Newborn nursing for 7hrs straight and still hungry?

[MittensKittens]

Hi all,

My friend gave birth yesterday. Her baby is very large, and has problems with sleeping, and is very colicky. She has nursed for seven hours straight and is still at it now. My friend thinks the baby is hungry, and is considering supplementing with formula.

Any advice at all? What do you think could be the reason, and what would you do? My friend nursed her older child for two years without any problems, and I know she is extremely committed to breastfeeding. She is stuck in a Serbian maternity hospital without any help, and in very anti BF conditions, so I'm kind of relying on you for some sound advice here.

Thanks!

[blessedwithboys]

of course the baby is hungry, colostrum isnt very filling. the baby needs to nurse as much as possible to encourage the milk to come in. if the pactch isnt causing her pain, there is no good reason to limit the amount of time he spends suckling.

giving formula is the beginning of weaning. if she is truly committed to bf, she wont want to begin weaning a 1 day old.

as for sleeping problems, i dont believe i've ever heard of a one day old having problems NOT sleeping enough. is he too sleepy, maybe from labor meds? that's one thing, but after my btdt with ds1, i'd be thrilled to have a newbie that actually stayed awake long enough to feed.

[PatioGardener]

reassure her it is normal. lansinoh will help her nipples - and to take pain meds if needed! tell her this is good - baby knows what to do and by day 5 it will bebetter. she can do this.

nak

[beckyand3littlemonsters]

I had this with all my lo's perticulary if they fell asleep at the breast they seemed to not want to let go.
also as a pp said colostrum is such a small amount that they need to feed more because although it does fill their tiny tummy it is so full of goodness it digests very quickly which is why new born breastfed babies tend to poop lots.

[eleonrauis]

Maybe the baby is just nursing for comfort. My DS had a rough couple days adjusting to life outside the womb. I spent most of our hospital stay pacing around the room with him (he refused to nurse more than a minute at a time until after my milk came in). Tell her to just hang on, it will get better.

[ewe+lamb]

If the baby is only a couple of days old then this is normal, he's stimulating the breast so that when her milk comes in (around day 3-5) there is going to be a bountiful supply, keep posting if your friend needs any more help - we are here for that also if possible look up the LLL website - maybe international and see if there are groups in and around where she is - hard I think though. Just a reminder a newborn's tummy is only the size of a small marble, growing to the size of a large marble by day 3, then the size of a pingpong ball by day 10, tell her not to panic and relax with a good book and either close the curtains or put a sign up on her door asking for her not to be disturbed or pretend to sleep if someone is bothering her with unwanted bfing advice, she's doing a great job, keep reassuring her and build up her confidence which will empower her to continue.