Feeding problem with 3 week old baby

Congratulations on your baby...

First of all its totally normal for a new born to nurse frequently and for long time at each breastfeeding session....Sometimes the breast feeding sessions may be longer than an hour too...There is no minimum or maximum time to feed the baby to make sure that her tummy is full...You have to feed her on demand and take her hunger cues...If she falls asleep on your breast while nursing then you should wake her and feed her...Try stroking her chin/cheeks, unlatch her and latch her again, rub her on her back or tummy to wake her..sometimes putting a cold washcloth to her feet will make up babies...Just dab the washcloth to wake her...There should be active sucking..If you feel that she is just using you as a pacifier then unlatch her and make sure that your latch is right...There should be active sucking for atleast few mins (atleast 10-15 mins)...

Also during night keep the lights dim when you wake the baby to feed...Don't make loud noises...Try not to simulate her too much...Don't talk or play with the baby in the night....Wake her, change her, feed her and put the baby down to sleep...Easier said than done but keep doing this consistently and it will eventually improve...

New borns feed on demand..Don't look at the clock instead take her hunger cues and make sure that she is awake for feedings...Don't put time limitations for her feedings now...She is too young...YOu have to feed her on demand....

Khushi it is totally normal for you teo feel exhausted because of the frequent feeding sessions...Do you have help at home? Parents, in-laws etc???
IF so, make sure that you ask for help...Eat healthy food and try to sleep whenever the baby sleeps...I know easier said than done but you need rest too....Whenever you feel tired give the baby to elders during the day (specially when she is not feeding) and get short naps...Short naps will definitely rejuvenate you...

Hang on...This too shall pass...It's just a matter of time..Initial months after delivery are definitely hard but trust me it will get better...
Try to take as much rest as possible...

 

Khushi, congrats on your new baby and wishing a wonderful babymoon.
What you say here is par for the course for very young infants. Sudha here has a wonderful FB on what to expect with a new born.
I would just like to add one thing based on my experience. With DS, night waking and feeding were a big challenge given his reflux. So, I would end up keeping him upright in a supported sitting position with pillows to help him nurse. To that I added breast compressions. That helped me get out more hindmilk when the LO was sleepy and not nursing actively. Therefore extending the time between nursing sessions to close to 2.5/3 hours at night.
Here is another site that helped me in the initial days. kellymom.com :: The Normal Course of Breastfeeding
p.s. about growth spurts, expect them around the time not exactly when the baby turns 3 weeks, 6 weeks/10 weeks/3 months, etc. Babies cannot read calenders ;-) and follow their own growth pattern. Mine was consistently late by a couple of weeks when he was growth spurting.
HTH.

 

My dear Khushi,
Congratulations on having a baby.You might have carried her in your stomach for 9 months.You might have experienced all her kicks and bumps inside. You are the only one who knows her hunger.Remember one thing , FEED BY DEMAND , DO NOT FEED BY TIME.Don't worry about the growth spurt and all.If ur baby is active , cries for milk ,everything is O.K. Restless nights might make you a bit exhausted but they all will be sweetest memories later.You can take the help of of your DH or your parents or in-laws in staying shifts during the night.Don't get tensed seeing the clock and counting hours.No one knows better than you about your baby.She is more intelligent than U.Even if U feed her forcibly , she just rejects.So don't worry.

 

Congrats khushi on your bundle of joy,

I too delivered recently May 30th , I agree with the ladies feed on demand.

Apart from that I express BM adn keep so that my DH also feeds the baby , while I take rest, it really works coz your Dh also will enjoying feeding the baby and you can catch up on the much needed sleep.

Good luck.

 

Hi Khushi

I too delivered a baby girl on 10th may. she is 11 weeks old now. For the first 2 -3 weeks she use to feed for more than 1 hour. she use to sleep half the time while feeding. I use to feed her round the clock for entire 24 hours. But now she is very quick, she finishes within 15 minutes. Even now it is never 2 hours gap between each feed. sometimes she want another feed within an hour.

Every baby is different. Just feed her whenever she wants. Things will get better soon. One more important thing - Dont wake up the baby for feeding. I use to do the same thing initially - wake up my baby for feeding, then struggle to put her off to sleep. I stopped doing this after she was 2 weeks old. I fed her only when she woke up (even if she sleeps continuously for 5 hours). she use to feed very fast and go off to sleep again. Co sleeping will help during nights.