Sleeping Baby and Breastfeeding

RELAX!! :) Sounds like all is going well and you should take advantage of the sleep you are getting now because as we all know, things can change overnight for whatever reason! You are doing great!

If baby is sleeping he is not hungry. Mine both slept through the night at 6 weeks and never starved. Breastfed babies can use everything in mom's milk making diapers fewer. My doc said the longest she saw a baby go was 15 days of no poopy diapers and he was totally fine. So sleep the night through and change less diapers and smile!

It sounds like he's getting enough food. Is his weight good at the doctor's? It seems like you're doing everything on schedule. You might phase in another type of solid food after he's had his rice cereal for a little while.

I wouldn't wake up your child during the night to feed him. You will make as much milk as he needs. I started not getting much from the pump when my son didn't feed every couple of hours, too. But I wouldn't worry about not making enough milk. It should work out as a supply and demand situation....your body will make the right amount based on what he drinks.

Hope that helps!! Sounds like you're doing a great job!

Sounds like you are doing great!!! :) There's no reason to pump unless you are needing it for going back to work or something. Your body produces milk based on demand. You won't run out unless your son decides to wean himself! Your milk supply will go up and down as needed naturally. You might talk to his doctor about starting to introduce solids... 6 months is about time to start. :) Pumping won't get as much milk in general as suprisingly enough, your body knows the difference between a baby and a pump. So don't worry about that. I'm still breastfeeding my 13 month old and love it. Sometimes she nurses more, sometimes less but it's all good! No reason to give him juice, it's just sugar water with little nutritional value.

The same thing happened with my son at about 6 months. At that age they don't need to eat during the night. It sounds like he's getting enough to eat during the day to keep him good and satisfied during the night. It sounds like you're doing everything right. Don't worry about your milk supply...you'll make what he needs. I continued to produce milk for about a year after my son stopped nursing (I was able to squeeze drops of milk out anyway), so I wouldn't worry about not having enough milk.

One word of caution about the rice cereal...it *can* cause constipation. It did for my son and some other babies I know. Just incase it happens, you'll know the probable cause.

Hi S.,
While evey mom and baby are different here is my advice. It sounds like your son is getting enough food if he is sleeping at night and by all means DON'T Wake Him Up.
It takes your breasts awhile to get used to pumping and even then you won't get the same amount that your son can. You should continue to pump before going to bed even if you are not getting much. You can do this at nap time too. This will tell your body that you need more and you will notice this in a few weeks when you wake up more full than normal. Also, a great way to stock up on a bottle supply is to feed your son one breast in the morning and pump the other side.
Your son is the right age to begin baby veggies and cereal more than just at dinner time. Let me know if you have anymore questions!

Let him sleep - and you, too! Babies bodies are amazing - they regulate themselves incredibly well. Chances are that his day time intake has increased and he's fine. Your body also self regulates itself... since there's no need for milk at night, you body has adjusted.

Enjoy your sleep filled nights!

M.

If you are worried about keeping up enough supply for your child, you can "dry pump" for about 15 minutes after you have run dry after using the breast pump. This dry pumping simulates increased demand for milk to your body, and in most cases you can make more this way vs. waking up at night to feed. I agree with everyone else...let the baby (and you) sleep...but there are always ways to increase your milk production if you feel your child isn't getting enough during the day. Watch his weight and make sure he continues to gain, have many wet diapers, etc.

Hi S.,

I had a similar problem, only my little one started sleeping through the night much earlier at one month we were up to 8 hours and by 3 months 10-12 hours a night. A mixed blessing really. She never napped during the day but slept so good at night. Anyway, the lactation specialist told me I had to get up and pump once a night because she was sleeping so much my body couldn't regulate how much milk to produce. She would eat 6 or more times while awake but then nothing for 12 hours so my supply was going down and she wasn’t getting enough each time she was nursing. Since she was so little when this started I couldn't give her anything else except formula to supplement but she was allergic to both regular formula and soy so that wasn't an option. What I would do is pump 5-6 hours after she went to bed depending on when I woke up. Lactation told me to set my alarm, but I never needed it. It really did help my supply. It was also nice because I was able to get a large supply of milk stored in the freezer and have some fresh milk bottles for when we went shopping. I don't like to do the public nursing unless I absolutely have to and this way I didn't. Waiting 5-6 hours to pump after your little one goes to sleep will give you a lot more milk and it won't feel like such a waste to pump, plus I always found I had more milk after I got a couple hours of sleep myself and I was only up 20min when I did pump. I finally stopped the middle of the night pumping when she was just over 9 months old. She was eating 3 meals a day of baby food and not needing to nurse as much. Hope this helps.

Your son is sleeping through the night because you are feeding him food (cereal) and it is keeping his tummy full through the night, good for you on feeding him finally. I am old fashoned on raising kids when it comes to feeding them, both of mine were weened and eating all of the different kids of baby food and teething biscuits by the time they were six months old. I went back to work with both of them at six weeks.
You ultimately need to decided what is best for you but supplimenting might not be a bad idea and giving him other liquids like water or juice now would be good too. I would start giving him fruit too, then veggies, and lastly the meat.
The little amount of milk you gets makes me think you are drying up because of no demand, he should be getting 8 ounces a feeding.
Good luck.

Hi, S.. Lucky you! I have a 4 month old who still wakes up 2-3 times a night. I can't wait for those sleep-through-the-night times!

I think you are doing great with your baby. He'll let you know when he wants to eat. He may start waking up at night again or he might be just fine. If he is happy, then you be happy. I wouldn't suppliment other formulas. That would not be good for his system as dairy has lots of allergies connected with it. If you and he are happy with this new life ;P, let it be. He'll tell you if he needs anything else.
Good job and good luck!

Rest assured S.! Many women don't realized how much bfing is a psychological thing as well as physical. Your body "knows" how much milk to produce- its like supply on demand. If your son were to start waking up to nurse, after a few times, your body would increase your supply and start producing at night again. But there is no need to worry about why you are no longer able to pump much at night. Its just that your body knows you two need sleep! My daughter was sleeping through the night at about the same age. Its wonderful! I'm sure all the mommies whose babies still wake up once or twice are so jealous. =) You don't need to supplement him either, although the rice cereal is fine. Remember that at some point, he has to learn that as humans, we generally eat during the day, and sleep at night. If he is hungry, he will wake up on his own, but sleeping through the night is just as normal as you and I now (and we generally don't need to wake up at night to eat).

Enjoy the sleep. You can wake up once durin the night to pump, but you can also take an herbal tea to increse your supple, it works. Coconut is also great to increase the supply. Make sure you're getting anough fats (good ones from olive oil, coconut, avocado, etc) or your milk supply ccan dry up. Pumping is not a good indication of how many ounces he is getting at a feeding, my little one gets tons in a very short period of time, but as long as he's growing enough & can sleep through the night, it's actually a good sign that he is getting enough.

My advice is to let him nurse when he needs to. If he's sleeping through the night that's great! Your breasts know when to make milk. They are getting used to making it during the day and not so much at night. Don't worry about your supply unless he is losing weight and stops peeing/pooping as frequently. I have been researching diet and have found it is actually best for baby to start with fruits and veggies instead of rice creal. Try giving him banana and avacado. His body will digest those best. Enjoy your extra sleep. Good luck!

Good god! If he is sleeping let him sleep! He is not hungry otherwise he would be waking up. Breast feed in the morning and then see if he has any interest in rice cereal afterwards, same with lunch and dinner. Your body adjusts to your baby so I assume you still have a good milk supply during the day? He is 6 months so you should be introducing more food into his diet now anyway and you will be breast feeding less as a result. Just make sure he keeps peeing a pooping and you'll be fine!

I agree with the previous poster - don't wake a sleeping baby that is healthy! The beauty is that breastmilk is all about supply and demand, so if he ups his intake your milk supply will increase, the same goes for when his intake goes down. Remember that a pump is not going to drain your breast as efficiently as your baby, so don't look at the output with the pump as an indication of how much milk you have.

If I can ask - why are you still pumping? If you're a SAHM and not supplementing with bottles you may be able to stop doing that. It's nice to have milk in store for adding to cereal and such but as he's eating more solids you aren't likely to need much in the freezer. Are you planning to return to work soon?

Something to remember too, is that sleep is one of the main areas that can be affected by developmental stages, teething, illness etc. Enjoy those long blissful nights when you can sleep through cause they may be fleeting at some point. ;)

Hi S.,
I am a firm believer that your body will respond to your son's needs and give him exactly what he needs as he grows. So it looks like as your son is sleeping through the night, your body is listening and resting at night too, but still giving him enough milk during the day. I would just rest - your son does not seem like he is in need of anything else.

The female body is an amazing thing. Though you think your milk supply has dropped, it's only responding to the needs of your son. Obviously if he's sleeping through the night, he's getting enough to eat. I just wish my son were still sleeping through the night. It sounds like you're doing everything you should be and he's thriving. Good job!!

At 6 months old, if your baby was hungry he'd be letting you know,so he's obviously getting enough. Your milk supply will regulate with demand, so I wouldn't worry about pumping, and I sure wouldn't wake him. Rejoice in his overnight sleeping. My first was a 12 hour sleeper very early on - in the first month. He'll make sure he gets enough during the day, and adding cereal sounds like it's working for you. As long as he continues to gain weight you got a great thing going! Good Job.

Hi! That's great that he's sleeping through the night. My son was about 5 mos when he started doing that. As for whether the baby would be eating enough, during the night, usually baby will probably wake himself up when hungry. I would start introducing him to solids now. Could try him on simple things like peas or carrots...might even try some peaches. :D My son is almost 5 now...bout the only thing he won't touch (and I can't get him to eat no matter how hard I've tried) is white onions. :P Good luck! *hug*

Hi S.,
I'm sure your little guy is getting enough to eat. If he wasn't he'd be waking you up at night still! It is nice to get the extra sleep, but you're right, your milk supply goes down. Any less demand you get from him for breast milk will compound that. So, as you increase his solid foods and if you started supplementing with formula, you'll end up nursing less and then making less breast milk.

If you're concerned, then I'd recommend pumping once or twice during the day, to increase your supply. I went back to work when both of my little ones were just a few months old, so I understand how fast your milk can start to decrease. To combat it, I simply pumped more and drank lots of water. I was able to breast feed my second, without supplementing, for a whole year.

Good luck!

S.

I had the same question when my baby started to sleep for longer periods at night. The lactation consultant I spoke with said that I should not wake him up in the night to feed, and that I should NOT wake myself up to pump. She said that your body will adjust, and will likely stop making so much milk at night, but that you will still have enough during the day, especially if you are nursing so frequently during waking hours. So enjoy your sleep!! :)

Hi, S.! I also have a six-month old, and have had to start using formula mixed with breast milk from pumping during the day (I work 2 jobs). My son still wakes twice a night, only eating in the early morning though. He still isn't doing well with cereal, but we continue to try. I would LOVE the extra sleep! I say just let him guide you, as he will let you know if he is hungry. He's old enough now to sleep through the night, so enjoy your sleep! Just continue with the table food, watch his weight, and in no time he'll be a teenager eating you out of house and home!

S., first let me say that continuing to breastfeed your son is one of the best gifts you can give him. I breastfed my son, now 6 years old, for 14 months, and I am continually amazed at the benefits he gained, most likely from being breastfed for so long.

To address your concerns, my suggestions are as follows:
1) A child will not willingly allow himself to starve. You are already supplementing him with cereal, so that is a good start. I mixed my son's cereal with my pumped breastmilk. I think you can also start adding some addition jarred foods, if you think he's ready.
2) I do not think that you should wake a sleeping baby as long as he is on a regular schedule of waking hours, naps, meals and some interactive play. I think that by pumping once before you go to bed is good. It will be natural for some of your milk supply to diminish, but I would not be too concerned.
3) adding cereal at your nightime meal will help him to sleep better and stay satisfied for longer. Again, you could also try adding some other jarred baby food, or it is also easy to make your own baby food.

Good luck!

My little girl started sleepign through the night at 2 months old and she is now 7 months. I had to pump once at night for a couple of weeks and stopped. She only nurses 3-4 times a day along with her baby food. I have never had any production problems. I think your body just adjusts. I don't even leak or get engorged at night.
As long as your little man seems satisfied after nursing then he's getting enough. If you haven't started solids yet, my doctor said you should by 6 months.
Good luck and welcome the extra rest.

ypur diaper count is good, so i don't think you should worry. your body will adjust it's production to your schedule. if he start waking at night again, you may have some difficulty.

Hi S.-
Congratulations on your baby Aaron. My daughter began sleeping through the night at 2 months...Yahoo!! But, she lost weight from 2-4 months because my milk supply went down. I was so thrilled about the sleep I didn't consider this!! I went to a lactation specialist and did a lot of reading. Staying strictly breastfeeding was very important to me. So I began waking my daughter, or listening closely for the rustlings I tried so hard to ignore the first 2 months, and breastfed at least once a night until she was around a year old. The process to get my milk supply back up was grueling and depressing. I couldn't believe I wasn't producing enough milk because I was otherwise, very healthy. I continued to pump before bed every night even with a waking or two in the middle of the night...just to be sure my supply stayed up. I recommend La Leche League...the women are such experts. The book is great, too ("The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding"). Just remember that every supplementation you give is one less feeding at your breast. 6 months is a recommended time to introduce solids, though. It depends on how important breastfeeding is. Sleep is a priority for us, too, but babies are supposed to wake in the night...our supply is greatest at night. Mama's milk is the best milk for our babies, keep it up if you can. My daughter is 1.5 now and we are still breastfeeding...I'm so glad we've kept it up. It's a good thing because she doesn't like cow's milk. My daughter has hardly ever been sick. A.