Question about 'On demand feeding'?

Question

I was wondering, Are there any parents around here, That take care of their newborns/children on a 'demand' schedule?

If so- I've been trying this with my 5 day old daughter, BUT- it's not working as well w/her as it did my 18 month old...She doesn't seem to want to wake up to eat, I have to wake her up..Should I let her decide for herself when she's hungry, and feed her on HER time, or should I continue to wake her up every 3 hours to feed her?

She was born perfectly healthy, And weighed 6lbs 7oz, I got no 'special' instructions from her Dr about feedings. :-)

I did this with my (now) 18 month old, And he's a porker!!! Lol...He as well is/was perfectly healthy!

Answer 1

She may be a sleepy baby. I would try to wake her every 2-3 hours if she isn't waking on her own. It may take a while for her to wake up so that you can follow her cues better. She could be one of those "happy to starve" babies.

Answer 2

My biggest concern would be your milk supply. For such a young babe, your breasts need more nursing then 3+hours.
I am a strong advocate of "on-demand" nursing, and have successfully practised it with my three children.
As long as she is nursing well and taking in lots of hindmilk during feeds, weight gain is good, then I wouldn't want to wake her necessarily. Now, that being said, after a few hours of sleeping, "I" might gently encourage waking by un-bundling, changing her diaper etc. Yikes, I'm really torn about what to suggest here. I strongly believe in not waking a sleeping baby, if she was hungry, you would know type of thing.
It's just your milk supply that might suffer though this, especially in these early days/weeks.
You should really consider seeing a Lactation Consultant or Breastfeeding counsellor like La Leche League.

I hope everything works out well for you :)

Answer 3

My neice was a sleepy baby. But, because my sister let her sleep instead of feeding her she lost almost two pounds. The doctor said had she not given her a bottle it would have been a grave situation. She was only a week old at this point. But, I suspect she had post partum depression...

If it were mine...
I would wake up to eat. Just because I know how my guy was if he got too hungry. He wouldn't have the patience to eat. But, have you tried every four hours? Maybe she'll be easier to rouse with an extra hour. Also, there were times I'd have to tickle his ears (or cheek) to get him to finish eating.

Answer 4

Newborns are very sleepy, so sometimes you do have to wake her up--and keep her up--to eat. If it's been 4 or 5 hours since the start of her last feeding, it's time to wake her up. I heard it's really bad for them to go more than 5 hours without eating. To keep her up, rub her head, feet, and arms.

Answer 5

i never woke my kids up...she will wake when she is hungry...take the time out for yourself when she is sleeping and take a nap or play with your other children since now with a new baby, it is a lot harder to do when she is that young. If the doctor on your next visit says she is not gaining weight steadily, then you will have to wake her up every 4 hours but count your blessings with a baby that sleeps that good...I took advantage of it with both my kids, i never did the on demand feeding thing. i would be having no time for anything if i did that. Plus i am a stay at home mother with a lazy fiancee who hardly helps and usually makes a mess when he does(no, thank you)so i take advantage when my baby is sleeping. good luck and congrats

Answer 6

You should not be waiting until she lets you know she's hungry. A newborn needs to eat every 2-3 hours and if you just let her sleep until she wants to eat, she could end up going for a long time without eating, as newborns spend most of their early days asleep.

Answer 7

If your baby wasnt born underweight, there is no way you should feel you have to wake her up every 3 hrs. If she wants to sleep, she should sleep. If it starts going to 5hrs, then you should wake her as she is really too young to be going that long without eating. My girl wanted to sleep in big chunks at night, but then be nursed pretty much all day long. Fine by me, I like my sleep! Have your daughter weighed here shortly to make sure she's gained 'enough', and as long as she is then continue on 'her' schedule. If you find she hasnt, then is the time to wake her up.

Answer 8

She's so young that it will be hard to wake her. At this age I would not let 3hrs go without a feed, so in order to wake my son up I literally had to undress him to feed him. When it was time to burp and switch sides that's when I changed his diaper and re-dressed him, so it would wake him up again to feed some more. Might help you out a bit.

Answer 9

Feed her on her time. She might be tiny, but she knows when that pudgy little belly is empty. When I had my 4 year old, the nurse brought her to me every two hours to feed her. The first time they did, I looked at the nurse and said, "And I'm supposed to do....what with her?"
The nurse said, "Feed her. She's hungry." My baby was sound asleep!! I looked at that woman and said, "I'll tell you what. Just leave her in here with me, and I'll let her decide when she wants to eat. I ain't waking her up because y'all decide she's hungry."

Answer 10

I'm not a parent yet, but thanks for asking this question! I had always thought people just fed their babies when their babies started crying. I never heard of this on demand feeding. I'll have to do more research. Thanks again!