How Much to Feed/Dream Feeds

[Mjh045000]

I am a first time mother of a three week old baby girl who was born at 40 weeks (not premature) and currently weighs 8 lb 5 oz.  We have been doing EASY since day 1 and really like it.  We are pretty consistent with our routine and times.  However, we are having trouble getting her to take a dream feed (done every night at 10:45), so she wakes up between 2-4AM hungry.  At dream feeds, she normally only takes about 1 or 1 1/2 oz.  The book talks about taking away ounces from earlier feeds to make her hungrier at dream feeds.  We are letting her take as much as she wants at feeding time.  Should we be feeding her only a consistent amount at feeding time?  For example, we start only letting her have 3oz during feeds in order to make her hungrier at dream feeds.  Thoughts?  Also, any other helpful hints to make dream feeds successful would be greatly appreciated!

[creations]

Hello and welcome to BW forums

I would continue to offer as much as she wants at each feed (sorry I don't remember a part of the book which says to take away from day feeds to increase DF but I wouldn't suggest that).  If she drains the bottle I would increase how much milk you offer so that at each feed there is an oz or so left in the bottle so you know she took her fill.
The DF may become more successful over time if you persist. you could change the time to see if you can catch her in a different phase of sleep which may make it more easy for her to take it (say 20 mins earlier).
For what it's worth my DS never ever took a feed whilst asleep, we started EASY at 4-5 weeks and I tried the DF but he never took to it. However he did agree to eat at that time, but awake. It meant I could give him a feed just before I went to bed which gave me his longest stretch of sleep for me to sleep at the same time, so for me I still felt the benefit even though he woke. He went down very easily after the awake-DF. For that reason I'd advise continuing.

It would be quite normal for a baby this age to wake for a second feed in the night anyway.  So she is going 3-5hrs between feeds at night which is fine.

hope this helps

[Lolly]

I agree with Creations! With a bottle feed you need to offer as much as they will take. There should be enough in the bottle so that they can stop because they are full and not just because the bottle is empty, so definitely don't reduce her day time bottles.

Some babies never take to the dreamed, mine never did so we just fed when they woke. Even with a dreamed a baby will still need a nightfeed for a good while yet, and in such a little one 2 feeds after the DF is normal. When mine were that small they would wake for a feed around 11pm and then around 2am and maybe once more before the start of the day. A they got bigger the feeds moved until it became 1 feed around 3am.

Laura

[born2scrap]

My LO is 8 weeks old and we've been on EASY from day 1 - she is baby #3.  I've tried from day 1 to do the DF but she just wouldn't take anything!!  She'd go to bed about 730/8 and was sleeping until between 1-3am feed and was awake for an hour ((another problem in itself)).  Now that she's a little older I've attempted the DF again by adjusting her evening feeds and she's taking about 3 oz around 1030 but i really don't find she's sleeping any longer and she still wakes around 3 am for a feed.  Part of me feels like i should just say to heck with the DF bc we aren't accomplishing anything but then part of me feels like my expectations are a little high...I know she can sleep a good 6-7 hours between feeds bc she did it before we started the dream feed and at least then she was getting a good block of sleep but now trying to do the dream feed she isn't getting that long block of sleep.  Based on her past sleeping patters she should be able to sleep from 1030/11 right until morning 6 ish.  Thoughts???  She is on a 3 hour EASY with no issues during the day. 

[creations]

If you don't feel the DF is working for you then it's ok not to do it.  You can just continue with her waking when she's hungry.
I would say, she is very young to expect a super long stretch at night. 5hrs is considered sleeping through and you are getting this already.  I wouldn't expect 7hrs just because she's done it before simply because there are so many growth spurts when they are so young and with a growth spurt she's going to feel hungry sooner, maybe even need 2 night feeds rather than 1 and that would be totally normal.  The DF really is something which helps parents so that the LOs long sleep comes at the parent's bed time, but there is nothing wrong with you going to bed early when you need an extra sleep and making the most of that long stretch from 8pm to 1/3am.
FWIW my LO never too a DF, but would eat at that time, awake.  In the early days it probably meant he was awake an hour because of the length of time to eat, change a nappy and put him back down (even though he went down pretty easy and straight back to sleep) but as he got older he was awake for a bit less time and the putting down was even easier. Just nappy, feed, back in bed.

[Martini~]

Just wanted to say that I remember the part of the book about baby called Artur I think when Tracy wrote that he was not eating well at 11pm but woke at 1am genuinely hungry. They decided with a mother to cut the last feed to 50ml and the afternoon one I guess to 150ml to get the baby to take the dreamfeed - but as ladies said - I have never heard of anyone here doing that:).

Ahhh and its worth saying that Tracy said they increased other daytime feeds with the missing amount - in the reality, if all the bottles are full - I can't imagine how you can do it....