Newborn feeding for 15mins Q

[1588]

My little one feeds for about 15 mins at a time, she is 10 days old and after this time she's not interested even when I try to top her up with a cup (midwife advice). Now the Health visitor said this was fine but the chief MW said that if she doesn't get enough she won't poo properly.

It took her 4 days of faffy, bad BFing to poo at home, then she had 2 in 1 day and now she's gone another 2 days with out.

Does this mean that she's not getting enough again. (feeds every 3hrs on breast)

many thanks

P x

 

[charlie84]

How are her nappies hun, is she having plenty of wet nappies? That is the best indicator as to whether baby is having enough. I had a very pooey baby but breastfed babies can go days without pooing so i dont really think thats a great sign of whether she is having enough milk.
TBH in the early days my LO didnt feed for long and ate every 3/4 hours and my midwife didnt have any issues with it.

I think if you are happy that she is latched on correctly and having plenty of wet nappies a day then i would carry on as you are. How is baby? Is she generally settled after feeding?
In the early days i would say make sure she does have a feed every 3/4 hours and wake her if nessesary just to get feeding established.
Your midwife/Health Visitor will continue to weigh her so you should start to see weight gain, but remember babies lose some of their birth weight to begin with.

 

[Sherlock]

Ditto charlie84

If her nappies are wet is a good sign if she is getting enough. Although iirc in the early days babies tend to poo more often then settle and might not go for longer periods of time.

I'd not let het go any longer than 3 hours between feeds personally. Mainly as she may then get tired and not be getting enough to give her energy to feed properly. Start of a vicious circle then.

My LO used to feed for hours in the early weeks. He'd be on my boob for 2-3 hours at a time, finish and then be looking to feed again an hour later. But other babies don't need to feed as often or as much.

When she finishes can you still squeeze out a good squirt from your boob or does it just leak a bit from the nipple. Is you boob feeling empty or still partially full. If its still got a bit of milk in it maybe let her rest for 20 minutes then try putting her back on your boob and seeing if she'll take more then. That way you'll know if she's getting the rich hindmilk that will help her gain weight.

 

[maybebaby]

My son was a grazer and never really fed for more than 15 minutes at a time even as a newborn. He did feed more often than every 3 hours but I have a feeling it was me that initiated a lot of the feeds - he used to latch & suck straight away like he was really hungry, it was like he forgot to ask!

Like the others have said if she has wet nappies there's unlikely to be a problem. Some breastfed babies can happily go a week without a poo because there's so little waste in breastmilk (others however will poo 4 times a day! Both are normal).

I would avoid topping up even with a cup because these early weeks are so important to establish your supply and for LO to learn how to suckle effectively. If she's falling asleep on boob try tickling her feet, blowing gently on her ear or changing her nappy to wake her up.

Good luck hun it sounds like you're doing brilliantly.

 

[ASD123456]

Rudy has never feeded for more than 20 mins even since he was a newb, whats her weight like. Most BF'd babies drop in the first few weeks anyway. TBHI can't remeber if Rudy pooed everyday when he was newborn, it's all abit of a blur to me now. Does she seem happy and content. I remember ting that the fact Rudy only fed for 10mins every few hours must have meant he wasn't getting enough but sure enough he was fine and never had any probs.
Alex xxx

 

[1588]

thank you all so much