Help! My Baby Breastfeeds Every Hour!

Milkology Q&A

Question:

My baby is 6 weeks old and is still feeding about every hour, unless he is sleeping but even then the most he has ever gone is 3 hours. We are breastfeeding and feeding him one or two bottles a day of pumped milk and he has no problem going between the two. We would like for him to start going longer between feeds, especially for sleep purposes. He does fall asleep while feeding a lot. Is there a way to get him to fill up more to extend his time between feedings or is it still too early?

Answer:

First of all, I want to reassure you that feeding every 1-3 hours, including at night, is totally normal for this age, and is something that babies naturally outgrow in due time. Additionally, something that should happen soon is that your baby should have a more mature circadian rhythm, meaning that his body will know that nighttime is for sleeping, and so may sleep somewhat longer stretches (though it’s still normal for babies this age to feed at night). As for extending his feeds, you first want to make sure he’s growing well, and that your pediatrician approves of altering his feeding patterns. If your goal is to extend the time he nurses because you notice him falling asleep often, you can try doing breast compressions while feeding. This involves giving your breast a gentle squeeze to get the milk flowing. You can also switch him to the other side and compress on that side to get milk flowing and to wake him up. Stripping him down to his diaper and tickling his feet can also wake him up and encourage a more energetic nursing session. Good luck!