed around her 8ish feed but it's hit or miss. My routine is I wake her and change diaper if needed and then feed then back to bed. 45 min if diapering 30 min without. Then she sleeps til around 7 and is up for the day. Oh and we don't swaddle because she hates it

ashtownyeah · August 2015

I'm an exclusive pumper, and while I have to pump in the middle of the night, my DS takes to the bottle and falls right back to sleep. He's usually only up for about 10 minutes max. Could you give bottles during the night so you're not up for so long?

rileysmama2007 · August 2015

I leave LO swaddled, don't change diaper (he hasn't pooped at night since he was 2-3 weeks old), nurse, burp, turn on sleep sheep white noise and star light and lay back in crib. I do this once a night and it takes about 30 minutes. He usually stirs around in his crib for a couple minutes and then falls asleep.

Bon2737 · August 2015

I must be doing something wrong.. My LO wakes up about 4 times a night.. Always hungry. I only breastfeed at night, he gets bottles and breast in the day. I think we need to do a bottle at middle of night...

clarever · August 2015

My son cluster feeds until midnight usually, then up again at 7. Only takes 15 minutes ( have a fast letdown) then back to sleep for 2 hours. He's in a bassinet by our bed. Will be moving him to a crib next week so unsure how smooth the transition will be. I usually don't need to change his diaper and he hates being swaddled.

ameyers19 · August 2015

gtellier said:
We EFB and it usually takes 15-25 mins during night feeds, because it's business lol feeding is all we do! My daughter is now 11wo, but this has been our routine for a while. She has never soiled her diaper overnight, so I don't change her diaper. I leave her swaddled, and feed in the dark (light in bathroom across the room). I offer both breast, so she wakes up a little to feed more during the switch. Once she is done, and in a milk coma, I put her right back in the crib (no rocking), adjust the swaddle a little, and she falls right back asleep. Maybe the diaper change/reswaddle wakes your LO too much?

We do the same. I have tried changing her during her feeding but she wakes up more and it takes longer to get her back to sleep and her diaper usually didn't even need changed. I keep her in her swaddle while I feed and just use my phones flash light for light. Once she is done I just place her back in her crib and she usually sleeps another 2-3 hours

gtellier · August 2015

@ameyers19 yep, mine is the same. Looks like our babes have the same sleep pattern. My baby does 6.5 hrs, then 3 hrs 'till wake up time. I have no complaints- babe is a good sleeper

marijaa333 · August 2015

Mine is usually up for 15-30 min and falls asleep as he feeds. I try not to change his diaper unless I know it's soiled. However, we have only had 4-5 nights of six hours in a stretch (normally it's 4-ish), so I'm guessing that's why the feeds are shorter. He's been sleeping longer of late and I really hope that habit is here to stay, but perhaps then he'll be up an hour for the feed.

jenniferwebb718 · August 2015

About15-20 minutes. Quick diaper change (I have a heavy wetter), re swaddle, he eats for 10-15 minutes, burp the lay him back down without rocking or anything. He is either asleep or almost falls asleep quickly on his own (no crying). I have always made night feedings as quick and boring as possible for both of us- less stimulation makes it easier to fall back asleep! I used to have to rock him back to sleep but now he knows that night feeds are all business! He usually goes down around 8, up around 4 to eat then back to bed till about 7 when he's up for the day.

erin79 · August 2015

I keep DD in the swaddle for MOTN feedings, because I think unswaddling and reswaddling just wakes her up too much. She probably eats for 15-20 minutes, and then I hold/rock her for another 10 before I put her back in the crib otherwise she wakes up right away. So maybe 30-35 minutes total?

marthaudani · August 2015

DD just sleeps in a onsite so it's pretty easy to change her if she needs it. She hates to have the blanket or swaddle on her.

She'll go to sleep at about 10 and wake up around 1 to feed. This usually consists of me opening my bra, rolling her to her side and sticking a boob in her mouth. She's usually sleeping in 10 minutes but continues to nurse for another 20 or so minutes until she unlatches and rolls to her back with the "milk wasted" look on her face. She usually stays asleep until about 5 or 6 after that.

SmrBrd2012 · August 2015

I swaddle LO for the first stretch which usually leaves him waking up about 5-6 hours after bed time if I'm lucky. He sleeps next to our bed so when he starts fussing and I know he won't go back to sleep on his own, I pick him up and do some side nursing so we are both laying down. He passes out really quickly with this method usually. I don't change his diaper because he never poops at night now. Sometimes I take him out of the swaddle since his arm usually gets out by then and then he looks tangled. But usually he's half asleep so will still go back to sleep quickly. Sometimes I leave him in bed with me and sometimes I put him back in the rock n play. The whole feeding/back to sleep thing takes about 10 minutes. There are definitely nights where it takes longer but this is generally how it goes.

TBsquared · August 2015

I'm up for as long as it takes her to eat, I leave her swaddled and I don't change her unless there's poop or her diaper is crazy full. I also don't burp her at night. Just feed and back to bed no problem. So say 20 mins?

ta11 · August 2015

If my lo gets up for a feeding it's usually 7-15 mins , sometimes diaper change, and right back to sleep in bassinet by the bed, no swaddling, just tuck blanket around and under. Been sleeping for 6-11 hours at night.

MamaC1983 · August 2015

My twins are EBF and are 14 weeks now (they were early) and it takes about 20 min for a feed as I tandem feed so it's same time as feeding one baby. I haven't don't night changes unless needed for about 4 weeks. They are up once before 6am and then again around 7/8 and up for the day between 9-10

Kae42 · August 2015

I really like hearing what other babies are doing, it is always fascinating to me how different they all are, while mostly being "normal" tiny humans

My LO gets up (usually) at 1030, 130, 5ish and 7-8ish when she is up for the day. Feeds at night are 5-10 mins, all business and then we are back to sleep, either co sleeping or in the bassinet. If her diaper isn't keeping her awake I wait to change it, usually the 5am feed is when it gets changed.

I honestly don't think it's anything I'm doing to get her to sleep like this though: it's just how she is. In the daytime she doesn't go down for long so she definitely has a trade off

kaynix21 · August 2015

45 minutes on a great night. 2 hours in a bad one.

We swaddle so it's change, swaddle, eat. He is a very slow eater anyways.

Bad night is I do all that, get him to bed, I hear him poop and he wakes up and I basically have to do it all again.

Knottie76365376 · August 2015

We EBF and do not sleep train. I am hardly awake at all for nighttime. LO goes to bed on his own anytime between 7-9pm. He wakes anytime between 2-5am. He sleeps beside my bed so when he wakes, I put him next to me and BF on my side, I have a pillow propped at my back to support me. I am awake long enough to make sure he's latched correctly. Next thing I know it's time to either nurse again (a couple hours later), or he's ready to be awake and play, or he's made a large deposit in his diaper!

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