I have a 9 week old baby boy who was 8 lbs15 oz when he was born. He consistently ate 4 oz per feeding every 2- 2.5 hours from about 3 weeks old. Now at 9 weeks he wants to eat constantly and doesn't finish a bottle. At most he will eat 2 oz. every half hour or so. I have tried holding him off as long as possible to see if he will eat more, and I have tried giving him a soother. My doctor told me to only feed him every 3 hours, and to tough it out if he cries for those 3 hours. I don't feel that he needs to be on a 3 hour feeding schedule at this point...
Any ideas?
I will not put him on a schedule...when I was breastfeeding it was on demand, and now it's on demand too. I think in the end it's a mix of things with him...he's starting to teeth already, he's EXTREMELY gassy, and growing. I did switch him to a medium flow nipple. We have a doctor's appointment scheduled for tomorrow just to make sure everything is ok. Thank you everyone for your answers...it's nice to have a place to go where you can ask a question and not have people judge you on how you want to do things!
*****So we went to the doctor******* And it turns out the doctor put him on lactose free formula, and it's already working!
Hi T.,
Are you keeping a record of his eating and sleep time?
Does he have gas? Do you give him water?
Is he growing?
Feed him on demand. He will get on a schedule soon.
Good Luck. D.
I also have a 9 week old. Are you BF or FF? If BF, he may be using feeding time as more of a play and relax time as my son was doing the same. I made sure to keep the feeding time in a quiet place where I could focus and so could he without disruption. Don't know if that might help or relates to your situation. Good luck!
2 words: GROWTH SPURT! It will calm down in a few days.
Hi T.,
I am a mother of a 19 month old girl, and I breastfed until she was 14 months. Breastfeeding is a little different where you feed on demand, no matter what the time frame.
I think it should be the same no matter what/how you feed your baby. They are not trying to get your attention just to get your attention - they are hungry.
I also think that we worry too much about having our babies on a perfect little schedule for whatever age they are. I completely disagree. Look up Dr. Sears and attachment parenting - completely different approach than watching the clock to raise your baby. We use attachment parenting with my daughter, and she is the happiest kid I have EVER seen. She knows she can rely on us when she needs something, and she is very secure and confident because of that.
Good luck, and don't worry so much about the clock. I would never try to hold off a hungry baby - when they are hungry, they are hungry.
L.
Some times I wonder if doctors know anything at all. You are his Mom. If you feel that he needs to eat more often, let him. It could be just a phase that you're son will quickly pass through. Like someone has already said, does he have gas? How does he sleep? Young babies change so much so fast that this will probably sort itself out in no time at all.
All the best.
I hate to say tough it out for an infant but you need to get him on some kinda feeding schedule. I know that breastfed babies can go aroungd the clock because you are never sure how much they are getting. Bottle fed is a little different.
It is still up to you if you want to be feeding him all the time . If you have some schedule in it you he will eventually follow along.
Good Luck!!
It is very likely that he is going thru a growth spurt. In the first year, growth spurts generally happen at numbers divisable by 3, so 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 9 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months. He eats smaller portions and more often because that is what babies are 'geared' to do with breastfeeding. It is a change in eating habits to help increase production of breastmilk. It will still happen if you are feeding formula (I remember from my daughter). You may not notice it as much as a BFing mom, but it still happens. Try making bottles with only 2oz at a time, that way you do not waste the formula (lord knows how much it costs!!).
Especially at this age, it is best to just go off of your baby's cues and feed when he wants to eat, and don't encourage him to eat more then he wants to. It will encourage overeating, and can lead to him being overweight later in life. He will let you know what he needs.
Not judging, but is there a reason why you are FFing now instead of BFing? We may be bale to help you wean off the formula if that is what you want to do.
I followed an "on demand" feeding schedule with my daughter. If she was hungry I fed her. Some days she wanted to be fed every 30 minutes, other days it was every 2 hours. Some of those spurts lasted a few days, some a few weeks.
You're the mom. Follow your instinct. You're more in tune with your child than you realize. If you think he's hungry, feed him. If you think he just needs to be held, hold him. If you think a soothing song might help, sing to him. Prescribed "every X hours" advice from a doctor doesn't work for every baby at every stage. Trust your gut.
Have you tried changing the nipple flow? My LO stopped eating as much per sitting but increased how often she wanted to eat just like yours. Then I changed her to the fast flow (this happened when she was older), and all of the sudden, things were back to normal. She wasn't getting the food as fast as she wanted it, so would stop eating before she was full. If only she could have told me sooner....
T.,
He's just 9 weeks new...feed him when he needs/wants to!
smiles,
L.,
Brianna, 3+y &
Shannon, 14m
He could be having a growth spurt. If you think he needs to eat, let him eat. I never really regulated when or how much any of my kids ate. They are all different, and normal. My oldest, ate the most and the most frequently and was my tiniest. So, do what your Momma instinct tells you to do. If you think that something is going on, then go back to the doctor, if not then do what you think is best for your little man.
