I’m so sorry you are going through this. It must be very stressful. If you aren’t already, you should try really waking them up to feed. Bright room, change their clothes/diaper. Rub them to stimulate them.

Solidarity, I’ve had two sleepy babies and it’s tough. The people who say “tickle their feet!” have never had a sleepy eater. They do grow out of it but accept that you’ll be round the clock feeding for a week or two until they wake up.

One more idea. With my preemie I had to use a nipple shield for the first few weeks. The lactation people hate them but it worked for us. My nipples are not that big and she seemed to have trouble keeping it in her mouth. The bipolar shield made it bigger and it was easier for her to grip onto it. I got the idea from another mom who had trouble and said it worked for her.
It doesn’t work for everyone but does help some babies. The downside is that your nipples get less stimulation so it can impede milk production in some moms. I was pumping to supplement anyway so that wasn’t an issue for me.

Newborn Care Specialist here (who posted a few times). Years ago, one of my pediatrician employers had me always change the diaper before breastfeedings.

Some babies might not want to wake up and feed if they’re a little too cozy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ped gi. Try different formulas.

He is eating pumped milk only.

There’s something in your milk he doesn’t like. Either your diet needs or adjusting, or more likely, you need to find a formula that does. Fed is best.

He likes my milk plenty but thanks for the very rude comment.

DP. It sounds like he doesn't really like it based on the fact that you are all but force feeding him. Your diet really affects your milk. Look into what you might be eating that could be an issue.

If he was hungry but didn’t like the milk he’d be crying. She says he’s sleepy which indicate he lacks strength to eat. My preemie was this way for the first four weeks. We just needed to feed almost constantly. Have you tried in the breast with a tube supplement? Maybe if he could snuggle more while he eats it would help.

Nice to read some actual suggesions for OP to try.

1 - get a baby scale and weigh before and after.
2 - undress him before feeding. It sounds awful but if he’s nice and warm and toasty he’s going to fall asleep
3 - tickle his feet and under his chin as he starts to fall asleep. Sadly, the idea is to keep him awake.
4 - don’t be afraid to supplement with formula if it’s too much or too hard. I bfd for more than 2 years for both of my kids and they both got formula too. It’s ok.
5 - ignore the PP who says your milk tastes bad. You’d know because he’d spit it out and reject it, not just fall asleep.

Also 22oz/day is a lot for a baby on breastmilk.

Have you already looked at Kellymom.com ?

OP--you came on here asking for help and seem very resistant to accepting any suggestions. You are likely exhausted and stressed, but the defensiveness is not going to solve the problem. Get off DCUM and get online and find the most highly recommended lactation coach you can find and get her to come over and teach you some tricks about how to take advantage of waking periods and get him eating.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:During the course of my work, I’ve often noticed that not enough of the breast is getting put into the baby’s mouth. Nipple needs to be way back on the roof of baby’s mouth, much further back than one typically thinks.

When I shared this with an instructor, she said “That’s why it’s called breastfeeding, not nipple feeding”.

I’m focusing on bottle feed to help with his weight and to make sure he is eating. Only breastfeeding sounds way too stressful if I don’t know how much he will eat.

Ok, are his lips well sealed around the bottle nipple? Is not, it’s an issue.

They are. He takes the whole nipple it his mouth. The nurse showed us how to feed him.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:During the course of my work, I’ve often noticed that not enough of the breast is getting put into the baby’s mouth. Nipple needs to be way back on the roof of baby’s mouth, much further back than one typically thinks.

When I shared this with an instructor, she said “That’s why it’s called breastfeeding, not nipple feeding”.

I’m focusing on bottle feed to help with his weight and to make sure he is eating. Only breastfeeding sounds way too stressful if I don’t know how much he will eat.

Ok, are his lips well sealed around the bottle nipple? Is not, it’s an issue.

Anonymous wrote:LACTATION COACH. Schedule now.

Some are helpful, some are useless, so recommendations are essential.

Anonymous wrote:During the course of my work, I’ve often noticed that not enough of the breast is getting put into the baby’s mouth. Nipple needs to be way back on the roof of baby’s mouth, much further back than one typically thinks.

When I shared this with an instructor, she said “That’s why it’s called breastfeeding, not nipple feeding”.

I’m focusing on bottle feed to help with his weight and to make sure he is eating. Only breastfeeding sounds way too stressful if I don’t know how much he will eat.

LACTATION COACH. Schedule now.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you tried different bottles and nipples? If he's having to work too hard to drink a faster flow might help; if he's struggling to swallow what's coming out he might need a slower flow. I don't know of a lactation consultant or other specialist who could look at how your baby sucks and swallows but it might be worth asking your pediatrician or people who live near you for recommendations.

We have one other but I hated all the parts. We use the Avent Glass bottles. Slowest flow nipple I think.

Maybe try something with a faster flow? If he doesn't have to work as hard he might drink more before getting tired.