16 week old snacker,how do I change?

[michelle33]

My 16 week old Ds constantly snacks all day, he's EBF. I have found implementing EASY really difficult as it is really difficult to get him to have consistent naps. My DS1 was also a snacked and I really struggled with feeding him etc. he has also dropped from the 75th centile to just above the 25 th and my HV believes its because he isn't feeding long enough. He will feed for a few minutes each time, and they're isn't really a pattern. He will have a small feed at 7 before bed and sleep for between 5 or 6 hours and then wake once more before waking to start the day at 6 ish. Us having no feeding routine is really getting me down and it's difficult planning our day with my 3 year old. Also because he's only 14 lb I feel like I've been starving him Where do I even start? Thanks in advance. Michelle xx.  Sorry if any mistakes, am typing on phone with one hand whilst holding him during his nap

[Erin M]

When you say snacking, how often is he feeding right now?  My ds was a chronic short napper, and we always did EASAE to keep the time between feeds consistent.  He *should* be able to go 3 hours between feeds - you can try lots and lots of distraction to get him that far and I would think that he'd take better feeds if forced to wait longer for them.  I would start by trying to push out the time between feeds by whatever means necessary -- take him out of the house, walk in the stroller, drive, whatever -- just so he's not eating quite so often. 

Also because he's only 14 lb I feel like I've been starving him

he has also dropped from the 75th centile to just above the 25 th

There could be several reasons for this -- has he become more active?  was he particularly large at birth?  Some babies start out bigger, but don't stay that way, just as some are born smaller and get bigger on the percentiles with time. 

Is he overall a happy baby?  Meeting milestones, etc?  Lots of wet diapers?  Those are the overall things to look for to see if he's eating enough (as hard as it is). 

[michelle33]

Thank you for getting back to me. He will sometimes go an hour sometimes 2, he will snck when he's tired and I've got myself into the trap of feeding to sleep . It's so hard when he's upset and asking for the breast not to offer. And I sometimes feed him to keep him quiet when I'm doing something with my 3 year old. He is an active baby and cries a lot when tired and will always cry in car, sometimes up to an hour if we're going on a long journey, that's got to burn +++ calories.     He also gets very distracted when feeding and will pull and bite on me as if playing. He's just woken whilst typing this after 45 min nap, I've fed him and he's gone back off again. My DH is in bed as on nights and my 3 year old is down stairs alone so it's so much easier to just feed him. I know that I am creating problems though. Thanks again Michelle x

[Erin M]

OK, well I think you know that the feeding to sleep is probably part of the problem, but it also sounds like you've got a lot going on with a dh on nights and a 3 year old as well...and a distracted baby to boot.  Does he feed well before a nap, or just enough to get him to sleep (because there are some moms who do more of a AES instead of EAS with the goal being to not feed to sleep -- of course if I tried that, my LOs would just feed enough to pass out and be done with it). 

Do you get a good feed in first thing in the morning?  That was always the best place to start with us -- that way, I knew that he couldn't really be starving for those first 3 hours.  Does he fall asleep independently at all...or are there any props (other than feeding) that work with him?  There was a mom on here that I knew who used to extend every nap her son took in the swing while he was working through the 45 minute nap thing -- she had other kids and just didn't have the time to deal with it, so she'd put him in the swing.  What kind of A time is he doing?  He might be ready for an increase and that might help with the naps -- have you seen this?  http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=84884.0  Sometimes when you have other kids, the best you can do is tweak your routine in order to get longer naps instead of taking time for lots of shh/pat or pu/pd.  My ds was a chronic short napper forever (basically until we got onto 1 nap) so when he woke I would try to get him to resettle briefly while my other 2 were occupied, then if it didn't work (it usually didn't) we'd move on with our day -- get outside, get to the store, play at home -- is there anything that he likes to do that will distract him? 

[Fiver]

Erin's given you some great support already.

Adding about the weight - did you get any fluids when you were in labour?  That can inflate birth weight also.

You could also try some breast compressions http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=88759.0 to get some more milk into him when he started pulling (this is also good for getting a letdown and getting more fatty milk into him).

And you are NOT starving your baby.  BF LOs often have a drop off on the centile charts.  If it's any comfort, my DD went from 50th to 9th centile and is now comfortably up to 50th (at least!) again.  As long as he's gaining and finding his own curve, the HV should be supporting you and telling you you're doing great to keep going.

Also you've got a GS about to be going on and that can make it feel like your supply is low, but just keep feeding!

[michelle33]

Thanks for your replies xx

Do you get a good feed in first thing in the morning? 

No not always, he will often feed at around 5 ish and then wake for the day at 6:30, sometimes earlier. He isn't hungry then but will want to go back to sleep for an hour after waking so the day never starts off to a good start really. I have just purchased a woombie of Amazon so hopefully he'll be more settled when asleep *fingers crossed*. I really need to start sh pat but things can be so hectic. Its just really affecting our nights now to as he is waking frequently the past couple of nights and wanting me to hold him all night :
His A time is about 1.5hr but varies due to him being OT, and also when I'm at groups and out and about with DS1 naps can be difficult.
 

Adding about the weight - did you get any fluids when you were in labour?  That can inflate birth weight also

No I never had fluids during labour, have heard about that before though :/. He was 7,lb 12 oz at birth and never lost any either. With him snacking and now my HV telling me that he isn't getting enough hind milk its making me worry that he may not be gaining as he should, and that makes me feel rubbish . I was wondering this myself though so have been feeding him off the same side for a couple of feeds in a row. I will try breast compressions, thank you for the tip .
Am really going to try tomorrow to extend feeding times but the weather is going to be really hot so he'll probably be thirsty??? and feed more

[Erin M]

16 weeks is a rough time for sleep as there's a lot going on developmentally!  Is there a time when your older LO is asleep where you could work on sh/pat -- with dd2 and ds, I only really worked on it for 1 nap and BT (when dh was around).  I'd focus on getting 1 ok'd nap and letting the others fall where they will.  I'd try to push your feeding times a bit despite the hot weather -- I think he's really wanting to feed to sleep more than he's needing the fluids.