Demand Feeding -when to stop?

Hi Flake
I'm a first time mum, but I've been using the EASY routine from the Baby Whisperer, which is Eat, Activity, Sleep, You.
I feed DS when he wakes up (takes about 15/20 mins,sometimes longer), then activity, which is nappy change, mat time/cuddles etc, then sleep. The Y is for You, so you get some time to yourself. On average Rhys is up for about 1 to 2 hours at a time and sleeps anywhere from 1-3 hours during the day and at night, sleeps 4-6 hours for the first stint, then 3-4 hours.
However, things can change if there's a growth spurt etc.
I hope you get things sorted for Holly

It does sound like she is snacking, so I would definately try to lengthen as suggested above. It is really annoying when they are sleeping short lengths of time during the day. But I would try really hard to stretch out your feeds to2 1/2- 3hrly. However this may not mean she will sleep any better, my boy feeds 3 hrly and is currently sleeping terribly.

And maybe if you are continuallly comforting her with a feed, start trying to give her a dummy instead, because its the sucking that she wants not food. For us dummies took a while for him to get used to but he loves his now.

And I don't really enjoy breastfeeding, and have often thought about ditching it so I completely know how you feel, but I can imagine having to make up a bottle takes a bit of effort, especially in the middle of the night, so formula feeding really wouldn't be any easier.

Hi Flake

I am a first time Mum also and I was in the same boat as you, beginning to hate BF because I felt like I was doing it all the time, to try and settle Heidi, but I then read "Babywise" and it suggests the 3 hourly thing also and the EASY approach which we started a couple of weeks ago and I also started writing everything down e.g. time she wakes up and time she goes to sleep, how long it takes her to self settle etc. Since then I have found BF so much easier as I know that I will only be feeding her every 3 hours (has been more often lately in the heat say every 2.5 hours) and I have been able to go out and do things. If I am unsure if she wants more I offer it and if she does not feed really well I know she is just snacking. Heidi also has reflux and can be colicky so feeding her too much just makes things worse as well.

I must say not only am I a much happier Mum but she is a much happier baby and they say the like to know what is going to happen next and this way she does. For the past couple of nights she has slept from 8 - 6 she does cry out at about 4ish and I put the dummy in first to see if she settles (which she has) and if not I will feed her. We have been giving a FF just before bed, which seems to help and also means if I had to go out at night    it would be easy for DH to do that last feed.

At the end of the day you have to do what is right for you, because the happier you are the happier your baby will be, and if you want to FF then you should do it and not worry about what anyone else thinks, no body else has a Hollie Mia do they? so they cannot comment! You are meant to do what is right for YOU! and this will be the right thing for Hollie.

Personally, I think that demand feeding is really just for the first couple of weeks. After that they are able to go longer between feeds. I found that demand feeding Dominic lead to very bad habits, he became a snacker, like Hollie, and that affected my milk supply very badly.
That might actually be something to consider...that your milk supply might have dropped off a bit and she is not getting enough to sleep through, and then too tired to feed properly...nasty cycle and completely exhausting for you.
Everyone at the moment says that you should demand feed but it depends on what is best for you and baby. If you really hate breastfeeding but you still want Hollie to have the benefits of breastmilk you could consider expressing or supplement feeding with formula. It won't make you a 'bad' mum to give a couple of formula bottles a day or a top up bottle after a breastfeed. The idea is to encourage her to take a bit more at each feed so that she can sleep better and go longer between feeds, and at the same time start to extend the time between feeds.
Maybe a trip to your local family centre could help as well.

I have a question - if I get DH to give a bottle of expressed milk or formula in evening so I can get some sleep, should I be expressing to keep up my supply? I am worried that if I feed expressed milk or formula then my supply will decrease?

If you have a strong supply you may want to express off that feed for your own comfort. Plus it is always good to have some breastmilk in the freezer for when they start solids (great for mixing in with foods when you first introduce them) or for some reason you can't feed.
Also, if you give a bottle of expressed breastmilk or formula at the same time everyday without expressing then your body will adapt to that new routine and you may find (not immediately but after a while) that at that time of the day you do not make much milk. You could always express the usual feed off and just give it in a bottle, that way your milk supply won't be adversely affected.

Cool, thanks for all the suggestions/comments