On the last post, Leah had a question for me in the comments:
BB is only taking about 2 ounces (if we are lucky) at a time...which happens to be every 2-2 1/2 hours. And it takes her 30 minutes to feed...even though she is shrieking for a bottle! I'm hoping she increases her intake soon cuz I'm one tired mama!
My question for you...how can I get BB to eat more per session?!
here's my email to her - now there are two of us who would LOVE your advice.
Leah, I would LOVE to know the answer to that question too because Kendra is the same.
2 oz is about 60 ml and K takes 50 – 60 ml max so she also wakes up quicker, etc, etc. Has about 5 sips, stops, screams, I burp her, next few sips, more screaming so I burp again, then hug her for a bit, etc, etc. Very exhausting.
Especially when I compare to her brother who polishes off 125ml (4 oz) in 10 – 15 minutes flat. I know we're not supposed to compare children!
I do know that if she sleeps longer (we are deathly quiet in the house, put Connor far away from her, no going in the room) she wakes up hungrier and on occasion will even take her full bottle. But those times are few and far in-between. So that works and also lots of patience, which I don’t have, so my hubby sits with her if he's home.
Our current goal is to get her to finish her 75ml bottle every time, every 3 hours.
Dear internets
Please share your advice with Leah and me - how do we get our babies to eat (and sleep) better?
Hey M,
ReplyDeleteI am no pro but honestly K is still so tiny and even though almost 12 weeks in reality she is only 3 or 4 and is still needing lots of pampering and remember her tummy is still so small and also the swallowing etc is hard for them and she will get tired due to her size etc and being very prem. Winds are terribe things and i believe this could be a huge cause for k cause putting them down and they have not completed a meal yet she falls asleep will just result into a night mare.
Keep strong m.
Love
Robz
I think the only thing that works is patience. Babies do not sleep for long stretches in the early days (or possibly later on too). They need to feed frequently. They go through lazy phases and hungry phases and eventually settle and then change as soon as you think you have it all worked out. By the end of the first year your babies will be having 2 naps a day and only 3 bottles (morning, afternoon & bedtime) and maybe they will be sleeping through the night but even so it won't be every night.
ReplyDeleteNIPPLES!!! Have you tried different nipples? We had a similar problem with Em and her suck was so strong she was collapsing the nipple. It still looked like she was sucking and there were sucking noise coming from her and the bottle but she wasn't getting much. We brought a few different nipples to try out and found one that worked much better. Now a 4 oz bottle takes about 10 minutes! Heaven at 4 am!
ReplyDeleteHave you considered or heard of the possibility of "silent reflux"? It's when the baby has acid reflux problems but without the spitting up. Some symptoms are poor weight gain, sudden crying (caused by pain), poor sleeping habits- often waking up painfully crying, poor feeding habits, excessive fussiness...
ReplyDeleteGoogle it and see if it sounds possible. If so, you would just switch formulas to one that is better for reflux or your dr would put her on an antacid medicine for it.
Hope that helps.
Have you tried a different formula? Maybe it's making her tummy upset.
ReplyDeleteI've also been reading this and thinking it may be reflux. I posted before about my luck with Dr. Brown's bottles helping with the spitup, which I also think was reflux. Not sure if those are available where you are. Also changing formula to either soy or a sensitive stomach formula. I must say our boys are much happier now that they are on soy formula where as before they were on a premie formula that had extra calories and protein. I think that helped their growth, but it was still had some cow-based elements in it. My family is lactose intolerant and in my brother's case completely allergic to milk products.
ReplyDeleteI don't think these will fix everything. I think it's also a matter of time from what I've experienced. Once the boys have gotten bigger in the last month and started cereal, they have been able to take more formula.
Keep up the good work, mommas!
Thanks for the comment. I needed to hear that! You're so sweet.
ReplyDeleteLeigh - I'm in your boat too hon except that she'll wolf down any expressed milk I can give her, but then dithers like crazy over formula... followed 1/2 hr later by projectile vomitting... not sleeping well either - I thought she was going to do my head in today...and that's just 1 baby. Hugs hon, I'm there with you.
ReplyDelete