Newborn Not Eating

I am very familiar with this topic, as our third child just turned five weeks old. Before we left the hospital, we were told that it is very normal for newborns to want to sleep all the time....meaning through feedings and everything. I think we all expect newborns to sleep a lot, but we also expect them to want to feed! This isn't always the case at first. We were told to never allow baby to go longer than 3 hours between nursing during the day and never longer than 4 hours at night. Yes it sucks, but this means that you may need to set a timer and work hard to wake baby up for feedings. As baby gets bigger, and is showing appropriate signs of growth (weight gain, wet diapers, etc.), then you can go longer between feedings (although I would suggest forcing yourself to stick to the 3 hours tops between feedings during the day so that you get your longer stretches at night -- at least until baby is 7 or 8 months old). For right now, wake baby up for feedings and set the timer so you don't go too long. Change baby's diaper before feedings to help wake him up. Leave him undressed if you need to. Use a cool washcloth on his feet if you're desperate. Strategically schedule bath time before a feeding. Make sure the room is nice and bright. Also remember that it is natural for baby to take about 3 gulps, then pause for a breath, then take three more gulps, etc.

Know that this is probably quite normal, but do keep an eye on things. It shouldn't last for long....all of our babies were much more alert after about 2 weeks. Our babies were also growing well and able to sleep through the night at 6 and 7 weeks respectively (we'll see on baby #3) -- exclusively breastfed as well.

Good luck and congratulations!

Most newborns sleep about 20 hours per day. Call the docs number and get the after hours number. There's no reason you can't call the doc's number and he'll call you back.

If kiddo isn't wetting his diaper he needs to go to the ER now. If he's dehydrated he needs urgent medical attention now. If he's dehydrated he could ...well, if he's not wetting often he needs to go to the ER now.

Newborns sleep a lot, a lot more than they are awake. They sleep, wake up and eat a bit (their tummies are very small, think marble sized at birth), then go back to sleep. This is very normal. A good indicator of how much he's eating is to monitor his wet/dirty diapers. At first, especially if your milk hasn't come in yet, there might not be too many. Once your milk comes in, they will pick up quite a bit. Here's a good link for what to expect on newborns nursing:
http://kellymom.com/bf/normal/newborn-nursing/

newborns usually spend the first 2 weeks of their lives sleeping...maybe up for 2 to 3 hours out of 24. They grow the most in their first year of life...

if he's not losing weight? He's fine. He, being a newborn, will NOT allow himself to go hungry. he's still having wet diapers, right? if the urine is NOT bright yellow, it's okay. If it's dark. Call your pediatrician. If he hasn't had a wet diaper in 8 hours, that's not normal.

DO NOT wake him up to nurse. Pump. So your milk supply can get up and store what you pump.

I want you to BREATHE!!! It's okay...BREATHE....let it out slowly...

If you are concerned about latching on - contact your local le leche league - they will have someone help you. Your pediatrician might have a lactation consultant on staff as well - call them and ask. In the meantime - PUMP to get your milk supply going.

Congratulations and good luck!

It is good you have a call into the Pediatrician.
Our daughter lost 1 lb in 2 days. I noticed she was starting to look like a strange color. I was worried.

I also felt like you , like she was just not eating enough.. People told me it was normal, but I just did not feel like she was doing well.

Went to the Pediatrician and sure enough she had Jaundice..

ALWAYS follow your mommy heart and brain.

Hang in there. Keep a record of his diapers. How many changes are needed, Wet or Bm's.. This will help the doctor.

The doctor released you from the hospital when your son was 2 days old and he wasn't latched on?

How many wet diapers does your son have?

Is he yellow? Yellowing happens more frequently than people realize in infants, it's jaundice and their new livers don't work really well at first.

He should be sleeping about 20 hours a day for the first two to three weeks, if not longer.

I would not wake him up to nurse. If he is NOT getting wet diapers? Then you need to call the pediatrician.

Call http://kellymom.com/ - they will help you...or you can call the Le Leche League - http://www.lllofaz.org/tricitychapter.htm

Our pediatrician has a lactation consultant on staff, does yours? did you ask?

You can pump - the hospital should have showed you how to pump before you left the hospital. Even the nurses there in the hospital should have helped you with nursing. I don't understand how a hospital would release you if you weren't nursing or latching on. Did you tell them you were going to formula feed and they let you go?

Don't try to judge how much a breastfed baby is eating by how much you think he is getting... judge based on the amount of wet diapers they put out and weight gain.

He should be putting out at least 5-6 WET diapers a day.
Poop is sporadic in breastfed newborns... it is normal for them not to go every day, and some even go a few days.

As a newborn, he will have well-child checkups pretty frequently, and his pediatrician will be able to help you monitor his weight gain to make sure he is getting enough.

If you are truly worried, you can strip him down and try nursing him in nothing but a diaper. Sometimes, the cooler air will keep him from falling asleep quite so easily. Stroking the cheek and back to stimulate him a bit sometimes helps as well.(My DD was a sleeper too... I would put her to breast, and it would take 45 minutes- an hour to get her to eat enough because she wouldn't stay awake. Nurse him while sitting in the sunlight. Or, as a LAST resort, try pumping or hand-expressing some milk and bottle feed him (or use a little syringe to slowly, and carefully, drip it into his mouth.) I would try to avoid these though if you want to nurse him, as it can cause nipple confusion in some babies. (Though, my DD had to be bottle fed expressed milk for her first week due to medical issues she and I both had...)

You need to count his wet diapers. You also need to get him to the ped the moment they open. Have them weigh him. If he's not eating, he needs to get to the hospital. A newborn can go downhill FAST if you don't deal with this right away. AND social services can take the baby from you if you don't have proof that you've taken him in to the doctor or hospital, IF things turn south really fast. You do not want that to happen.

Sleeping all the time, even during eating time, is normal. Never being hungry is not.

My oldest child was completely disinterested in eating. I was told to only feed her when she cried, but, even as a newborn, she'd go 6 to 8 hours without crying. Then, she'd stop just because she had the nipple in her mouth, even though she wasn't eating. The milk would be dripping down my body, but I could hardly get her to eat any. She just didn't want to.

When I told the doctor, my family and my friends, they all said, "A baby will not starve themselves. You're being paranoid." Then she lost about 2 1/2 lbs. - in a 7 pound baby, that's a lot! Suddenly, everyone else was freaking out, and I was angry, saying, "Haven't you been listening to me?"

I had to give up nursing and give her bottles. She hated them and would push them away, even when I could hear her stomach growling. But, since bottles dribble into the mouth, she would swallow, and I could finally get food into her. I woke her every 4 hours and fed her whether she liked it or not. Eventually, she learned to eat, but she never, ever had more than 6 oz at a time. Usually, it was 3 or 4 oz.

She gained weight and was healthy, which was the whole goal. I was really depressed about not being able to breastfeed, and I HATED it when other people said things like, "You didn't give it a chance. You gave up too soon," but I had to do what was best for my daughter!

(She was 4 years old before she ever really understood hunger. I remember the exact day she said, "You know what? My tummy feels better after I eat.")

Try whatever you can, don't give up, don't be depressed, and don't let it scare you or get you down! Hang in there!

Where on earth did you have that baby? Pretty sure it is not legal to release you the day you had the baby! Liability wise sending home a baby that isn't feeding? not good either. At least I figure you were released the same day because if not what prevented you from working with the lactation consultant on Monday or Tuesday before you were released?

I'm another recommendation for Kellymom.com
Is your baby having wet diapers at all? How many a day the last couple days?
Do the eyes have a little bit of a yellow tint where it should be white? That is a sign of jaundice. Jaundice can make a baby sleepy.
You already have a call to your pediatrician which is a good thing.
Try skin to skin. Strip baby down to just a diaper and go shirtless yourself.
Throw a light receiving blanket over you both if it's a little chilly.
Make sure your house isn't too hot.
The hospital would not have let you go home if your baby wasn't making enough wet diapers while there. I remember being asked for the short time while I was in the hospital with my first if he'd had wet diapers.
You can call the hospital as well and ask to speak to the on call nurse tonight if you need to. This is what they are there for.

Find another LC. Call a warm line for another center. Go to Kellymom.com if no one is up right now. Visit a La Leache League meeting.

My DD slept a lot at first, too, but ultimately nursed for 2.5 years. Keep asking for help til you get it. His output will tell you about his input, and I found Kellymom.com to be comforting.

If the problem is a poor latch, until you can see a LC, you should look up Kellymom's tips for alternate feeding. You can spoon feed a baby your milk if necessary, though do so carefully.

Does he eat? Even if it doesn't seem like much? Does he have wet diapers? If he has wet diapers, he is eating.

If he doesn't have wet diapers, then I would give the pediatrician a call. While it is true that newborns do not each much in the first couple of days, you want to make sure they eat and are hydrated. I'm just not at all sure when it becomes something to be concerned about. But if he isn't peeing, you want to check with your doctor tonight and not wait until the morning.

And, yes, you can call your ped 24/7!!!

My second was a no-latch, no-suck baby. I don't know if that's the case with your baby. I would have him evaluated by an independent lactation consultant. Call your local La Leche League leader, they can recommend someone and also give you some support/guidance. The Ped's office is likely to tell you to try a bottle. They typically don't have much training in breastfeeding or techniques for things like no latch/no suck, flat or inverted nipples, increasing milk supply, etc.
It's okay for newborns to sleep a lot. A baby just a couple of days old may sleep 20 hours.
If your baby isn't actively nursing, he's probably not actively eating. It's okay for him to sleep at the breast, but are you seeing his jaw work, are you hearing him gulp/swallow? Is he wetting 8+ diapers a day with pale urine? If you see that he is not, or that his lips are peely and his soft spot his sinking it, those are signs of dehydration and intervention may be needed.
If he's not really nursing, you are not getting much stimulation, which is needed for your milk to come in. Time to pump. That'll give you the stimulation that you need. If your milk is in, try to pump just enough to get a letdown before you put him to the breast, so he doesn't have to work so hard to get it.
Good luck!

Hi, when my son was born I was told that babies only initially need 5-7 mls (1ounce=30mls) to feel full. I was also told to make sure he was peeing and pooping 8 times per day. If he was doing that then he was eating. If you are concerned I would definitely call the doctor. In the meantime maybe you can keep track of when he is awake, eating and diapers. Congrats and best of luck!

Assuming he is a normal weight, feed him every 3-4 hours. Just get yourselves into that routine now (it will make life a lot easier going forward). If you're trying to feed him ALL the time, of course he never seems hungry - if you snacked every hour all day, you wouldn't be hungry for meals, either. As long as he is wetting his diaper several times per day and is not losing weight, he is okay. So, pick a wake-up time (say, 6am) and feed him. Have him be awake for a little while, and then put him down for his morning nap around 8:30. When he wakes up at 9:30-10am, feed him. Have him be awake for a little while. Put him down for his afternoon nap at noon. He will probably sleep until 2pm. Feed him. He will be awake for a little while, at which point you can give him his bath, put him in his bouncy chair or bassinet while you fix dinner, etc. Feed him around 5:30, and then by 6pm, he will go to sleep for the night. If he wakes at night, feed him. He may be one of those babies who can go a little longer at night before he wakes up. Good for you, if so! My babies would be hungry at 10pm and 2am at first, and then at some point they drop the 2am feeding, and eventually the 10pm feeding (that happens when they hit 9-10 pounds in weight).

Anyway, maybe just call your pedi to be sure, but I would just try to get onto a consistent schedule/routine, so you and your baby know when mealtimes are, and so he will be good and hungry when it's time to nurse. If he's a bit hungry, he will be more likely to get the richer hind milk (instead of the more watery foremilk), which will keep him full for a longer time and provide him with more calories. Also, keep in mind that at this point, your milk hasn't come in yet, so there really isn't much for him to be drinking yet - and that is normal.

Congratulations on your new baby!