Can you please help me with bottle feeding advice?!!

amother

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 12:50 pm

Hi
My baby is 2 weeks old and im bottlefeeding.
This is my first one that iv bottlefed straight from birth.
Am I meant to establish a routine, or will he just fall into a routine as he gets bigger?

At the moment hes taking between 60-90 ml at each feed and going on average every 2-3 hours. occasionally 4.
Iv been told to try make him stretch to every 3-4 hours but I just find it exhausting to push them to go longer. And what do I do at night, when he wakes up 2 and a half hours after a feed
I dont have strength in the nights too push him to wait for his bottle.
And if im waiting to go to bed and hes been kvetchy for an hour already I dont want to have to wait up with him until its his next feed.

But Im exhausted. Hes waking up at night about 2and a half hours after a feed if not less.

With my last baby he just naturally only needed a bottle every 3-4 hours. and I knew how much he was having.

Please only answer if you have experience with bottle feeding. Because I know what its like to tell others what to do when you havent tried it yourself.
I totally agree with getting him into a routine, I dont want him to feed on demand, but iv got no idea how, and am soo tred!

I had a 5 year gap before this baby and have looked after a bunch of newborn nieces and nephews and really stuck with a routine, but when it came to my own, im really at a loss!!

Please help!!
thank you so much!!

shmosmom

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 12:54 pm

Mazel tov!!
I don't know how much 3.04 kilo is, but I bottle fed from when she was able to eat (about 4 weeks old).
I fed every 3 hours on the clock, including at night the same exact amount. She didn't cry for food between feedings. I upped the ml amount according to doctor's recommendations and her weight.
Hatzlacha!

amother

Periwinkle

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 12:57 pm

4 hours is quite long to go without a feeding. My babies bottle schedule is: from birth till 4 weeks 1.5 - 2 oz formula per feed every 3 hours. At one month it's 3 oz per feed every 3 hours. At 2 months it's 4 oz per feed every 3 hours. My baby is 4 months old and 4 oz every 3 hours is still enough for him.

amother

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:05 pm

right, but how did you get your babies to last even the three hours?

did they do it naturally or you had to push off the feed and hold/comfort them until it was 3 hours?

90 ml is just over 3 0z. so he is having 3oz even every 2- 2 1/2 hours!

amother

Periwinkle

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:14 pm

3 oz every 2-2 1/2 hours is way way too much for a 2 week old! You're overfeeding him. If he's crying it's from pain, not hunger. In the beginning I stretch to 3 hours, and baby just falls into schedule. I don't think my newborns cried before 3 hours.

amother

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:30 pm

ok thank you. I wasnt sure about that...
any tips on how to hold them off?
how do u manage the nights if they wake up before 3 hours..

I feel like a new mum with all of this..
I really thought it was gonna be easier for me... Crying

all the midwives and nurses kept telling me to feed on demand, but I totslly dont want that to keep happening....

amother

Tan

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:34 pm

Quote:

right, but how did you get your babies to last even the three hours?

did they do it naturally or you had to push off the feed and hold/comfort them until it was 3 hours?

I am exclusively bottle feeding my 4th. Bottle fed all 4 of them from birth.
I always feed on demand and they all outgrew it naturally. My 3 month old now sleeps through the night for about 10 hours ba"h.

2 weeks is so so young!!! I would just feed on demand for now. At night the minute my newborn made a peep I fed her. This way she usually was half asleep and went right back down. By about 4 weeks she was down to one feeding in the middle of the night and last week down to none.

amother

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:44 pm

thanks everyone.

I davka dont want to feed on demand. the first week I would wake up with 6 bottles on my bedside table, all with different amounts left. that was so stressful.

you cant just feed on demand with bottles anyway. you have to keep making up new feeds..

I think he could have a schedule, im just finding it hard to make one.

hes my smallest baby so just thinking maybe it depends on weight. they are probably more likely to be able to have a routine when their stomachs are a bit bigger, id assume...

amother

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 1:46 pm

renslet

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 2:18 pm

I bottlefed on demand, she kind of made her own schedule. Dr said to feed 60ml every two hours which I tried during the day and at night she woke up around every four hours.
Now she's six months will still only take 120ml (4 oz) so she sometimes will eat every two hours and sometimes every four, totally depends on her.
My Dr was trying to get her to gain weight so he said, give whenever she wants, don't make her wait

Ima4therecord

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 2:23 pm

I followed the book twelve hours in twelve weeks for both my kids. I've exclusively bottle fed since birth and they were both sleeping through the night by two months about (and about ten to eleven hours a night). BH beli ayin hara my two year old is still a great sleeper. And my almost 6 month old is also. By two months they were both eating about 8oz each bottle every four hours (it was gradual).

It said in the book to do 2.5 to three hours until 6 weeks I think(after first week) . And the pushing off to 4 hours is I think in week 6 or 8 don't rememeber. (if baby meets all weight requirements etc) I'm pretty sure it's 8

So I love that book lol I think the book will address most of your questions.

Last edited by Ima4therecord on Tue, Dec 10 2019, 2:31 pm; edited 1 time in total

amother

Mauve

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 2:29 pm

Ima4therecord wrote:

My baby did 8 hours at night by 6 weeks and 12 hours at night by 8 weeks without that. Even at a year she wasn’t able to drink 8 Oz at a time.

Ima4therecord

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 2:47 pm

amother [ Mauve ] wrote:

My baby did 8 hours at night by 6 weeks and 12 hours at night by 8 weeks without that. Even at a year she wasn’t able to drink 8 Oz at a time.

OK that's great. I'm just sharing my experience. And my kids never spit up excesssivly or anything like that if you think I was overfeeding them. They were/are very happy babies. Every baby is different.

pizzapie

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 4:27 pm

I really wouldn't stress too much. Most babies aren't on a feeding schedule yet at 2 weeks. Additionally, 3 kilos is about 6.5 pounds which is on the smaller side, which means that it's normal to expect baby to eat more frequently. I don't think that you have to feed every time your baby cries, you can try to push off the feed for a bit. Eventually, as baby grows you will be able to establish a schedule.

amother

Mauve

Tue, Dec 10 2019, 4:46 pm

Ima4therecord wrote:

No I wasn’t implying that at all. I was trying to say that not all babies can be spaced or can take that much at a time but they can still learn to sleep well for long stretches