How Often Should a 4 Month Old Feed
If you're looking to get your 4 month on a schedule, today I'm sharing our daily routine. I will be posting monthly updates to our daily routine and updated schedules as my baby gets older. So stay tuned for more schedules to come! Today, I'm sharing the 4 month old breastfeeding schedule we are currently on.
Up until this point, we haven't had a schedule, which is usually normal with newborns. Newborn's sleep schedules are erratic so it is hard to get into a consistent routine before 4 months of age. Bedtimes can also be late and erratic the first 3 months so we've been managing a night owl schedule. Now that our baby is 4 months her bedtime is drifting earlier and I expect this to continue as she gets older. This is the perfect time to get your baby into a routine as they naturally settle into a 4-5 nap schedule.
Here is our 4 month old breastfeeding schedule:
8am – Wake Up & Nurse
9:30am – Nap
11am – Nurse
12:00pm – Nap
2pm – Nurse
3pm – Nap
5pm – Nurse
6pm – Nap
8pm – Nurse / Bottle (We do a pumped bottle from 8pm onward)
8:30pm – 9pm Bed
*Sometimes there is a middle of the night feed around 5am. It is common for baby to still get up 1-2x per night after the first 5-8 hour stretch at this age.
Note: If your baby wakes up earlier, adjust the times above accordingly. For example, if your baby wakes up at 7am, then bedtime should be around 7:30-8pm.
How many naps for a 4 month old?
As you can see our 4 month old is napping 4 times a day now. This schedule has naturally emerged from following a 1.5-2 hour wake time in between naps and trying to do an "Eat, Activity, Sleep" schedule. The "Eat, Activity, Sleep" schedule was introduced in the Baby Whisperer book and I have tried to implement this with both of my babies. The key premise here is that you want to feed your baby AFTER they are awake. This way they are not associating nursing with going to sleep and will likely sleep better at night. This isn't always possible to do this based on your baby's nap schedule. Some days the schedule may get thrown off and I do have to nurse right before my baby goes to sleep. And that's OK! Just try to implement as often as you can.
Naps at this age are typically 45 mins to an hour. Babies at this age haven't yet learned to connect their sleep cycles so it's common to have a nap that is just one sleep cycle. 4 month old babies usually nap 4-5 times a day. The key is that you're wanting your baby to get 15-16 total hours of sleep a day (including naps & night time). I space the first two naps 1.5 hours apart and the last 2 naps 2 hours apart. Babies are able to stay up longer stretches the later in the day, so I have found staggering the wake times like this has worked very well.
How often to nurse a 4 month old?
As far as nursing during the day, we are doing approx. 3 hour intervals in between nursing schedules. But I nurse on demand, and sometimes that means my baby is hungry before the 3 hours and I will feed her. If you want to do a similar 3 hour interval, I still recommend feeding on demand but keeping the 3 hour schedule in mind.
4 Month Old Breastfeeding Schedule
You don't need to stick to a schedule to the T. Every day will be different and you can adapt and change it as you need to. The key elements of a schedule for a 4 month old is knowing that they will likely need at least 4 naps in the day. Carve out the approximate times for when those naps will be (morning, noon, early afternoon, late afternoon) and plan your day around that.
I hope you have found our 4 month old breastfeeding schedule helpful! Do you have your 4 month old on a schedule? If so, what schedule are you following?
To prepare for the 6 month schedule, print off or bookmark our 6 month old schedule too.
And if you need a little boost in your supply, make a batch of our lactation cookies recipe. They are really tasty and have great reviews!
Pin this schedule for later so you always have access to it!
Looking for more Breastfeeding Support?
- 6 month old feeding schedule
- 5 Benefits of Extended Breastfeeding
- Oatmeal Raisin Lactation Cookies Recipe
- Why Does My Breastmilk Smell Sour?
Source: https://www.thebestideasforkids.com/4-month-old-breastfeeding-schedule/
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