How do I get my 5-week-old to take more at 10.30pm?
My little girl cannot seem to take a big enough feed at 10:30pm.
Summary of milk intake during day : 7am 3ozs, 10.15am. 3.5ozs, 2.00pm 4.5ozs, 5/6.15pm 5.5ozs, 10.30pm 3ozs, anything from 2.45-3.45 2.5ozs. She only ever takes 2.5ozs at the 2.45-3.45a.m. feed and makes it through to 7am, easily and often needs to be woken.
She follows the naps schedule for a 4-6 week old well, going down at 9.00 – 1hour, 11.30 2.5 hours, 4 – 1 hour and sleeps well in the evening.
My concern is the small intake at 10.30pm, during the night and at 7.00. Her milk intake seems to be at the wrong times. I think she could probably go through the night but I am not sure how to increase the 10.30pm feed.
I have read all your case studies and FAQ’s but cannot find the answer.
In the next week or so your daughter may well have another growth spurt. These often happen around six weeks. She may suddenly start demanding to have a little more at her daytime feeds, which could help her go through a little longer in the night.
As your daughter already needs waking at 7am and is not so interested in her feed then, begin to cut down by very small amounts you offer her in the night. It is important not to cut back too quickly and have your baby beginning to wake before 7am. Also by following the outline below, you should be able to increase her intake at 10pm which will help her go through a little further.
At present it would be a good idea to split the 10pm feed so that your daughter is awake for more than an hour at this time. Until your baby is at least three months, she will need to wake up properly somewhere between 7pm and 7am. Wake her at 10pm but make sure she is fully awake before beginning to feed her. Put on the lights and bring her into a room where the TV or radio are on. This may take 20 minutes or so. Give her 2-3ozs of her feed and let her have a gentle kick for about 20-30 minutes before you change her. Try not to be too over stimulating, as she does need to know that this is night time, but you need to encourage her to stay awake for a while. Change her, lower the lights and offer her the rest of her feed, possibly another 2ozs. Settle her back by 11.30pm. This method usually works well in getting a baby to go through a little longer in the night.