My daughter is 5 days old. She is a great sleeper and a very contenet baby. My milk came in 2 days ago and at night she is eating every 3 - 4 hours, during the day 2-3 hours. I know the day is fine but I get worried at night. Sometimes I wake up and its close to the 4 hour mark so I unwrap her and change her diaper to wake her up so she will eat well. My first was very colicy in the begining and never slept this well, so while I am very happy I have a baby who will sleep well at night I get worried that I wont wake up to feed her every 3-4 hours. I know she will porbably wake up when hungry since we feed on demand (and when she does feed its 30 min+) but the worry is still there. At her 1st appt which was on sat she weighed 5lbs 13oz (born 6lb 2oz) so she didnt loose at lot of weight in the first days, the Dr actually said she lost very little. Anyways anyone else have a newborn that didnt eat a lot at night right from the start? and should i be concerned or just know that when she is hungry she will let me know? Thanks ladies you rock!
add- she is only BF no bottle at all :-)
Thanks ladies, I figured I was just being a worry wort :-) She is having plenty of wet and poopy diapers so I am not going to worry and I will set my alarm for the 4 hour mark at night so I dont have to worry about over sleeping at night just incase she does. I guess I just wasnt expecting her to be such an easy baby hehe. I am very greatful that she is and feel very blessed, thanks again ((HUGS))
I wouldn't worry about it. If she starts losing a bunch of weight, then you might need to wake her up more often. Otherwise, enjoy the much needed sleep!
I just had a baby girl 5 days ago as well. She also eats alot during the day and usually only wakes up once per night to eat. Im breastfeeding also. I had an appt today with a lactation nurse to see how it was going and she is doing great. Sounds like your daughter is just a normal newborn. As long as she is putting on weight she will be fine. My DD weighed 8lbs 8oz at birth, and today she weighed 8lbs 4 oz and she eats like a cow even though she lost a little weight but that is completely normal.
She should let you know if she's hungry but at that age some babies can be extra sleepy and need you to wake them. That young I wouldn't let it go more than 4 hrs at night, you really should wake them if that is the case in the early days. But if you are watching for her cues and feeding every 2-3 hours all day and just have that one longer stretch it sounds about right.
Just make sure you are seeing 6-8 wet diapers and 3 dirty ones and you can be confident. It can't come out if it isn't going in. If you have any concerns, you can call a La Leche League leader (check llli.org for your local group) or see if your hospital has a breastfeeding group. Many of them have drop in groups. Btw, it is a totally normal worry for new moms, just trust your mama instinct! :)
Sounds like she is eating fine to me. Newborns always lose a few pounds in their first week, the important thing is that they gain it back by about the end of their 2nd week. Just so long as she is soiling her diapers, happy, gaining weight, and eating plenty during the day, a longer stretch between feedings can go at night.
My baby is the same way. She'll be 4 weeks tomorrow. My first 2 ate every 2 hours around the clock for 8 months, snacking as it were. But this baby is totally different! She'll sleep for 4 or 5 hour stretches at night and then do 'power feeds' in between. She weighed 8lb 4oz at birth, was 7lb 15oz at the 7 day mark and 8lb 4oz at 10 days.
It's perfectly normal for babies to lose a bit, but she should be back to her birth weight by 2 weeks (which I'm sure she will). As long as your baby's wetting at *least* 6 diapers in 24 hours she's fine.
Assuming she was full-term (my 2nd was 37 weeks) the doc told us that to go 4 hours at night is ok. No longer than that though. So set your alarm for the 4 hour mark and get some rest in between. If she gets hungry before that you know she'll make sure you know! Don't let people tell you it's ok to let her sleep all night. She's a newborn and really shouldn't go more than 4 hours at this stage. Once she hits around 6 weeks you can let her sleep longer if she wants to at night.
Both of mine were exclusively breastfed for 16 and 20 months respectively.
yup .. my son slept well at night.. I think it was 6 hours the first night home.. he was a good sleeper.. dont worry they wake up when they are hungry.
my daughter was up for hours at night. she screamed and cried... enjoy.. you got an easy baby.
Call a lactation consultant and ask for a baby weight check. They will weigh the baby before and after a nursing session to see if they gain weight. Congrats on the new bundle of joy!
Hi K.:
I often joke about the worries we have as breastfeeding mothers when we cannot see how much milk comes out of this invisible container. If we don't see it, how do we know our baby is getting enough? And when they sleep longer than the books say they should or they have lost some weight, we tend to get nervous and second guess ourselves.
While not an exact science, here are some tips to know that breastfeeding is going well:
1. Your baby wakes up for about 7-10 feedings in a 24 hour period.
2. When she wakes up on her own, she is very interested in feeding, latches on with ease for her and comfort for you.
3. My favorite mantra is "watch the baby, not the clock." Babies have a beautiful rhythmic quality to their sucking behavior when they are removing the milk from the breast. Their lovely jaws are quite active and they just suck, swallow , breathe in this lovely fashion... and continue to do this on the first breast, until they have taken enough from that side that they either lose interest and want more from the other side, or they are full from one side.
4. If you are not sure, you can always try burping, a diaper change and offer the other side. If she takes it fine, if she appears content and no hunger cues, let her be.
5. An exclusively breastfed baby, should lose no more than 5-7 ounces in their first 4 days of life, and gradually gain their weight back so they are at birthweight at 2 weeks old. From that point on, she should be gaining about 1 oz per day.
6. A well fed exclusively breastfed baby should have at least 4 heavy wet pee diapers that are clear to slightly yellowish in color. Also should have at least 3-4 quarter size or larger yellow, mustardy stools per day.
7. Breastfeeding should not hurt.. your breasts or your nipples.
8. By day 3-4 you should feel your breasts filling up with milk and when you baby is done breastfeeding, they should feel significantly softer.
So, to wrap up: If your baby is cueing to eat enough times per day, has the proper amount of output and is gaining appropriately, and breastfeeding is not causing you any pain, you are both probably doing an excellent job.
If all is going well, there is no need to wake up a sleeping baby, even if it has been 4 hours. When well fed babies get to wake up on their own, they will have excellent feedings, be happy and content to follow their own sleep, eat cycle and do a great job of telling your body how much milk to make.
Of course, if breastfeeding is hurting, your baby has lost more weight than normal, lacks the amount and color of pee and stools, is extremely fussy or sleepy, spends long periods of time at breast and still does not seem content, then I would suggest that breastfeeding is not going as well as it should and you should seek the help of an expert in lactation.
Hope all of the above helps you evaluate how things are going. If all is well, relax and enjoy.
L. J. I., IBCLC
All About Breastfeeding
http://aabreastfeeding.com
She will let you know! No need to wake her up to nurse, tho if she nodds off WHILE nursing, you may want to stimulate her to make sure she's finished. Keep up the great work Momma!
So far the responses you have gotten are correct. I am a postpartum doula/Baby nurse. I help new mothers as soon as they arrive home from hospital. Be grateful she is a sleeper. It may not last. So rest when she does. Don't let her go past 4hrs of sleep. Not this early in her life.For me, I generally do not let a newborn sleep past 3hrs until they are at least 3weeks old. Just so I know she is getting enough ounces in to gain weight. We want for baby to have gained at least the weight she had lost in the hospital & gained some extra as well. As long as she is having 6-8 wet diapers in a 12hr period, she is fine. Your doctor sees she is gainiing steadly, you are good. If she is too sleepy during feeds- you are correct to unwrap her or even undress her to her diaper so the air helps her to keep awake. Keeping her wrapped up during a feed, is encouragement to go back to sleep before the feed is over.Play w/her feet, rub her head. Feeding is her job. Having a 15-25min feed per each breast is a good feed. She is small, so I would not be surprized at this time she only does 1 breast. The heavier she gets, the longer she'll work at her feedings. Always offer the breast first before a bottle. The breast is harder work. Adoulaonthego.com
My two kids were very dfferent about eating. My first always was hungry every 2-3 hours like clock-work. My second was a great sleeper and would sometimes go 6 hours before wanting to eat. I was concerned also. I would try to wake her up by changing her, I tried a wet wash cloth, etc. to no avail. But, they eat when they are hungry and she made wet/poopy diapers. My daughter was that way in the hospital and even the nurse said to let her sleep rather than to wake her to feed her. She's very healthy and active and they always go through these funny little phases. Enjoy the sleep while you can!
Look for wet diapers. If you have wet diapers after every feeding your fine. I was told 7 wet/ dirty diapers a day means they are getting enough. Enjoy your 4 hour blocks... I'm only getting 3 hours.
