Cluster & Dream Feeding Support/Chat

[janie83]

Hi

I am currently using the cluster and df with my 7 week old, we have been doing this since 5 weeks and it works well however i read in the bw book that this should be stopped at 8 weeks?? do i just stop and revert to feeding dd at 7pm a 5oz bottle instead of splitting a bottle at 6pm-8pm?? or is ther another way to do it

thanks
janie

[* Paula *]

In the book Tracy does suggest combining the two feeds at 8 weeks old, however, a lot of mums stick to the cluster feeding for longer.  If it is working well for your lo, I would stick with it, and then drop one of the clusters when your lo starts to show less interest in one of the bottles.

[kateboundy]

Hi

My LO is nearly 8 months old and Ihave been dream feedding her at 11pm since she was very little.  She is now on 3 good meals a day, and I was planning on dropping her DF at 7 months but she has had a cold for weeks and I thought that it might but good to keep it up in order to get some more fluid into her. 

So instead of going cold turkey onthe DF we have been cutting it down oz by oz.  We are now on only 3oz. I don't think she wakes up hungry in the morning (about 7am) as sometimes she struggles with her morning bottle.  Basically I am just wondering if anyone thinks 3oz's actually makes any difference to a 8 month old who has 3 good meals a day or whether I should just stop now!! 

Our day routine for milk and food is:

7 - Milk (about 5 oz)
8 - BFast (porriage or 1 weetabix)
11.30 / 12.00 - Milk
12.30 / 1 - Lunch
4.00 / 4.30 - Milk
5.30 - Dinner
7.30 - Milk
11.00  - DF

She never has more than 5 oz's and one of her day time bottle (mid-morning or mid-afternoon) is sometimes not taken at all!

Just wondering what people think...

Thanks
K

[babymunkey]

Hi K

I think the first thing I would try is shifting the 3 oz forward by maybe an hour at a time and dropping it by an oz an hour.........if as you say you don't think she's that hungry in the am, you can just stop..........

H

[* Paula *]

3 oz is not an awful lot of milk, so I would be inclined to drop it cold turkey.  If your lo wakes for it then you can always do what the previous poster suggests, by moving it forward by and hour and dropping an oz, every few days.

Good luck, keep us posted on how you get on.

[kateboundy]

Thanks for this. We are actually going away this weekend to Friends so I don't want to change anything too much just in case, but will try going to 2 oz's for a couple of nights and then go cold turkey.  I was thinking of moving it forwaard by an hour but sometimes she half wakes up and I don't want to disturb her too early. 

I will keep you posted after the weekend.

[babymunkey]

K - good luck with that I hope it goes well!

[* Paula *]

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

[miss_craze]

Hi ladies - I was just wondering if someone could give me some more info on how cluster feeding actually works i.e. how often do you feed and in what timescale?

Many thanks.

Toni

[* Paula *]

Cluster feeding is generally the last two feeds of the evening, and are done in 2 hour intervalls i.e. 5:00 and 7:00 pm.

[kateboundy]

Hi
Well we had our weekend with friends and my LO is a little all over the place with her DF to be honest.  We are now onto 2oz's only at 11pm.  So far:

Fri - 11pm; 2 oz's - woke at 6.45
Sat - 11pm; 2oz's - woke at 7.30
Sun - 11pm; 2oz's -woke at 6.45
Mon - 11pm; 2oz's - woke at 6.45
Tues - 11pm; 2oz's - woke at 6.30
Wed - 11pm; 2oz's - woke this morning at 6.15!!!!! 

BUT - She wasn't crying just babbling away so I went in, gave her her dummy and she carried on for about half an hour and then went quiet and woke up again at 7.45.  She didn't cry for her bottle but I gave it to her at 8.15 and she downed 6oz's (she normally has 4) but this was 1 hour later than normal and 2 hours after she first woke up. 

This makes me think that she is not waking because she is hungry because she would not wait 2 hours with out crying and go back to sleep would she??? 

So I am thinking of still going with the plan and dropping the DF tonight and see how we go. I THINK the earlier waking is more to do with sleep that hunger?  !!!  Basically I think she has always woken about 6.30 / 6.45 but used to go back to sleep for a bit longer but she is now taking longer to do this.  She has found her voice in the last 2 weeks and just loves chatting to herself.

Please let me know what you think!!!  Support needed...

K

[* Paula *]

Defiitely sounds like she is ready to drop the DF.

You may want to post your EASY routine on the EASY boards to see if we can help you tweak your routine.

[kateboundy]

Ok have done this... thanks... 

[kateboundy]

She did it..  DF dropped.  And she woke at 6.45 - and was quiet until 7.15 when I got her up!

[* Paula *]

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