Formula feeding schedule advice

[Bmthlady]

Hi ladies,

Thank you so much for creating this board, I've been looking everywhere to try and find some help from formula feeding mums.

If I could explain how it is, you'll hopefully understand my query.

I have a very lovely and healthy daughter who is 14 weeks and 14lb1oz. She has been happily formula feeding for weeks now, she always finishes a bottle, and it's actually us slowing her down during a feed, I'm sure she'd finish it in one if she had the chance, we use medela calma teats. She burps well afterwards with only a little posseting. She does suffer from much more posseting 2/3 hrs after each feed, I spoke to the doctor, but he said it's more than the average, but ok. I promise I am getting to my point (!). She also *whispers quietly* sleeping through the night and has done for weeks now.

So here it is, I feel like I am struggling to get enough feeds in to her during the day. We have to wake her at 7 to allow time between feeds, she currently gets:
7am: 7oz, 10.30am: 6oz, 2pm: 6oz, 5pm: 6oz, 8pm: 7oz.

I think we recently went through a growth spurt as I was giving her 7 oz for each feed, but she was sicking up more than normal so I've reduced some feeds to the above.

My problem is I don't think she's hungry when it comes to feeding her each time as not enough time as passed, but I can't leave longer as she is knackered at 8 when we've finished bath and her feed, she's asleep within 20 mins. So I can't go 4 hrs between feeds and I think she would actually appreciate longer. She'll always take the bottle and finish it even if she's full and I know they say you can't overfeed a baby, but I don't feel like I have flexibility to give her longer between feeds. Also if we're late for a feed she only sometimes has 2.5 hrs between feeds.

Here are my options I think I have, which do you think I should do:
1. Reduce her to 4 x 7 feeds (7am/11am/3pm/7pm). But that would mean reducing her feeds by 4oz. Has anyone done this? I don't think I want to give her more than 7 oz per feed. She's never part fed a bottle, she's always finished it and I'm keen to maintain that. My health visitor says I shouldn't go to 4 feeds until 5/6 months.

2. I keep the feeds as they are, but reduce the amount I give her? So she's hungrier quicker?

I'd really appreciate your advice on this. There seems lots of advise on bf, but not so much on formula feeding and hope you cope with.
Thank you!

 

[MindUtopia]

I think maybe this isn't what you're looking to hear, but why not just feed her when she's hungry and do away with the complicated schedule? Babies don't get hungry on schedule, just like we don't, and that may be why it's seeming more complicated than it is. It's harder in the early weeks, but by 14 weeks, I found it was really obvious when my daughter was getting hungry. When she started to show signs of hunger, I fed her. It didn't matter what time it was. We just had a feed when she woke up in the morning (whatever time that was because it wasn't always the same every day) and then a few hours later, when she started to be hungry again, I fed her more. I didn't stress about the times or the amounts, because they'll always vary and change day to day. Unless she is projectile vomiting after feeds (a sign of an overly full stomach, which can happen in babies who have reflux and eat to calm the reflux rather than because they're hungry), then I'd offer her as much as she wants at any given feed. This might mean making up more than you need just in case she actually wants more. If she's finishing every bottle, I'd be offering more. I was told the best amount is the amount that gets finished about half the time with some left over the other half of the time. That way you always know she has had as much as she wants. Then once she's been fed as much as she wants, just wait until she's hungry again. There's no need to follow a schedule and in fact, in a few months when you add in solids, fitting solids, plus milk, plus naps in during the day on a strict schedule will probably drive you mad! They know what they need if you just follow their lead and it makes it much easier on us as well.

But if it gives you any reassurance, at 14 weeks, my daughter was on probably 8 feeds a day (2 of which were at night, so 6 during the day, usually about every 3-4 hours, 24 hours a day). She didn't have as much volume-wise per feed, but she's always had a very small appetite until she started on solids and ate much less than most babies the same age. She didn't drop down to 4 feeds a day though until about maybe 10 months. So I would agree with your health visitor that 4 feeds a day, especially if there are none during the night, doesn't seem like enough at 14 weeks. Really it's quite normal for them to eat every 2-4 hours still, so that sounds about right.

 

[Kitters]

I agree with PP, do away with the schedule and listen to your baby.

Last week I was with friends who both still BF, and one said "the way you bottle feed is so lovely" and she meant that I follow what DS wants rather than what the formula box says he needs, whereas other mums she knows stick to a schedule to get a certain amount in each day. I'd never thought about it before, but I suppose I do this as it's what I'm used to after BF on demand for the first two months.

I know there is a lot of talk about FF babies overeating etc, but I don't really think that's possible when they're this little. When DS doesn't want anymore, he pushes the teat out.

At 14 weeks he probably had around 30oz a day. We make 6oz bottles, sometimes he drinks in one go, and other times he has a few oz, then a nap or play, then the rest. We keep a rough count on how much he's had each day, but unless it was really low I'm not concerned.

I think that FF like this is much easier than sticking to a schedule, and hopefully a lot less stressful for you!

 

[mel28nicole]

I agree with doing away a schedule. Especially if you're waking her to eat. She'll wake when she's hungry. DD typically goes 3 1/2-4 hours between bottles, sometimes even Longer if she naps. It will also be a lot easier on yourself. I know some people complain about preparing a bottle on the spot, but if you have an idea of when shell be hungry, you can prepare a bottle around that time and when she shows signs of hunger, then feed her.

And just offer the amount she wants. If she's finishing a 7oz bottle no problem, offer 8 and she what she does. DD typically has 5 bottles in a day, 6oz each and that's all she wants, and that's even with food inbetween. There's no right or wrong with how much they eat so if she wants more, give her more.

 

[StranjeGirl]

I think you might have to play around with it. I personally like schedules. If I feed on demand both my kids would have been up multiple times a night to eat. I try to keep my 14 week old on schedule (it's a schedule she created and now I stick to it) if you want to feed her a little less each feed you could wake her when you go to bed at night and offer her some then. Mine often falls asleep around 8pm and I have her on my lap. I feed her and change her around 9:30 and then put her to bed. If I don't she is up at 2am starving. I would just try tweaking the schedule a bit to find what works. It might take a couple weeks to get it perfect!