Why Does My Baby Want to Breastfeed All the Time?
How often should a baby breastfeed?
How many hours should there be between feeds?
What does it mean when your baby suddenly wants to feed all the time?
And why do your breasts suddenly feel so soft - have you run out of milk?
These are some of the most common worries in the early weeks of breastfeeding.
The reassuring answer is that frequent feeding is often completely normal. Sometimes, what feels like the problem is actually your baby’s way of creating the solution.
In the first few days after birth
Breastfeeding is something both you and your baby are learning.
A newborn may not yet be very efficient at feeding, and you may still be figuring out positioning and attachment.
Young babies also tire easily, so they may need frequent feeds, sometimes short ones, sometimes surprisingly long ones.
In the first few days, your breasts produce colostrum: the concentrated first milk your baby needs in small amounts. I like to think of it as astronaut food capsules - tiny quantities, packed with exactly what is needed.
Frequent feeding helps stimulate your breasts and supports the transition to a larger supply of mature milk.
So in those first days, it is normal and important for your baby to breastfeed frequently around the clock.
Some feeds may last 40 minutes or even longer.
Some babies, however, are particularly sleepy after birth, especially following a long or difficult labour.
They may need extra support to wake and feed effectively.
What can you do?
If you’re already receiving breastfeeding support but your baby is still struggling to attach and feed effectively, or breastfeeding is still painful, seek additional help from a private lactation consultant. Don’t wait for the problem to resolve on its own - getting the right professional support early can save you unnecessary pain and help prevent your baby from not getting enough milk.
Try to breastfeed whenever your baby wants to feed. In these first few days, make recovery and caring for your baby your only priorities. Errands, visitors and everything else can wait.
Feeding according to your baby’s cues helps your body increase milk production and establish a strong milk supply that can continue to meet your baby’s needs throughout your breastfeeding journey. Missing feeds in these early days can affect your milk supply later on.During a feed, if your baby falls asleep at the breast or, alternatively, becomes frustrated after a short time, switch to the other breast, where milk is ready and available.
In the meantime, milk will continue to be produced in the first breast, and after some time on the second side you can switch your baby back again.
Switching between breasts can be helpful when you need to stimulate milk production. If your breasts feel full and your milk is flowing abundantly, there is no need to do this.If your baby is unable to breastfeed effectively or is not interested in feeding, it is very important to try to express milk about every three hours. This helps stimulate milk production, protects your potential milk supply for the weeks and months ahead, and also helps prevent engorgement.
If your baby is sleepy and not interested in breastfeeding, spend plenty of time skin-to-skin, either with you or your partner. Leave your baby in just a nappy, remove your top, place them directly against your bare chest and cover yourselves together with clothing or a blanket. Skin-to-skin contact can help your baby feel calm and secure and may give them the energy and motivation to begin looking for the breast and trying to feed. Skin-to-skin is beneficial for every baby.
If, despite all of this, your baby still seems unsettled, is not getting enough milk, is not passing stools, or is losing significant weight, seek advice promptly from your midwife or a lactation consultant. Supplementary expressed milk or formula may be needed. Ask about alternatives to bottle-feeding in these early days, while continuing to express regularly to build your milk supply.
If your milk has come in but your baby is still regularly feeding for more than 40 minutes, seems unsettled much of the time, or continues to lose weight, seek professional breastfeeding support. A lactation consultant can assess your milk supply, your baby’s attachment and milk transfer, and whether anything is preventing your baby from breastfeeding effectively.
So what is a “growth spurt”?
A growth spurt is a term used to describe a period when your baby breastfeeds more frequently than usual and it feels as though they want to feed all the time. This is a normal part of breastfeeding: your baby stimulates and empties the breasts more frequently, helping increase milk production to meet their changing needs.
You may also hear this described as cluster feeding.
How can you recognise a growth spurt?
Bf breastfeeding has become more or less established, your baby seems to be getting enough milk, and suddenly they start feeding every 1½–2 hours, always want the second breast as well, your breasts feel “emptier” than usual and your baby is less settled between feeds - you are probably experiencing a growth spurt.
Unlike a gradual decrease in milk supply, a growth spurt usually happens suddenly.
Your baby’s frequent feeding is not the problem - it is the solution.
A breastfed baby has some influence over milk production.
By feeding more frequently, switching sides more often and removing more milk from the breasts, your baby signals that demand has increased, and your body responds by increasing milk production.
If you allow your baby to breastfeed frequently, this will usually settle within 24–48 hours as your body begins producing more milk. Your baby can then return to their usual feeding pattern, getting more milk at each feed to meet their increased needs.
What should you do during a growth spurt?
Don’t panic. This is a normal process and does not, in itself, mean there is a problem.
Breastfeed on demand and switch sides if your breast feels empty and your baby still wants to feed.
For these couple of days, make more room for rest and reduce your usual activities.
This gives your baby the opportunity to feed frequently and your body the chance to increase milk production.Think of it as quality time. Read a book, watch a series or a film, or invite a good friend over for company. If you have older children, you may need some extra help to free you up.
Avoid supplementing with formula unless you are unable to make yourself available for the frequent feeds or your baby is genuinely struggling. Supplementing can reduce the stimulation your breasts receive and slow down the increase in milk production. Your baby may eagerly take a bottle, but that does not necessarily mean they were starving - milk from the breast may simply be coming more slowly and requiring more effort than usual.
Be patient. The effort will pay off. This is a point at which many women begin to think they have run out of milk. They offer a bottle, see their baby eagerly accept it and become even more convinced that they do not have enough. But when a bottle replaces a breastfeed, the breast receives less stimulation, so the body does not get the message to increase production. More bottles may then be needed because the body was not given the opportunity to adjust milk production to the baby’s needs - and from there, the move away from breastfeeding can happen quickly.
If more than 48 hours have passed without improvement, contact a lactation consultant to check whether the frequent feeding has another cause and to help you resolve it.
When do growth spurts happen?
These timings are only approximate and can vary considerably from one mother and baby to another.
Around 10–14 days
The first noticeable growth spurt may happen around 10–14 days. This is also around the time when the initial fullness or engorgement you may have experienced in the first few days often begins to settle.
Between 3 and 6 weeks
This growth spurt may be related to an increase in your own activity. As you return to more of your usual activities, you may be less available for breastfeeding and your body is using energy for more than milk production. Your baby responds by feeding more frequently - helping maintain milk production, making sure they are getting enough, and making sure you are still available to them.
Around 3 months and again around 6 months
Your baby may breastfeed more frequently as a way of increasing milk production to meet their growing needs.
Other times your baby may breastfeed more frequently
When you or your baby are unwell - breastfeeding provides your baby with antibodies and comfort and supports recovery. Your own illness may also temporarily affect milk production.
When your baby is uncomfortable - wind, teething or other discomfort can lead to more frequent breastfeeding as a way to soothe and settle.
When your baby has been overstimulated - after a busy day, lots of visitors, being out and about, or coming home from hospital. Breastfeeding gives your baby something familiar and constant, helping regulate all the other stimulation and reconnect with their safe place.
When you are experiencing strong emotions - adrenaline, sadness or depression can temporarily affect milk production or make let-down more difficult. The milk may be there, but when you are upset it can feel as though nothing is coming, only for it to flow again once you feel calmer. Your baby may respond by feeding more frequently. Give yourself permission to rest, slow down and relax during feeds. Breathe deeply, visualise your milk flowing, talk to someone who lifts you up, or watch something that makes you laugh - whatever helps you settle and let go.
Do you think your baby might be going through a growth spurt, but you’re not sure? Are you struggling to increase your milk supply, or worried that it may have dropped? Do you have other concerns or questions about breastfeeding?
Contact a lactation consultant for professional support and guidance, so you can breastfeed successfully in the way you want to.
Naama Sela - Birth Doula and Childbirth Educator, former lactation consultant
