My newborn baby is up every 1-2 hours to breast feed can anybody help?

Question

Hello all, I just had my first baby on Septemeber 6th and I am currently breastfeeding. He wakes me up every 1-2 hours to breast feed. Is there anything I can do to help him sleep longer? Thanks, Millie

Answer 1

This is normal - a newborn has a very small tummy and needs little but often. Also, the more they feed - the more your milk supply is increased - they should settle to longer periods between feedings by 3 or 4 weeks.

Answer 2

Hi Millie. If you want you can try pumping. I never pumped until 3 months but I know when my little guy was little he did it for a while and then he started sleeping more and more. He finally slept for 4 hours when he was a month and a half. It all depends on what the baby wants. Remember right now until about 3-4 months old your baby is going through a lot of growth spirts and needs all that milk. It is good that your baby is eating like that because it also helping the milk come in and give the baby more for when he or she is older. Plus dont offer a pacifier just offer the breast if he or she wants to suck. It really does help with the flow. I hope this helps and congratulations on your new bundle of joy!

Answer 3

HE won't sleep longer until he's older, but here's a way YOU can sleep longer: Get a breast pump, a couple of bottles, and a nice lady like your mom or grandma or a favorite aunt. Explain that you are sleep deprived and in that condition might make a mistake which could be bad for your baby. Pump out whatever extra milk you can make and store it in the fridge. Ask "Mom", or whomever to take over the feedings for as long as the bottles last, and spend that time SLEEPING. Make sure you do something really nice for the babysitter you choose, such as have a pot of coffee and a fresh cake or cookies for her to munch on while you sleep. It will last longer if you feed the baby right before you go to sleep. If you have three full bottles and feed the baby right before you go to sleep, you could get eight full hours!
Make certain the babysitter knows how to heat bottles to a temperature safe for infants. If you get your mom, she knows. So does grandma. I'm not so sure about the eligible bachlor next door...

Answer 4

This is totally normal, if it makes you feel any better. Also, your baby really needs to eat that often; he's so young still- not quite two weeks old!

My advice is to bring your baby to bed. He'll still wake up every two hours, but you won't have to get up to go to him, so you'll sleep alot more

Chances are, it'll only be a few more weeks that you have to deal with this- the constant nursing usually dies down on its own around 6-8 weeks.

I've included some information about safe cosleeping (and it *can* be done safely) and also a tutorial about how to nurse sidelying- you've probably worked that one out already, but it's there if you need it.

Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS! And welcome to the world, tiny new little boy. :)

ETA: just wanted to respond to a couple things in others' answers that were of concern- DO NOT add cereal to a bottle for your baby; it's a very dangerous choking risk. Also, this is not a sign of low supply (unless your babe is also not gaining weight or not having enough wet dipes).

Answer 5

i know that the doctors tell you not to but i have had 2 and am 31 weeks pregnant again. if you have a healthy baby that has no problems, at night fix your baby a warm bottle of carnation goodstart formula and put just a teaspoon of rice cereal in the bottle. feed it to your baby and you will see major improovement. i did this with both of mine and they slept way longer because they weren't hungry. they started sleeping all night when they were 1 month old. or if you dont feel safe using the cereal, just feed your baby the formula. sometimes babies don't get enough from mom so you should give a little of both.

Answer 6

Your baby needs to eat every 2 hours right now. It's important to feed them when they are hungry right now so that they will grow. You shouldn't let the baby sleep for more than 4 hours right now. It can take 3 to 4 weeks for him to sleep for longer periods.

Make sure to empty the first breast before switching to the next. The fat in the hind milk will make his tummy fill fuller for longer.

Answer 7

I had my daughter in March, and I tried to breastfeed for the first 3 months. During the first month and a half after she was born, we did strictly breast milk and she usually ate every 1-2 hours and wasn't gaining much weight. After that, I suplemented with formula. The first time that she had a bottle of formula, she slept for 4 hours straight without wanting to eat. And as time has progressed with her eating formula, she finally started to gain weight.
Other things that you could do to help build more breast milk is to take 2 alfalfa pills with every meal. You could also try drinking red raspberry leaf tea. Both of these things you can purchase at a health food store usually.

Answer 8

This is perfectly normal. I know you are exhausted. It will get better as he gets older. If you have help at home you can breastfeed and pump so that there is always milk in your fridge, therefore allowing someelse to get up for some of the nighttime feedings. I had to do this with my youngest as my middle child was in the hospital shortly after the baby was born and I had to sleep.

Answer 9

Newborns generally eat every 2 hours. I doubt he's going to sleep more than that at first, this why most mom's are so tired the first couple of months. It should get better, good luck.

Answer 10

Well normally breast fed babys want to eat a lot more than bottle fed babies. its normal for them to want to eat every 3 hours. and sometimes they just like to use you as a pacifer. Just let your baby nurse for about 20 to 30 mins. or until he/she stops nursing, make sure you burp him or her between so that she/he wont explode on you and from experience thats alot of mess..when all done again burp really well then rock baby to sleep. oh and wrapping he/she up in a blankent really good not to tight or loose sometimes helps(swaddling).