Infant Feeding Schedule/Sleep

For us, (we have a 5 y.old, a 3 y.old, and a 7 month old) scheduling was a good thing, even as young as one month old, BUT, I scheduled feedings during the day CLOSER together (2-3 hours TOPS) to start getting all the food in their bodies then. My first and second started sleeping through the night (8+ hours) by 7 weeks, and my third started sleeping through the night by 11 weeks. I just wouldn't make an 11 week old go longer than 3 1/2 hours during the day. I like the book "Babywise".

I nursed twins until they were 24 months old and often dreamed about getting more than a couple of hours sleep at a time. This was not to be until I weaned them. I loved the book "The Nursing Mother's Companion" and their advice was that you nurse on demand and not worry so much about a schedule. This advice ensured that my milk didn't dry up and my babies gained on schedule. They recommend that nursing babies nurse at least seven times per day until about 6 months old. I've also read that breastmilk is digested according to your baby's needs, so strict schedules don't jive with that theory. If your baby wakes and acts hungry - feed her!

In addition to raising 3 children, I ran a daycare for 10 years and your child is on a normal schedule. This is what you can expect for a 3 month old. Eventually the baby can nurse right before bed and wake later and later until finally it's about 9p.m. for the night nursing and 5 a.m. for the morning nursing and then 6 a.m.-whew! a good night's sleep! and that's around 6-9 months or even later for some children.
I can tell you I'm not a "Le Leche" type of person and I had great success without "scheduling" any feeding times...the baby just has a natural rythym and knows when it's time. However, I nursed all my children until they were about one and it's by far the easiest method and the best "formula" around. One year of interrupted sleep is a drop in the bucket of childhood memories and now that my children are 14,12, and 11...I treasure those memories of late night and early morning nursing time/cuddling! Just when you think you will lose your sanity from lack of consistent sleep, your baby will sleep one hour longer and you will feel soooo great! It's teamwork!

At 11 weeks your baby is growing fast and needs her nourishment. My personal opinion is throw the books away and do what comes naturally. If she wants to eat every hour then feed her. She is much too young for food to be an issue in her life. A baby cannot be spoiled and her demands for at least the first year need to be met.

Mom of 2, Grandma of 1

I'm a mom of four, the oldest is 17 and the youngest is 3, and I fed all my babies on demand. After all, do you need someone to tell you when YOU'RE hungry? Nature knows best, feed her when she needs it.

Hi R.,

I'm by no means an expert on babies or nursing, but I have a 2 year old and 4 month old (both boys) that I've nursed. I nursed my 2 year old until he was about 15 months and then weaned as I just didn't think I was up to tandem nursing them.

Anyways, I wouldn't recommend cutting your nursing or timing it in any way. With nursing, it's really best to let your little one tell you when he/she is ready to eat and how much they want. This helps make a happier baby and keeps the milk flowing. Just what I found from my boys.

If you want further info on nursing, you may want to check out the La Leche League web site at www.llli.org. It has a pretty exhaustive list of FAQs and what-not to help.

Good luck.

C. Downey

I have never set my kids on a schedule, they tend to do that on thier own, 11 weeks is so very young to overly woory about a schedule, thier little bodies tell you what they need, and those needs should be met. I also found with all of mine that they tended to need more nutrition at night, I have no clue why but that was how thier bodies responded, but by about 4 months sometimes 5 months that the night feedings slowed down, of course if there was a growth spurt then that would just go out the window, but as newborns they were in a constant state of "growth spurt" so they required more nutrition, this is such an important phase in there lives every once of nutrition is necessary to thier overall growth. If the schedule during the day is working keep doing it but I would leave the night feeding alone. Good luck I love this age in babies they are just so darn cute :).

Hello, we had a similiar situation until I started pumping and saving milk for when I started work. Our newborn was around 6-7wks old, as soon as I started to give her a bottle before bed she started to extend her sleeping time. I noticed that my mild production at night decreased before I went to bed, so she wasn't getting enough at night. She ended up sleeping through the night at 8wks of age and is still sleeping through the night now. If you have a pump, try pumping later in the day and at night to see how much milk you are producing. This will also increase your milk supply by pumping before and after feeding baby....hope this helps you!

R.-having just gone thru this...i say keep nursing the every 3 hours. i nursed every 2 hrs on advice from my dr. yes it was not funsville-i was tired, but when my baby went to daycare she was strong as a horse, if she got sick it never lasted long--get those babies plump while you can. build up their immunities now! i breastfed for a year, i am glad i did-it was challenging, but worth it. good luck & whatever works out for you & your baby is best, every baby is different.

Hi R., I am a breastfeeding educator at a non-profit breastfeeding center. While every baby is unique, feedings every four hours should not be a problem. Many babies can go longer, some cannot. It is almost impossible to predict rather or not this will increases baby's sleep during the night. Babies can typically sleep longer during the night and therefore go longer between feedings. You can always do what I call "sleep feeding". This means, nurse your baby while sleeping to try to redirect feeding times and hopefully increase the length of time between feedings.
It is so important to remember that some babies will sleep through the night early on and some babies will not. The length of time between feedings during the day can vary, as most specialists now recommend baby-led nursing.
Hope this helps and good luck!

I say keep the schedule during the day, but hold off any feeding scheduling at night until she's at least 4-months or so. I would just feed her when she wakes - I wouldn't wake her to feed her nor would I suggest not feeding her if she wakes up and you know she's hungry. Also, keep in mind that she'll go through "growth spurts" and she'll want to nurse more and you'll need to adjust the schedule during those times. I found my kids hit spurts around 2,4,6,9 and 12-months.

Anyway, I am a big fan of schedules. I think it makes your life and their life easier. Best of luck to you!

Hi! Both of my children always breastfed on demand. I believe babies eat when they are hungry just like we do and why have a fussy baby if you don't have to. Both of my children at 11 weeks still woke up to nurse 2-3 times per night - just want you to know you are not alone! You have to do what works for you though. Hope this helps a little - sometimes it's easier knowing other babies did or are doing the same thing.

MAJOR kudos to you for scheduling your baby! You obviously know the importance of routine to help your baby learn to organize her hunger and sleep patterns. You will reap such amazing rewards as she grows into toddlerhood! Just remember to read your baby's cues...and always feed a hungry baby. Look for growth spurts where she may need an additional feeding. I can always tell a growth spurt coming on by increased sleep, obvious changes in size, and even how fast their fingernails grow! lol I think 2-3 nursings at night is probably normal for such a young baby, and although mine were sleeping long stretches by 9 weeks, every baby is different. Keep to your daytime routine and the nights will take care of themselves. Remember even if you have to wake her in the daytime, dont let her go longer than 4 hours or so btwn feedings or you run the risk of her confusing daytime/nighttime habits. Make sure your late evening feeding is a full one, and she'll start stretching her feedings out at night. Please, please contact me if you get stuck and need advice...I have had SUCH success with routine/sleep I would be so happy to help!
~L.

Hi R.,
I have read that you should not follow a schedule and to nurse upon request until they are a little older. 2-3 times during the night is absolutly normal and will continue until she is older. If she sleeps next to you/ or co-sleeps it will make it easier on you. Mine slept in the cradle in our room till he was six mo. old. He sleeps through the night now (from 9pm till when he wakes to nurse at 6 am) and he is now 19 mo. Also, I have read that if you nurse more often during the day, you may get more sleep because she is full during the night. But remember, every baby is different.
As little babies, they are trying to figure out their own schedule and don't really know how to make themselves comfortable. The only comfort they have is you. Be patient, it will get easier!

I hope that helps, :)
Good Luck!

I would check with your doctor, but my pediatrician said to feed my baby at least every three hours while he is still young. Usually they won't start eating every four hours until they've been sleeping longer through the night. I have a three month old and one thing that worked for me is to set him on a schedule. I actually got this idea from the book "On Becoming Baby Wise". Basically what it suggests is to feed your baby right when they wake up then allow them to have a wake period (usually about and 1.5 hours) and then put them down for a nap and then repeat the schedule over again. My baby now sleeps through the night and only wakes up once every now and then (usually because he has a messy diaper). Hang in there, it won't last forever even though it might feel that way. Now that my baby is sleeping through the night, I need to get myself used to not waking up because I still do even though he is sound asleep. Go figure.

So proud of you for nursing your baby! That's the greatest gift you can give her! I nursed both my sons "on-demand" until they were both self-weaned around 2 1/2 years. It seems like a lot of nursing and there were days I just didn't get dressed at all, but it will slow down naturally as your milk gets richer and more plentiful. Eventually your baby will only wake up once a night. Have you tried "the family bed" for awhile so you don't need to get out of bed? It is great and really natural! I highly recommend it!

Let your child eat when she wants to. Somedays she may be hungrier that normal because of growth spurts. Somedays she may just want more comfort. Nursing babies especially will eat for comfort reasons. By 4 months, she should be ready to go most of the night without nursing. So the first time she wakes up, send your husband in to just comfort her back to sleep. Don't nurse. If you go in, she will smell your milk and not go back to sleep on her own. Then the second time you can nurse her. Eventually, cut out the second time. Then she may wake at 6 or so in the morning to nurse and go back to sleep for another hour or so, and that's okay until she's much older. But for now, just feed her when she's hungry. My daughter woke every three hours to nurse until she was 7 months old. I was tired, but I never denied her. But by 4 months you should be able to start getting her through the night without waking up. By that age my son was sleeping 10 hours without waking up to eat! It was great. I just wouldn't worry too much about feeding schedules. Work on the sleeping schedule by putting her to bed at the same time every night and establishing a good bed time routine. Naps, the same time and same routine as well. But if she's hungry feed her. Because that's how she learns that you are the one who will respond to her needs. Good luck and I hope you can get some sleep!

R.,
My son is 8 months old and I am still nursing him and right now he isn't nursing as much but the first couple of weeks he was on an every four hour feeding schedule until he started demanding more as he grew and than it went to a three hour feeding schedule but he would only wake up one to two times during the night so hopefully that will work for you if that is what you decide to do.
The best of luck!

K. D.

When I nursed my daughters, it was on demand (their demand). It seems like very often to us mommies but they only get 2 or so ounces per breast at a feeding. The more you allow her to nurse the more milk you will produce, therefore she will receive more at a feeding. Once she is able to build up quantity during the day she will soon sleep through the night. However, every child (and mommy) is different. You need to go with your gut instinct and follow her cues. Good Luck and Happy Nursing!
-A.

I've found that with feeding my own children, they all were sleeping through the night by about 2 months old and they were only breastfed. But it seemed that the feedings more towards the night were not as long and more frequent. I didn't have them on a schedule - really, but they tended to put themselves on a schedule about every 2 1/2 - 3 hours during the day and if I needed to go anywhere I would alter slightly when I fed them, either move it up or push back a little. A little 11 week old baby is still really young, and if you need to, just sleep with her during the night for a few weeks until the night-time feedings taper off.
Good luck,

PS: and not every baby is the same. What may work for one, might not work for another.

Dear R.,

It sounds like you are doing a great job caring for your baby! For an 11 week old, 2-3 times a night is fine. Four hours could be too long during the day, just depending. While getting up at night can be difficult, focus on the time you have together and how you will never have a close time like this again ever. Ever! Babies do grow up, really fast! Your perspective will change over time. Now is a very special time that, if you spend your time focusing on enjoying the nighttime feedings, will become a sweet memory sooner that you think. And although you'll celebrate those longer stretches of sleep at night--and those are fabulous--practice patience now, and it will pay off. One of the gifts of motherhood, coming from a mother who likes to "run" through life, is learning to slow down and breathe. Schedules are great, but babies aren't robots, so we just love them and enjoy the time we get with them while they are in our arms. Good luck! Happy mothering...

I am mom to 3 breastfed children 2-boys 8 and 6 year old and girl 15 months old. I tried to do feeding on a schedule with my first son and it was rough, he wole up alot at night. With the last two I fed "ON DEMAND" at there beckon call and it was MUCH BETTER FOR EVERYONE. Although it not always convenient. They would eat most of the evening every hour or LONG feedings, but they only got up "ONCE" during the night!!!(occassionally twice when they were going thru growth spurts)At first you may need to "OFFER" the breast more in the evenings to help them get used to the idea.
GOODLUCK TO YOU!
GG in Michigan

In a nursing book I have, it says to increase the amount of daytime feedings to help the baby sleep better through the night. It says to feed every 2 1/2-3 hours during the day. Then give a nice big feeding late at night like 11pm.

I did this with my first child and it worked.
It might be worth a try.

I have a 5 month old. I think at 11 weeks 3 hours in between feedings is long enough. I'm a nursing mom as well and just took the cues from the baby. Pretty soon it will stretch out longer. If night time is your issue, try cutting down the timing- make them quick nursings or just do one side....

Every child is different, but I found with mine (4 month old and 2 year old) that waking more than once at night was usually a sleep issue more than a hunger issue. Once they were awake at night they realized they were hungry and needed to be fed. The better and more consistent the naps during the day, the better they slept at night. A really good resource for me has been 'Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child'. Every four hours seems like a long time to go, but as I said, every child is different.

No babies that are nursed eat more frequently than babies that are bottle fed. If that baby is hungry feed him/her, trying to extend the feeding schedule won't do anything but make your life more miserable and the baby. i nursed all of my children and when they needed to be fed i fed them.

I don't think that spreading out the feedings to 4 hours would work. That makes for an ornery hungry baby. What I have seen work is the consistency of what is done in between feedings. First off make sure your child eats well while they are eating so they are getting enough stroke the jaw rub toes etc to keep them awake to eat.Then after eating and burping KEEP THEM AWAKE. Babies tend to drop off after eating for cat naps and then don't get a real nap, or wake up from them angry. Keeping them awake helps them get a good nap and even better night sleep. It will take some dedication on your part to get into the schedule but then it's second nature and easily adjusted to outings etc. To keep them awake talk to them, gently move their limbs etc, play with them, or put them in an infant seat and let look out the window (obviously at this old they can't see so far but the light changes will be interesting), a bouncer, give them tummy time (most kids cry about this but it is good for their strength and development, but don't leave them crying for too long. get down with her and coax her to turn her head to the other side by talking to her brushing her cheek etc.) try to keep baby awake for at least 20-30 minutes and then put them down to sleep. After certain feedings you will notice your little one is more alert and has longer awake times. At 11 weeks old if you keep her awake times scheduled during the day she won't want them at night and will sleep through those pesty night feedings and wake up happy and ready to eat. It will probably take 3 days to a week to get things going.

I have a three and half year old girl who we did this with and she sleeps 10-12 hours at night still and goes to bed without a fuss. I also have an 8 week old and he is sleeping 7 hours a night now. 2.5-3.5 hour apart feedings during the day with wake time and then naps and next feeding seems the best interval for happy days and longer night sleeps.

Something else you can do is pump a bottle before bed (or store one in the fridge from when ever you can pump it) so your husband can take a night feeding. He gets special time with baby and is able to help you. My husband and I have done this with our second and what a world of difference it makes on me and my ability to handle the whole day with a 3.5 and a brand new one! (I didn't have it figured out with our first and I was always so ornery and tired and he wanted to help but I was so set on breast feeding... bottle with breast milk in it is still breastfeeding but I didn't get it).

I've read that it's important to let her take the lead to keep up your supply. Her little body is trying to grow and once she sleeps longer through the night, your body will slow down milk production. Even when sleeping, my daughter would wake up like clockwork every two hours to eat. I imagine what it's like for me to wake up with a hungry tummy after only drinking a glass of liquid before bed. Some nights, it was hard because I'd think to myself, I just fed you! but then, when i looked at the clock, it had been two hours and she was ready for more. With time, it will get easier to get more sleep through the night, but if you are strictly nursing (no formula), it's best to let her take the lead for a little longer.

I am a believer in your baby making his/her own schedule. She will let you know when she is hungry. I am also a nursing mom with a 9 month old. He slept for about 6-7 hours at night from 1 month til about 6 months. Now he is still up everynight 2-3 times to nurse. Good Luck and keep on nursing!!!

Hi R., First of all GOOD FOR YOU for nursing! It is one of the most important gifts that we give our babies! I know that right now you feel VERY sleep deprived. I was in a fog for the first 3 months with both of my children. The best thing to do is to trust that your baby wakes when she is hungry! I nursed my son and am still nursing my daughter (just turned 2). It will get better, I promise! Think how tiny her tummy is and that breastmilk is such a perfect food that it is completely used, no fillers to sit and trick her tummy into feeling full. The best advice I got for the early months of nursing is to trust your baby! Nursing is a relationship between the two of you and will develop over time. See if you can find a La Leche League group in your area. They are very helpful and I used LLL a lot with my first to make sure I was doing things "right". What I learned is that "right" has a lot of variations! Best of luck to you and your sweet girl!

Please do not do this. The American Academy of Pediatrics has warned that keeping babies on a feeding schedule drastically increases the risk of dehydration and low weight gain. Tiny babies have stomachs the size of large marbels. They need to eat frequently in order to grow.

Not until three months old are most babies able to start going longer periods without eating or drinking. Even then, it is best to follow their cues, because they will want to eat or drink more if they are going through a growth spurt or trying to fight off a virus.You would not want someone to withhold water from you if you were thirsty, or important fluids if you were ill!

I highly recommend visiting www.askdrsears.com for more information about realstic expectations for eating and sleeping in infants.

When my little girl was 11 wks old i kept her feeding schedual just on breast milk untill she turned about 4 months. i dont think that its to long!

I have a 4 week old and this is what I have done to help with the sleeping pattern at night. I moved the day time feedings to a 2 to 3 hour timeframe in order to disrupt the sleep during the day in order to establish the long night sleeping pattern. I do allow the 4hrs between night feedings. It really will depend on when you go to sleep.

4 hours should be just fine to do at this point. The main way to tell if she's getting enough to eat is if she is having plenty of wet/dirty diapers. Whether or not this will help her night time feeding schedule or not is another question. I have a 9½ month old little girl and she gets four feedings during the day ~7, noon, 5 and 10, so approximately every 5 hours. And she still wakes up at least once every night, sometimes twice. I don't know if you use a pacifier, but sometimes babies just need to suck. Good luck!

All kids are different, so what a book or another mother says may not be what's right for your child. My daughter was every three hours 24/7. My son liked every 2 hours for those first few months. Your child isn't going to sleep through the night until she is ready, no matter what you do (trust me, my daughter slept through the night religiously at one month, my son on the other hand, not til 4 months).I think you're doing the right thing by putting her on a schedule, but unfortunetly there's nothing you can do to get her to sleep through the night, she'll do it on her own. I'd say if she's hungry every 3 hours, feed her. If she can last 4 hours but eats more at each session then go every four. At least this way you won't feel like you've got a child attached to you all the time :)

I think four hours is a long time for a baby to go without eating unless they are asleep. I think sleeping longer at night just comes with age/weight when they can hold more in their little tummy.

I have a little girl who is now 9 months old. I read a couple of books that talk a lot about how to get you baby to sleep through the night and different parenting skills. The first book is Babywise it is written by two doctors and the second one is Baby whispers.
The thing that it talks about is to make sure your baby doesn't go longer than 3 hours during the day. So your baby wakes up feed her, then play with her for a little bit and then put her down for a nap. The more you keep her up during the day the more tired she will be at night. After she took her 3 naps around 8 she would get tired and I would keep her up until I was ready to put her to bed. What ever time works best for you.
About sleeping through the night they talk about cluster feeding or filling up there tank. So when my little girl was that age she went to sleep about 10 pm just cause I wanted to sleep in longer and she would get up around 8. At around 5 or 6 I would feed her every couple of hours. So like 5,7,9 and 10. That way I knew she had enough to eat. She would normally wake up around 5:30 or 6. I would feed her again and she would wake up 8 or 9.
I did worry at first if she was going to long at night to sleep but I knew if she was hungry she would wake up. When she slept through the night she would be really hungry in the morning. So she would eat at 8 and then around 9:30 was hungry again. I would feed her again. She started sleeping through the night around 3 or 4 months.

One other thing that once you get on a schedule she may wake up at a set time every night. She is just in a habit of waking up but if she has enough to eat before most likely isn't hungry just waking up out of habit. It takes a couple of times of just letting her cry until she goes back to sleep a couple of night and then she won't wake up. The baby whisper talks about recognizing the different cries. She cries differently when it is hungry and when it is just a tired cry. Anyways I hope that is helpful. I love both books the babywise is cheaper and great advice and it really works. I love it I bought the second book.

R.,
Getting your 11 week old on even a 3 hour schedule is amazing. i would say that 4 hours is pushing it before 4 months. Talk to your peditrician about it, I know with my first since she was a big baby we could have- she woudl not do it though.

S.

JMO--I would never put a baby, especially a breast fed one on a schedule. Let them nurse when they need to. God made them to know when they are hungry, and also their hunger will change from time to time to help your body produce more milk. I would not mess with mother nature.

Enjoy your baby and don't try to organize every asspect of their lives. With this you will be much more relaxed and able to go with the flow--which moms need to do alot!

GL:)

R.,
I personally think that 2-3 waking times in a night is pretty normal for that age. My babies slept through the night (12 hours no wakings) by 4 months old. But in my opinion "sleep training" is VERY hard to do any time before 3 months old. Any time before 3 months I always go to them when they cry.

Especially with nursing it's just so hard to know if they are getting enough, so I always nurse on demand to keep my supply up to their needs.
HTH
M.