Pediatrician vs lactation consultant - conflicting advice to follow

[Anonymous]

Generally you measure feeds from start to start, not end to start.

If start to start it's every 30 minutes, that's near constant.

For your own sanity you want to try to space that out. That's going to burn you out really fast.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

[Anonymous]

OP, I had a baby like that. At 3 weeks we both got thrush and the medication was supposed to stay in her mouth for 20 minutes without nursing so I started instituting at least 20 minute breaks between the end of one nursing session and the start of the next. That helped me a lot, and I extended it to 30 minutes and my baby eventually settled into more normal full feeds sometime between 1 and 2 months. If you haven’t yet, try koala hold for long nursing sessions so your back and arms don’t get to tired. Lanolin cream for the nipples. I will also say that the almost continuous feeding during the day resulted in excellent night sleep early for me — my second baby, who wants full meals, is not nearly so good a sleeper.

I think you would be fine to take either advice; the above is my experience with feeding on demand to a snacker. Congratulations on the baby; sounds like they’re gaining really well and you’re doing great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Generally you measure feeds from start to start, not end to start.

If start to start it's every 30 minutes, that's near constant.

For your own sanity you want to try to space that out. That's going to burn you out really fast.

+1000

OP listen to DCUM, or other mothers. Honestly. The ped might be trying to save your sanity but didn’t want to say so.

He might want to suck but not eat. Offer a pacifier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A ped is a real doctor. A lactation counselor has a class, not a degree and is wrong.

+1. My lived experience is that LCs use the same script for everyone and are therefore bad at helping outliers. Peds see everyone and if tours was "shocked" you shouldn't take that lightly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He doesn’t stay away for more than 45-60 minutes at a time. He has a different fussy cry for tired than hungry and will yawn and his eyes will look tired. He pretty much just sleeps when he isn’t eating. He is will sometimes sleep on me or my husband but I mostly put him down for naps.

He will go longer if he eats a full feed. He just seems to love to snack. I will change his diaper, burp, hold him, see if he’s tired, give him a pacifier, etc., before feeding him unless it’s been like 2 hours and I know he’s hungry. Sometimes that will do the trick but most often than not he will scream until I give him the breast.

The only time he really nurses for comfort is the evening but he will take a pacifier in between eating for at least part of the night.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

That is way too much - 28oz is way too much for a 2.5 week old and that’s way too many times to eat.

I would start feeding him 2oz every 2 hours. Aim for 10 times times a day. A baby his age really only needs 20-24oz a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

That is way too much - 28oz is way too much for a 2.5 week old and that’s way too many times to eat.

I would start feeding him 2oz every 2 hours. Aim for 10 times times a day. A baby his age really only needs 20-24oz a day.

I don’t think that’s too much but definitely wayyyy too often. OP you’re going to burn yourself out. The pediatrician was trying to tell you that. The baby can eat every 90 mins then move to 2 hrs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

That is way too much - 28oz is way too much for a 2.5 week old and that’s way too many times to eat.

I would start feeding him 2oz every 2 hours. Aim for 10 times times a day. A baby his age really only needs 20-24oz a day.

I don’t think that’s too much but definitely wayyyy too often. OP you’re going to burn yourself out. The pediatrician was trying to tell you that. The baby can eat every 90 mins then move to 2 hrs.

Great advice above to slowly start stretching out the feedings. You could go to every 45 mins for a few days, then every hour, etc. Seems like the pediatrician picked up on some clues that you might be a bit overwhelmed by the constant feeding. I would trust your pediatrician.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

OP, my nipples hurt for you! Some cluster feeding is normal in the evenings but this is basically around the clock. I would definitely try to space things out.

[Anonymous]

OP, so you’re weighing your baby before and after every feeding? Were they premature or medically fragile in some way?

[Anonymous]

Feed on demand, but do make sure he is emptying each breast.

Mine did the frequent feeds too, it is very normal. Feed him off the same breast for 2 hrs before switching (if he is doing small and very frequent feeds), so you can be sure he is going both the foremilk and the hindmilk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would encourage full feeds. If baby is just snacking, he's not getting the hindmilk which has a higher concentration of fats, which in theory should satiate him longer.

Also, I mean this kindly, are you feeding him every time he cries? Sometimes babies cry for other reasons and it doesn't mean they are hungry.

I breastfed my first for 2.5 yrs and my second is still going at 2.75 years so I'm a huge breastfeeding proponent but I think it can be done without having baby on your boobs all day if it's too much for you. I had a goal of every 2 hours at a minimum- sometimes they just wanted to be held or have a paci or change of scenery or diaper change etc. They never had any problem with weight gain (the opposite actually) and I never had problem with my supply.

OP here. We don’t feed him every time he cries. I will change him, burp him, use a pacifier, etc. If that all fails, I will put him on the breast. He’s usually will root and stick out his tongue when he is hungry.

He’s only 2.5 weeks old. He doesn’t care about scenery or anything like that. He pretty much just eats and sleeps.

I'm trying to imagine the logistics of doing this every 30 min. Is he falling asleep at the breast? If so, I would consider wanting to eat more 30 min later more of a continuation of the first feed, in which case I would try to keep him awake to get a full feed. Once he's eaten a full feed (2-3 oz), he shouldn't be hungry again for a while so if he's still awake I would put him down for a nap after about 1 hour awake; or try a nap in your baby wearing device or stroller and go on a walk.

OP here. He sometimes fall asleep but now always. I use a tracker app for time and ounces. This was yesterday.

6am - 31 minutes - 2oz
7am - 8 minutes - .5oz
7:45am - 9 minutes - .5oz
9am - 12 minutes - 1oz
9:30am - 5 minutes - .5oz
10am - 4 minutes - .5oz
10:30am - 9 minutes .5oz
11:30am - 18 minutes - 1.5
12:00pm - 12 minutes - 1oz
2pm - 22 minutes - 2.5oz
4pm - 28 minutes - 2oz
5pm - 10 minutes 1oz
6pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
7pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
7:30pm - 5 minutes .75oz
8pm - 8 minutes - .5oz
8:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
9pm - 3 minutes - .5oz
9:30pm - 4 minutes - .5oz
10pm - 5 minutes - .75oz
10:30pm - 5 minutes - .5oz
11pm - 18 minutes - 1.5oz
1am - 24 minutes - 2oz ( bottle)
3am - 32 minutes - 3oz
4:45am - 28 minutes - 2oz

OP, my nipples hurt for you! Some cluster feeding is normal in the evenings but this is basically around the clock. I would definitely try to space things out.

OP here. My nipples hurt and they are raw. I ended up pumping one day for most of the day because I needed a relief. It felt so good to go every 3 hours. He still ate every 30 minutes to 2 hours but at least it wasn’t on me and my husband did a lot of those feedings. I’ve been considering pumping in the afternoon/evening to give myself a break until he spaces it out.

I’m not sure how to space out feedings if he’s actually hungry. I don’t want to force him to wait when he is hungry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, so you’re weighing your baby before and after every feeding? Were they premature or medically fragile in some way?

OP gets. I am. He was full-term but I’m just extra cautious and worried because I have two good friends who had weight gain issues with their baby while establishing breastfeeding. One didn’t realize her supply was low and her baby lost a lot of weight. The other didn’t realize she just wasn’t feeding the baby enough because he never woke up to eat. I decided to get a scale to make sure he was getting at least 20 ounces a day.