1st day bottlefeeding issues?

[andyt249]

our newborn doesnt seem 2 want 2 feed. its her 1st day home and shes doing a lot of sleeping. when we offer her a bottle she just spits it out. should we be concerned that she hasnt fed for over 6 hours or is this normal 1st day behaviour?

[x-jem-x]

my son is nine weeks old now and when we brought him home he didn't drink any milk for two days, it is normal, its just where the baby has swallowed some fluid inside the whomb. Once it has brought this up or pooed it out he/she will start to feed normally.

[Jules001]

Although it is a while back, when I had my first baby I thought that as he was sleeping I wouldn't wake him and he would wake when he was hungry, however the nurses got really cross and said that I should have woken him and not to let him go beyond 5 hours, they also took him away to do tests to see if he had a low blood sugar level. Personally, I would keep trying her with the bottle, is the teat size ok as she maybe taking in a bit more than she can deal with and that's why she is spitting it out.

[Lore]

Hi Andy - first of all, congratulations on the birth of your daughter :)

She should be feeding every 4 hours.

you could try a couple of things...

1. Is the teat too fast? you could buy a vary flow teat.
2. Is the bottle too hot or too cold?
3. Is She too warm? she might be so comfy and warm that all she wants to do is sleep.
4. Give her a bath to wake her up
5. Change the feeding position - if you cradle her, try sitting her on your lap so that you're face to face, supporting her head with one hand and the bottle in the other.

My little one's 14 months old and another on the way....we still have days when we think we're getting it all wrong. It'll all fall into place soon enough.

[Psychick]

Hi andy, how are things going with the new arrival today? Any better?

As well as trying the things already suggested, you may want to consider changing the milk you are using as not all milks suit all babies. I got it right for my daughter on the third attempt!

As Lore has said, newborns should be feeding every 4 hours so if she still isnt feeding properly, contact the health visitor for advice too.

[Le Chat]

I wish someone had told me this 12 yrs ago when I had my son! I would have been so relaxed and enjoyed the first day or two much more had I not have been worrying about his unwillingness to be fed!
Please enjoy this short time you have whilst your baby is sleeping on and off all the time - it will soon change!
(Presuming that baby is of a normal weight to begin with of course!)

[Le Chat]

I forgot to mention - If you had pethedine/dia morphine pain relief (as I did) it can leave baby sleepy for a couple of days, as it gets into their system as well.

[amanda bown]

Its completely normal, they seem to sleep forever once there home. She'l feed when shes ready. When she does show interest perseviere with her because she may seem to take ages. Id tried to feed my little girl when she'd woken up and as soon as she had a mouthful she'd drop to sleep again and i had to try ways to keep her awake. It all gets sorted out within a week. There little bodies just like yours have been through such an ordeal and are now absolutley shattered.