My son is 5 weeks old and only breastfeeding, He has been feeding every 45mins to an hour!?

Question

He sleeps at night well. I just want to know if I should start giving hin formula durring the day? I really am having a hard time during the day because he is so hungry. What should I do? I really want to breastfeed my son as ling as I can. Is this a sign that he is not getting enough?

He feeds for about 15 mins and he does drain both breast, He burps and falls asleep. I know that I can pump about 4 to 5 oz at a time.

Answer 1

don't look for a problem if there isn't one honey

if you give him formula then you will for sure sabotage your supply when it sounds like everything is perfectly fine

and breastfed babies go thru phases like this......they eat and eat or a few days with you seemingly not producing enough....(growth spurt)......and then before you know it you supply is WAY up from the marathon nursing

don't stress .....TRUST your body .....trust your baby....he knows what he's doing

Answer 2

Its normal. Babies go through growth spurts and they seem to do nothing but eat. When I stopped breast feeding my daughter, I was feeding her for 45 minutes, stop for 30, feed for 45, stop for 30...all day! She would sleep from 9 pm to 8 the next morning, but during the day she just ate! Anyway, she was 5 weeks old at the time and I had planned on switching to formula at that time anyway so I could go back to work. But, if you want to keep breastfeeding, just hang in there - your milk supply will catch up.

Also, I'm sure you're exhausted come bed time, but you might try pumping some bottles for him. That way if he's hungry and you need a break, you can give him milk from the bottle instead.

Answer 3

Probably not. He may be going through a growth spurt, all 3 of mine did that, the frequent nursing thing and all of us survived. Babies will demand more to up your production as they grow. I mean, you wouldn't want to survive on toddler portions of food would you? It will taper off until the next growth spurt.
Good for you wanting to nurse for as long as you can. It can be tough but well worth it in the end. Enjoy the closeness it brings to you and if the stress of sitting there nursing when the dishes need to be done and the laundry and the vacuuming, etc is what is getting to you, just let it go. I know it isn't easy but you have the rest of your life to do the chores and only a short while to enjoy your baby.

Answer 4

i are not getting what your concern is apart from the generic feeds that annoy you. If she is gaining weight nicely, then of course you do have adequate milk for her - a lot of babies at this age feed this in many cases and the actuality which you're fortunate adequate to get 5 hours sleep at nighttime is magnificent! in case you supply her formula you will decrease your milk grant by ability of that quantity. Why do you're saying BFing her is hopeless and doubtless no longer determining? Like I suggested, I purely don't comprehend - you do no longer actually have a concern with the breastfeeding .. purely your attitude in the direction of it.

Answer 5

Blue eyes is right: "If he is sleeping during the night, having regular bowel movements and wet diapers and is gaining weight- then he is getting enough to eat."

He might be nursing so much because it is comforting for him. He might need a pacifier. I breastfed for 15 months with no problems. My milk always satisfied my daughter (I did start rice cereal at 5 1/2 months). Good luck!

Answer 6

i know exactly how you feel because my son was the same, especially at this age, they do decrease this after time but it is hard definately! I would say to try and make sure that the baby is actually feeding and not just sucking for comfort because they do like their comforts! Also, its only you that can decide whether to change your baby to formula, but i believe what is best for you is best for your baby! I wouldnt say he isnt getting enough, the thing is, this is the norm really in my experience of newborn breastfed babies. good luck :)

Answer 7

Just because he is nursing all the time doesn't mean he's not getting enough. From what I recall, your supply doesn't begin to regulate itself until 2 months PP. Right now your supply totally depends on the demand. Some kiddos just really like being on the boob! He likes to snuggle up to his mama, and what kid wouldn't like that?! If you are really worried about supply, pick up some Mother's Milk tea. It really does help boost the supply. Also make sure YOU are getting enough to eat and drink. Good Luck!

Answer 8

it sounds very normal to me. My lil girl is 4 weeks old, and a few days ago she started wanting to eat it seemed 24 hrs a day minus the few hours she sleeps at night. if she wasnt eating, she was screaming at me! shed be ok for a few minutes, but happy baby didnt last long....;) every time only thing that calmed her down was to put her to the breast...plus she eats for an hr or more at a time...so its very time consuming..and frustrating at times...but, someone on here sent me a really good link to an article about a woman who fed her baby on demand, every 45 mins cause it was what he wanted/needed. it made a lot of sense, what she said, and my husband agreed after he read it also. ill post the link here so you can read it too. i know its really hard to feed baby so often, but if you can i recommend it...if its what they need/want for food/comfort then i think its what they should get....good luck to you!

http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/elizabeth_baldwin.html

Answer 9

I was in the same situation. It's totally OK to supplement with formula. It gives you a chance to get a break and it also gets the baby used to the bottle so winging won't be hard. Just give him like one bottle a day if you want. My daughter gets formula when she's not with me..and breast milk when she is. She's fine and likes both. That way I can still get the bonding with her and not stress while I'm at work. You're not a bad mom if you do it! Do what's best for you..it's fine to do both.

Answer 10

it sounds like a growth spurt. Supplementary formula bottles are the kiss of death to breastfeeding. you milk supply will catch up to him. just continue to nurse on demand. The nursing more often is his way of increasing your milk supply, if you offer a bottle of formula your not going to have enough milk for him.