Is this normal?

[Kirsty.Y.84]

Hi ladies

I am currently combination feeding my son, who is nearly 3 weeks old. I breast feed him all day from around 6/7 am, then I give him a bottle of expressed milk at around 10pm. His 2 night feeds are formula.

I am having huge trouble settling him during the day, and it seems that after he has fed from the breast, he's never full. He feeds on both breasts, and I always wait for him to pull away naturally. He just doesn't seem to want to sleep during the day unless it's in my arms or on my boob. I've just fed him from both boobs, he then had a 15 min break and then fed from my right boob again. He fell asleep in my arms, I've put him down and he's now whinging and grizling.

I'm worried that I don't have enough milk for him and that he's not getting enough, which is why he won't settle.

Is anyone else combination feeding? Or have any previous experience of it? I'm just wondering whether the fact that I feed him formula at night is causing the problem. The only thing is, I'm not sure I could cope with breast feeding overnight as he would be on my boob every half hour!!

Thanks x

 

[Mrs. KM]

Hi Kirsty! If I were you I would get rid of formula for a week just to see how things go andmake sure you do have enough milk to satisfy him. It is really hard to get your supply up if you combi feed. I combi fed until 5 weeks after being told by docs that my supply was low. My lactation consultant recommended going three days with no formula and if my lo seemed satisfied, then I had enough milk. I was mainly worried about night feeds but after she finished cluster feeding for about three nights, she went back to only waking twice to eat.

It also could just be that your lo wants to use you for comfort to nap. K was always great sleeping at night, but it took me ages to realize that she was tired and not hungry half the time.

Your other option, if you want to combi feed, is to try topping him up with formula after he is done bfing and see if he is more settled, although I found K was always more settled after formula compared to breastmilk. Xx

 

[BevG]

you produce milk better at night and baby wants to be on you to increase your milk supply. i combi feed but not from choice. i give 4 bottles a day and bf on demand, i bf at night without formula. for the first 6 weeks the glands in your breasts are growing and getting into the routine of making milk, if you feed less at this crucial stage it is hard to up your milk production afterwards as the glands settle at 6 weeks. id try and bf at night if i was you as its the best time to stimulate milk supply, maybe pump if you cant bear to actually feed.

it does work well to bf then top up with a bottle as thats what i did the first 2 months, i still do it now some feeds, just depends how it falls

 

[Kirsty.Y.84]

Thanks ladies. I might try breast feeding him overnight tonight but topping him up with formula. I think I will need to top him up as he's just spent thè last 2 hours or so going from one boob to the other, and screaming like he's starving after each feed so I guess he's not getting enough.

I've been afraid of breast feeding him overnight as its so unpredictable when he will want feeding and I don't think I could cope with more than 2 night feeds. I know other women do it, but I'm finding the whole thing so stressful.

It's so hard, but I suppose it will get easier. My nipples had started to recover from the initial first couple of weeks of feeding but after tonight's relentless hunger, they are agony again.

Sorry to have such a moan it's just been a difficult evening and frustrating as he's just not getting enough per feed.

Thanks for your replies x

 

[BevG]

the first few weeks are so hard, i know what its like. you dont know if theyre getting enough, they cry all the time...
are you sure its hunger or does he want comfort? can you see/hear him swallow.
use lansinoh on your nips, its brill and worth every penny. basically the first few weeks, up to 6 weeks usually are just spent parked on the sofa with the remote and dvd's and a box of chocs lol. have lots of skin to skin time with him and feed him as much as he wants. this establishes your supply for the future, only add in top ups if you have to and persevere if its what you want to do. once you have established a feeding pattern and know where your working then you can see where he can have bottles instead if you want but i prefer to feed on demand and top up with bottle when what i have isnt enough for her. dont stress too much or put too much pressure on yourself tho hun, happy mummy is most important to baby and if you need to give a bottle instead to save your sanity then do it, it wouldnt help to get pnd cos you put too much pressure on yourself. it might feel like its neverending now but trust me it does get masses easier from 6 weeks onwards. there are growth spurts every 4 weeks that will mean he wants to feed constantly again but theyre great excuses for pyjama days and mean you get to bond better with your lo.

mine is at a stage now where she will erfuse a bottle til shes emptied the boobs lol, she knows what she likes best. its definately worth the hassle and pain of the first few weeks tho, i promise you that much

 

[BevG]

oh and with night feeds i used to take her to bed after her last feed at 11pm with me then she would wake at 3 and id bf then top up and she would sleep til 7 if i was lucky so its ok to topup at night, just make sure to offer boob first so your supply keeps up