how much does your 3 month old eat/drink?

[lmh2402]

if you are nursing, on average, how often do they feed and for how long?

and if you are bottle feeding, how many bottles and how much in each?

feeding therapist feels that a big part of our spitting issues is that DD is eating much too much.

she is still nursing every three hours and i think she's probably getting quite a bit. when i pump in place of a feeding, i'm taking out 5/6 ounces easy inside of 10 minutes. and she nurses for far longer than 10 min each side.

therapist is saying that she should not be taking in more than 26 to "30 oz MAX" in a day. and she thing we need to find ways to reduce DD's intake - either stretching the time between her feedings and/or reducing the length of time that she nurses.

problem is...i have no idea how to do this. nursing is the only thing that comforts her. she will take a paci very rarely and almost never from me.

and she gets crazy enraged when i unlatch her even for burping. even if it's not in the middle of active sucking...say she's slowed down and is just sort of hanging out...i might unlatch her for a burp break. and she gets frantic and really angry

and when she gets like that, she spits all the more...so it kind of defeats the purpose

anyway, the spitting is so, so horrible and so frequent and constant and the volume is so much that we need to do something.

therapist said if volume reduction doesn't show us improvement, than we might move on to some imaging studies to see if anything else is going on. but DD is gaining weight, so likelihood of some other structural problem is slim

would love to get a sense of what other babies are doing in terms of nursing schedules/volume if you know it b/c you bottle feed. and also, any ideas for how to lessen DD's intake without upping her screaming?

thanks

[edurnemk]

I asked a similar question last week, in general it seems most babies are taking anywhere from 3-5 oz on average 7-8 times a day IIRC.

DD is 3.5 months old, she nurses 8 times a day, though tha past few nights she's woken up for an extra nursing (usually nurses 2 times during the night, goes to bed at 8 after nursing, wakes at 2-3 am and 5-6 am, is up for the day at 7:30 am). She nurses every 2 hours during the day. She's a super efficient nurser since birth so she spends very little time at the breast, sometimes as little as 5 minutes, but usually 10. It kind of freaks me out but she's gaining weight as expected so I know she gets enough. I usually only feed her one breast per nursing due to overactive letdown.

When I pump I get about 3 to 3.5 oz from one breast, if I pump from the other at the same session I *might* get another 1.5 oz. But I usually just manage to get 4 oz in total.

[sntm]

She should be able to control it by switching to comfort nursing instead of sucking, unless you have a crazy oversupply or super aggressive letdown. Remember that pumps (electric) are both sides - she is nursing just one side at a time, so comparisons are

[sntm]

Sorry, hit send
Comparisons are difficult. Most 3 mo old nurse at least every 3 hours and French more frequently.
I can't remember previous posts I know why you are at a feedin therapist, but if just ("just" - i know its not fun!!!) lots of spitting but good weight gain, she will outgrow that in the next few months. Messing around with nursing isn't necessary and may be harmful.

[sntm]

Just saw other post. Doesn't sound like overeating - possibly could be fast letdown but sounds more structural.

Most serious (and rarest) thing that did come to mind was TE fistula. The H type sometimes presents that way.

[edurnemk]

Here's the thread I started last week, about the amount that 4 month old babies drink: http://windsorpeak.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=443647

And from kellymom: http://kellymom.com/bf/pumpingmoms/pumping/milkcalc/

[lmh2402]

thanks, guys

shannon, she was diagnoses with laryngomalacia if that makes any difference... i don't know. i do think there is an overeating component. i think it's all sort of connected. she's got a tremendous amount of discomfort - she sucks and swallows a lot of air b/c i think she can't manage my flow and she has just never had a super latch...and the laryngo thing plays a role b/c she rattles like darth vadar all through feeding. and the reflux plays in.

it's all just...kind of a mess

but all that to say, to soothe herself, all she wants to do is nurse

and i'm ok with that for the most part. except i do think it's a sort of vicious cycle and she's taking too much in and then some of it has to come back up

on the good front of all that - she's gaining like a fiend. her face is enormously fat these days ;)

[Katigre]

Thinking of ways to let her nurse yet reduce supply...whst about a nipple shield?

My kids nursed a lot. Id say 10-12x day but to be honest I dont keep track.

Sent from Katigre's Galaxy S3

[daisymommy]

Every 2 hours all day, sometimes a snack just for bonding in between, and more often during the night than I can count! She just hangs out attached to me. I used to have over supply, but I'm down to regular supply thanks to block nursing.
My babe isn't a heaver spitter (but she used to be). 6-9 month clothes at 4 months.


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