Author Topic: Is the dream feed necessary at 3.5 months old if she sleeps well ?  (Read 1342 times)

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Offline Nat22

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Hi

My beautiful Sophia is now 3.5 months old. She has been sleeping full nights since she was 4 weeks old and eats well and gains weight really well. We have been following the EASY routine since almost 2 weeks and it works pretty well for us. I only did the dream feed until 6 weeks and after that I stopped and she still went on sleeping for hours. She now sleeps 10-12hr every night, a true blessing! She doesn't nap for very long during the day but that's another story...

So now I am about to transition to the 4-hour EASY schedule but my question is this: if she eats every 4 hours (she usually gets up at seven and goes to bed around 19:30), then that would mean only 4 feedings per day 7:00, 11:00, 15:00, 19:00 but that is not enough is it? I read she needs about 28-33oz per day at 4 months but that would mean drinking 7-8oz per feeding when she's currently drinking about 5oz per feeding, so that is not realistic. Not sure what to do...

Any thoughts/advice?

Thanks

Nat

Offline MasynSpencerElliotte

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Re: Is the dream feed necessary at 3.5 months old if she sleeps well ?
« Reply #1 on: December 10, 2013, 19:22:59 pm »
What I have been doing (DD3 is almost 4 months and also sleeps 11/12h per night, no feeds) is doing two bf per A time...one when she wakes and another 1/1.5 h later but far enough from sleep time that she is not using it as a prop. When she has the odd bottle of ebm she does take 5-6 oz but idk how that compares as I cannot pump much except for first thing in the morning. So she gets about 7 feeds a day, 4 are longer full feeds and 3 are more like snacks!

One thing though is the 4 month growth spurt coming up may throw that off..I think we are in that today as she has been feeding all the time and her last A time was super short she looked so so tired!
Heidi




Offline MasynSpencerElliotte

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Re: Is the dream feed necessary at 3.5 months old if she sleeps well ?
« Reply #2 on: December 10, 2013, 19:24:08 pm »
Oh forgot to add that we never managed a dream feed...she did not rouse no matter what time I tried, she only ate when she woke to do so until she sttn.
Heidi




Offline eva026

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Re: Is the dream feed necessary at 3.5 months old if she sleeps well ?
« Reply #3 on: December 11, 2013, 20:33:58 pm »
I personally wouldn't go back to the DF if she can do without. It might mess up her sleep and it would just be another thing to wean later on.
You could do a EAEAS for a while if you are worried she isn't getting enough. Although you can't tell she's only getting 5oz during BF, she could be taking more. It's no the same as the bottle. We did EAEAS for a good while, as long as you don't feed to sleep you should be fine





Offline *Ali*

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Re: Is the dream feed necessary at 3.5 months old if she sleeps well ?
« Reply #4 on: December 11, 2013, 22:33:59 pm »
If sticking with 3hrly feeds doesn't work with her sleep routine then I would try stretching the feeds and see how she goes. You can alway do a 3.5hr routine which works eat if she is awake 2hrs and asleep 1.5hrs and then cluster feed or feed in two parts e.g. Before and after bath as it approaches BT.

Btw studies have shown that average breast milk intake from 1-6mo (it stays the same) is 25oz with a normal range of 19-30oz. How do I address habitual wakings? (wake-to-sleep and other methods)
Cadan Dec 2009 and Colby Aug 2011