Demand or Scheduled BF?

My short answer is that your instincts are spot on and to bf on demand!

Cherikey congrats

He is still quite young so there is a need to watch how often he feeds - ie during the day he should not go more than 4 hours without a feed. At night I would say a 6 hour stretch (some would disagree).
The reason is that his sugar levels don't drop too much from not getting in milk as this will make them lathargic and they wouldn't wake for feeds and become more lathargic etc and you could land up in some trouble.

But once he is able to wake to demand his milk (it could be fairly soon) then you can switch to demand feeding.
Both my daughters go/went 2.5 - 3hours between daytime feeds and longer for one stretch at night (6-8hrs) and then woke 3-4hourly after that till the morning.
(They will drop the 10pm feed around 6 weeks old)
Typically they go 3-4hourly during the day but my girls, both very different in size, demand it sooner than that.

My baby is 12 weeks old now and from next week I'll be introducing some sterilized water to stretch her to 3 hourly during the day, as I am back at work next month and can only express enough for that and she is healthy and gaining weight well so doesnt need the extra milk at this stage.

You would also do well to consult with a breastfeeding specialist and take baby for weigh ins weekly the first 6 weeks until you know your milk is established.

Everyone tells a different story about offering which breast.
Some say offer both. Others say offer one per feed your supply will increase with the demand.
In the first 6 weeks I offered one, then burped her and then offered the other. But once my supply was established I only offered one, unless I can see she's still hungry then I offer another. She is a very hungry baby though and will drink 150mls a feed at this stage!

Congrats on your lb cherikey. He is beautiful!!!

You are very lucky he sleeps so long. I feed on demand but my lb, who is 6 weeks now just loves boobie juice. He feeds almost every hour to an hour and a half during the day - IF he sleeps pourly during the day During the night we go every 2 to 3 hours....

I wouldn't let your lb sleep for more than 5 hours cause their sugar levels can drop. You don't have to fully wake him during the night. Just put him on the breast and stroke his cheeks

Do not time feed how long he drinks on each breast. Your instincts are right.....feed him as long as possible on one breast before switching.

Good luck!

I agree to feed on demand. Can you imagine never being allowed to snack? Or being forced to eat at a certain time each day for a limited amount of time - when someone else decides that you're hungry? I know I would be grumpy!

I also demand feed. A goes for about 3 hours, if we are out and about during the day then she can go 3.5 to 4 hours. At night she can now go 6 or 7 hours.

I got the advice (it came from a midwife) to offer only one breast, lets say baby drinks at 7am and to stay with that breast for 2 hours, then from 9am offer the other (no timing how long they drink for) when they want to drink they drink, no pacifier, to get the best supply of hindmilk

Hi

I demand fed with my daughter, but she wanted milk every 3 hours or so. If your son is gaining weight fine, then I would suggest demand feeding and take his lead. I would also only wake him for feeds at night if he isn't gaining weight. If weight gain is on track then take his lead.

I think that your doing the right thing, with regards to how long he feeds on each breast, I wouldn't time it, let him feed as long as possible on one and when he is done switch to the other, just remember to start on the breast he drank the least from ( second breast) at the next feed

Hi Ladies

So my little man is 11 days old and am just wondering what's best??? Should i BF him every 3 to 3.5 hrs or should i wait for him to wake & then feed him on demand. With it being so warm he gets real cozy and can go 4 - 4.5 hrs before waking for a feed. At night he's sometimes going slightly longer as i'm waiting for him to wake me for his feeds.

The paed said to feed him 10min on each breast every 3 hrs, but i'm just managing to feed him approximately 13-15min per feed. I've also gone with instinct and letting him feed for as long as he wants on one breast before offering the next. It's usually about 12/13 min, thereafter we burp have a 5-10 rest and then he manages nearly another 5 min on the other breast. I do this to ensure he's getting the richer hindmilk. I didn't do this with my LG and she was very underweight in the beginning...

What are your thoughts?