Should I supplement with formula to get my baby to sleep longer?

Question

My baby wakes up so frequently through the night.. about every hour. Should I try and supplement a bottle to get her to sleep better? I'm nervous to try. She's 2 months old exclusively breastfed and I don't want her to have a reaction. It's just sometimes she wakes up and doesn't go back to sleep for HOURS.

Answer

Formula doesn’t help babies sleep longer, it’s a myth. Sleep is developmental and not related to what a baby eats. For a baby that has only ever had breastmilk, it could have the opposite affect because it could upset their stomach and make them sleep worse.

Answer

Why? Are you not producing enough milk? Is your baby losing weight?i don’t see how one has to do with the other

Answer

My kid was formula fed and she still woke up every hour or two at that age. I wouldn't do it.

Answer

Just one bottle of formula changes your baby’s gut flora. It will takes up to 4 weeks to return back to normal.

Answer

Formula isnt going to make baby sleep longer. Nothing will.

Answer

I started supplementing with formula around 1.5 months so my husband and other family members could help feed. With all the cluster feedings I just wanted to sleep and didn’t pump much. We switched to all formula at 3 months when I went back to work. I don’t regret it. It has worked great for us. My son is 6 months. He sleeps great at night. He is 78 percentile for his weight and 92 percentile for his length.

Answer

I never supplemented but I did do pumped milk at night in a bottle bc my supply dropped every single night and then I knew he was getting enough at night.  I breast fed all day though and pumped after 2 feeds a day and right after his 8 pm bottle right before he went to bed.
When I pumped at 8 pm I only got about 2 oz total when I would get 4-5 per pump (after feeding!) during the day. 
This helped my son sleep better because he was getting the right amount.

Answer

If it’s because you aren’t producing enough milk and she’s hungry or because you struggle to breast feed late at night I say go for it, if baby is hungry do what you gotta do to keep her happy and full.
If it’s because you think formula is going to magically fix the fact that new babies are jerks and don’t sleep then don’t.
My daughter was 100% formula fed and sometimes she slept like an angel and other nights she was up for hours and hours 🤷‍♀️

Answer

Its a myth that formula makes them sleep longer. I was formula fed and I still woke up every 2-3 hours until I was one. It's developmental. Perfectly normal for a 2 month old to not be sleeping longer.

Answer

I understand you’re feeling exhausted. It’s an absolutely awful feeling. I’d give it a few more months before changing things up. As 2 months is still very young and they’re just figuring things out. 
As other comments have said, formula wont magically help. Although it may mean Bubs getting more milk and takes longer to digest ect.. sometimes they just wake for comfort. Or they feel they’ve slept enough. It doesn’t mean they will sleep for longer just because they’re trying to digest formula. 
I would potentially say try a formula feed or expressed breastmilk, if you have a partner that can get up to do a feed- that will hopefully result in you getting an extra bit of uninterrupted sleep.

Should I supplement with formula to get my baby to sleep longer?

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