7 wo not eating enough?

[BensMommy79]

Help!  We tried EASY for the first time today and could use some input/advice from experienced mommies. 

Our day was a bit of a mess, which I did kinda expect. It was tough getting DS down to nap (every time took 15 to 30 min of downtime/sushing & patting) and then once he was asleep the longest he stayed down was 30 min.  He woke up hungry every time, which makes me wonder if he was eating enough? I only BF so it's so hard to tell how much he's actually getting. He won't stay latched on for more than 10 min or so, and if he does stay he's really not sucking, just kinda hanging out there. Instead of feeding every 3 hours, it ended up being about every 2.  The end of the evening he had a HUGE meltdown - he ate at 6, had a bath, jammies, & story, and then we tried getting him down at 7.  He screamed like I've never heard him scream (and I cried ) until I fed him at 7:45. He fell asleep eating (is that bad? is that what we're trying to NOT do??) and has been asleep since (about 2 hours).

Sorry that was longer than I meant it to be. I guess I'm just afraid he's not eating enough when at the breast and I don't know how to get him to stay longer.

Tomorrow is another day and we'll try again. In the meantime, advice is appreciated.

[michaeljacknnugg]

Yes, the aim is to get the eating and sleeping parts of his routine separate,  so that he can learn to fall asleep independently.

Can you do anything to extend the time between feeds? Like give him your finger to suck, or a toy to look at. A ten minute feed doesn't necessarily mean he's not getting a big feed, but if he is eating too often he may be less likely to take a full feed each time.

[*Ali*]

He is still very young though and eating every 2 hrs can be normal and necessary for some LOs at 7wo.

Have a look at this FAQ for info on using EASY with BF LOs. Breastfeeding and EASY in the first few weeks You will see that there are many growth spurts in the first 3mo and your LO is still establishing our supply.

[Fiver]

Totally agree with Ali.  Also at 7w, he's probably more likely to want to feed more frequently (cluster feed) in the evening.  Supply is naturally lower at that time of the day, so LOs often go back for more then.

Tomorrow is totally another day.  Just relax, follow his cues and follow your instincts

[SDER]

I know my son was nursing like a madman when he was 6 weeks (that's when hit growth spurt hit and lasted a week).  Perhaps your LO is going through one as well.

If you're really worried he's not eating enough, your best best is to look at his diapers.  He should be wetting 6-8 diapers per day.

My son has always been a "speed nurser" and each time I tried to get him to nurse more because I thought he hadn't had enough, it always ended with him spitting up.  Every single time.  I wouldn't try to extend his nursing sessions if he wetting enough diapers.

[BensMommy79]

Thanks for the input everyone. Your thoughts and comments were really helpful, if only to ease my neurotic, over-thinking mind.  He is wetting enough diapers, so I do feel better about how much he's eating. We're still working on staying asleep though. :-( Gonna go read the sleep forum.