@ravenblue Your message is my life. Preach!! 
@ravenblue New moms should be given a pass on some things...like smacking someone across the face
@ravenblue I feel like the only one who actually kinda liked cluster feeding (after the "omfg my boobs hurt so goddamned bad" phase) because it meant I could plop myself somewhere comfy, stick the baby on the boob for a few hours, and veg for a bit.
Now he's 15 months, not interested AT ALL in the boob anymore, and how dare I make him sit still for even 30 seconds while I change his diaper or something.
Now he's 15 months, not interested AT ALL in the boob anymore, and how dare I make him sit still for even 30 seconds while I change his diaper or something.
@ravenblue 3 week growth spurt was the worst!
katrina2017
New member
@luv100 Ah, yes. The rage is so real. My DD is now 15 wks and, in an ironic switch, my rage inducer is now when my MIL is concerned when dd doesnt eat "right on schedule." Like she babysat for us for the afternoon and when we got back was all in a tizzy because dd didn't want to eat very much and just wasn't very interested (she powers down her bottles in the AM then usually tapers off in the PM anyway. Otherwise, she was just fine. MIL was so concerned, freaking out.
It's called not being hungry. Ever feel that way? Then the endless "is she eating enough" "is she gaining weight" "do you think she is sick". Nope. Pretty sure she just was not hungry at the time. She is human after all.
It's called not being hungry. Ever feel that way? Then the endless "is she eating enough" "is she gaining weight" "do you think she is sick". Nope. Pretty sure she just was not hungry at the time. She is human after all.
katrina2017
New member
Geez all the concern about this stuff. My dad recently asked if my two year old was gaining weight ok because all she would eat at brunch was fruit. She ate a whole plate of fruit but wouldn't touch the "main" dish which was breakfast pizza. This kid is hit or miss with eggs in general and doesn't eat pizza at all. And she's TWO! Two year olds are notoriously finicky and ornery creatures. She's perfectly fine, she's just two.
katrina2017
New member
Kids are picky! And at that age, I would be thankful that if her pickiness meant she ate more fruit vs. only liking crackers or something. At least it is healthy and has fiber. Sometimes I think people don't know what to ask/talk about and so a baby's weight gain is an easy, obvious topic. Meh.
christinajustus
New member
@katrina2017 Omg I hated this with my MIL. Incessantly asking "Why is he crying?" Coz hes a fucking baby????? "Here give him to me."
Um no, get your hands off my kid or I will cut them off.
Um no, get your hands off my kid or I will cut them off.
christianmedic
New member
katrina2017
New member
@christianmedic About to breastfeed for the first time with baby number two, what is cluster feeding (close feeding times?), and how do you know when it's needed? Can you just kinda tell? Super worried about the differences in breastfeeding, and if I'll do okay.
rebecca311
New member
@katrina2017 They just want to eat all the freaking time. You feed them then 45 minutes they’re crying for more and you think they’re crazy because you literally just fed them. But no, you check their diaper, cuddle them, swaddle them, burp them, try to get them to nap. Nothing. They wanted to eat again.
Usually it’s when they’re going through a growth spurt and they are working on getting your milk supply up since the more they feed the more you produce.
Usually it’s when they’re going through a growth spurt and they are working on getting your milk supply up since the more they feed the more you produce.
katrina2017
New member
@rebecca311 Okay, thank you!!!
@rebecca311 3 week growth spurt is peak cluster feeding for a lot of babies!
truthseeker615
New member
@katrina2017 One really important tip is that when the clusterfeeding periods begin, it may make you doubt your supply because baby might seem super frustrated and never satisfied despite being on the boob for hours on end. As long as the baby has regular wet diapers and seems to be gaining weight at doctors appointments, your supply is FINE, and the cluster feeding is really important to further increase your supply.
Apparently quite a few women get concerned about this during the growth spurt that happens around 6 weeks and begin to supplement or quit altogether. Even though I knew all this, i thought it was going to lose it during those couple of days, it just didn’t seem possible that she could want to nurse SO much.
Apparently quite a few women get concerned about this during the growth spurt that happens around 6 weeks and begin to supplement or quit altogether. Even though I knew all this, i thought it was going to lose it during those couple of days, it just didn’t seem possible that she could want to nurse SO much.
@truthseeker615 This was really good to read. Thank you. I think my son is going through a growth spurt at 2.5 weeks (well, I know he is, he’s substantially chunkier than he was two days ago) and I’ve gone from having an oversupply to using up my stash in the freezer and pumping or breastfeeding every hour. I seriously feel like I’m producing less milk but I keep having to remind myself that he’s eating twice as much.
katrina2017
New member
My babies cluster fed for an hour or more almost every evening the first 2-3 months. This is also normal but for me was stressful because at first I thought my first baby was doing this because she was starving. My breasts felt empty and I was convinced I wasn't making enough and she was still hungry. In reality, they often cluster feed in the evening because you have mostly thicker fatty milk left at that time and it's work to get it out. So they work a bit and it tires them out and they fall asleep. But soon after they wake up again crying to be fed. Rinse and repeat. But eventually they have tired themself out getting that thick fatty milk, and have a big full belly and they're all set up for a good chunk of sleep! So just hunker down in the evening with a drink and a snack because it's normal if a little tiring. The longest my daughter did this was 6pm-2am (only once thank god) but 6-8pm was standard.
katrina2017
New member
Thanks for all the tips guys it's really reassuring!!!
christinajustus
New member
@christianmedic I would poke him in the eye
christianmedic
New member
@christinajustus I found it satisfying to shoot boob juice at him.
alisonm328
New member
@luv100 It's worse when they turn out to have reflux and it's not the puke kind so they're constantly eating and gaining over 1lb a week and triple their birth weight in a few months and people are like "guess you don't make enough milk" "wow the baby is hungry again". "he's hungry that's so sad". I don't think anybody could keep up with that unless the baby is on the boob every 1 to 2 hours. That's what happened. It was torture.
There was a mom on here asking why the baby suddenly dropped 8oz of formula from their day after going on reflux medicine. Sometimes babies just want to comfort eat or it settles them. It's hard enough to figure out without having a backseat driver all the time. I feel you.
There was a mom on here asking why the baby suddenly dropped 8oz of formula from their day after going on reflux medicine. Sometimes babies just want to comfort eat or it settles them. It's hard enough to figure out without having a backseat driver all the time. I feel you.