Very Sleepy Baby

You have alot of factors to consider.
1. Is your baby jaundice? If so and it is getting worse then they will be sleepier. If this is the case then you need to call her pediatrician.
2. If not jaundice,is your milk in? If not try supplementing with formula for 1 or 2 feedings.

She should be eating for at least 10-20 minutes, as long as she is full term and your milk is in and she has no other problems(preterm, low birth weight) then she can go 2-3 hours between feedings.

If you still have questions try calling the hospital where you delivered and they can get you incontact with a lactation nurse.

Trust me if she is hungry you well know it. She may just be falling into a really deep sleep. She has been through just as much as you have and is tried. Take this time to sleep yourself. YOu well not be getting much in the months to come yourself so take advatage of it.

If you really want her to eat just keep doing everything you are doing. Remeber she has a really small stomach so if she still has anything left from the pervious feeding she may only eat for 10 mintues. As long as she is having wet diapers you know she is getting enough food.

Congradulation on your new baby. It is alot of work but worth every mintue the first time you see her smile or laugh.

A.

Hi K.,
ENJOY IT! Pretty soon she'll wake up and you'll wonder why you didn't just let her sleep when she wanted to! =)

Seriously though, depending on her size she could go 4 hours between meals. My second child was that way - she had 6 feedings per day from birth and gained plenty of weight. By 4 weeks she'd dropped the middle of the night feeding, so we had 5 feedings per day. If your daughter is getting a full meal at every feeding, then let her sleep. When she wakes up she'll let you know she's hungry! (I used the book BabyWise with regard to feeding and sleeping issues, and found the book to be a wonderful resource, if you're up for some reading while Baby sleeps.)

Congratulations on your new baby.

Hi.

I had the same issue with my first born. You're trying too hard. Every 2 hours is too much. She can go 3 easily. And, longer if she's sleeping. Mine would also constantly fall asleep while eating and I did all sorts of things to wake her up. I tried to force her to eat for 40 minutes at a time. Well, after a couple months of agony, I realized I was being overly compulsive. Babies won't starve themselves. The second time around I let the baby dictate when and how much to eat. It was so much easier. Sometimes she'd eat for 10 minutes tops. Other times 15-20. But, she's healthy. I can't believe all the time I wasted worrying, and I think I just tormented my first born and myself. So, just relax and don't force it. As long as your baby is having wet and soiled diapers, it's fine.

Congratulations on your baby!

She's a very new baby, this is perfectly normal. She will be waking YOU up (maybe for revenge) very soon. :-)
Try to relax, she won't starve. Wake her up every 3 hours or so and let her nurse. If it only goes 10 minutes that's fine. As long as she's having wet and dirty diapers don't worry about it. This is a wonderful time, I believe God had babies do this so we could "transition" into new motherhood without getting overwhelmed at the start.

Start keeping track of her wet and dirty diapers just to make sure she is getting enough. (Also taking her somewhere where you can weigh her on a baby scale just to keep track if she is gaining weight at the right pace etc. My friends baby was the same way, very sleepy all the time and it turns out she wasn't producing enough milk, so he was actually lethargic from not getting enough to eat! She was a first time mom too and didn't have any idea that was the problem until she took him to the doctor and they weighed him and he wasn't gaining any weight. While most likely it is that she just doesn't need to eat as often, they don't recommend going more than 2 hours betweeen feedings for the first 4 weeks, just until both of you catch on to the whole breastfeeding thing. You may also want to contact a lactation consultant. They can check your latch and give you lots of suggestions for improving your feeding sessions. Good luck. Breastfeeding is nerve racking the first time around since there is no way to know exactly how much they are getting, but once you work out the kinks is very rewarding.

Hi K.,
I HIGHLY recommend reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth to understand the biological sleep rhythms. By about two weeks, things should start to change with more wakeful moments. Unfortunately, it also means possibly more fussiness. Dr. Weissbluth suggests feeding on demand and allow her to sleep by providing a quiet place if that is what she needs to sleep. Some newborns can sleep anywhere and anytime. Newborns also have what he calls day/night confusion. My daughter was a dream for the first week or so and then she turned into the devil! (just colic) Enjoy this time and snuggle her, sleep with her because this will change. Hopefully your daughter will continue to be easy. :) Message me if you are interested in learning more about Dr. Weissbluth's methods.
Sincerely,
L.
PS The AAP gave Babywise an F grade and is discouraging parents from using these methods. Some babies on this method/schedule have failed to thrive, malnutrition, and maybe death. It does work, but why risk it on a newborn.

Hi,
My son (now 4) was the same way. The minute his lips got to the breast he was out. I used to undress him, down to the diaper, and rub legs and cheeks while nursing. When we went to the doctor, he was gaining weight, so there was not worry. He did the same thing, about 10 min. on each side with serious stimulation. What happened was at about 2 months, he just started screaming, and I thought he is not nursing enough - so I gave him some baby food (with nursing), and he loved it- ate the whole little jar. His nursing remained the same, and the doctor said he is just a snacker - and the question was - did I want to be his snack? NO I did not. He still seems to have that "snacking" stomach volume. he is easily full - but quite healthy. Also, he had trouble latching on, and we used a (forgive me, I cannot remember the exact name) nipple "cover", it is silicone from Avent - not a shield. We used it the entire 10 months of nursing, after trying for 3 months to get him to latch on.

Best wishes and remember that this too shall pass. :)