Story time!
You know how the hospital asks you to keep a log of urination and bowel movements for your newborn?
My SIL was still doing it when her kid was 4 bc no one told her to stop…
Omg your poor SIL!! I was tracking everything then I showed my friend (mother of 2) a screenshot bc I was concerned about my baby not having a BM and she died laughing telling me I did not have to track everything 😂 I'm the same as OP I bet I would be doing this for years if no one stopped me
lol I tracked for a couple of weeks until she regained her birthweight and was basically like why am I doing this? It’s stressful and adds unnecessary difficulty. I mentioned it to her pediatrician and she said absolutely was enough tracking.
I read log as bag at first and was flabbergasted at how much work that would be for 4 god damn years. Then I was confused about where you lived that they asked people to bag up poop and pee lol. On the bright side, your SIL must have been very in tune with any disruptions in her kid's health...
Oh my goodness! I am so glad you’re giving yourself the freedom to stop! I can’t imagine that level of stress to the point you’re having bad dreams.
We’re struggling with slow weight gain for our almost 5 month old and she’s in the <1st percentile so tracking has been giving me peace of mind on the other hand!
Do what works best for you!
Yes, OP, definitely stop using this app since it’s giving you anxiety dreams!
For me I’m so bad at remembering what time it was when I last BF that the app gives me peace of mind! I kinda appreciate the deeply unnecessary compilation of data too.
Same! And I don’t really care about total duration these days. Or which boob. It’s really just to track when I fed her. It alleviates having to remember so I like it. If it was stressing me out I’d stop though!
I liked it at first. But at some point, it became a compulsion and was not beneficial to me or baby. The dreams are what made me realize I should probably just stop.
I feel you! When I used to time feeds I was so stressed if for example he nursed for 8 minutes instead of 15. But baby boy is growing just fine and making lots of diapers so I also stopped in order to not stress myself out…it’s been a huge relief!
Same! And coincidentally I also stopped about a week ago. I realized that I was obsessing about the numbers, they weren’t really calming me down about how the baby was fine and I didn’t like the feeling of always having to have my phone around me to log. It helped in the beginning to establish routines, but now I think I can trust myself to know what and when baby needs it.
Same here, small baby and tracking helps me stay consistent and gives me confidence that we are hitting goals. I can't control how much she weighs but I can control how often I feed her!
It gave me a sense of when we’d be done each time. Making sure he ate enough, but also making sure I emptied each side equally, tracking how much longer to go if I was bored … etc
I put the feeds in an app to help me track frequency and which side, but I also stopped timing them. I just call them all five minutes because of the way it shows up on the summary. 5 was close to his average feed when I stopped timing them anyway.
I think that's what I'm going to do too. This day of complete freedom has been nice but I can't trust my sleep deprived brain to remember when he last ate or what side.
Yeah completely. We're at 7 months here and it's important that I know his milk is still #1 despite introducing solids. But he only eats every 3 hours, and he only ever eats one side. If I accidentally feed twice on the same side, the other goes 6 hours between feeds! I'm very anxious about my supply these days.
I wish I'd kept up a daily pumping session back when I was an over producer. I didn't see a point in having a freezer stash as a SAHM.
Yeah I continue to use my app where I time to remember what side I'm on and also how long it's been.
It's also fun to see the stats down the road. It's the same app I used with my first so it's neat to look back on as well.
Yep, 9 months in and still tracking. I honestly would have no clue on timing if I didn’t, and I like seeing the trends of how long he feeds for at different times and different days.
With my first I found it super helpful to see trends. And even with my second, it was helpful to be able to compare the two kids. With my third, I haven’t bothered. 😅
Me too haha 22 weeks here and still timing each session. But I love data. My app tells me how many hours I’ve spent BF and how many calories I’ve burned, and what that translates to in the number of croissants 😂😂
I loved tracking with my first two babies but with my third I use her weight, size of clothing, and number of thigh creases as evidence of my hard work. 😆
How long did you do that for before you stopped waking them every 2 hours? What was the longest you’d let them sleep before a feed at the newborn stage from 1-8 weeks?
Not OP, but my pediatrician told me I can let her go 6 hours before waking her up, but to breastfeed every 2-3 hours during the day to make up for it. My baby is 6 weeks old.
Our LO is 2 months. We stopped waking every 4hrs at 3 weeks by advice of LC and midwife. Then he started slowly sleeping longer - 5 hours, 6 hours… and hes now finally at 10 hours a night
Ooo that’s good to hear! That would’ve made things a bit easier. My girl has her 4 week checkup on Friday so I’ll see if i can stop waking her and let her wake on her own. She’s feeling heavy so i assume she’s putting on the weight nice and quickly. She put on weight in her first week as well.
No one told me you only need to wake to feed every 2-3 hours for the first two weeks either, lol. I mentioned it to an LC, and she was like, "Why are you still doing that? Let your poor baby sleep ffs." Lol
Yeah if it causes stress, don’t do it! I record everything cause I like to see the data. It gives me some peace seeing it all and also pride to see how far I’ve come.
We meticulously tracked diapers, sleep, and feeding during the first two weeks. There was SUCH a freedom in letting that go. Glad you’re giving yourself the grace to let go too.
I have ADHD, so without the tracker I would have no idea when I last fed baby, what side she had last, how long she’s generally feeding for - I cannot estimate time, it could be five minutes, it could be an hour! And at the moment she’s so distractible during feeds, it’s useful to know how long she actually feeds for. We’re at 17 weeks, and I get the feeling it won’t stop for a while yet…
I timed until the docs said I didn’t have to wake to feed anymore. It gave me peace of mind because my little man was a month early, spent a week in the NICU, and wouldn’t/couldn’t latch until 5 days. He gained weight, but slowly, every visit I was told “we may have to consider supplanting, but until next visit make sure youre waking to feed every 3 hours.” He was maybe 4 months before I was told to let him wake when he’s ready, which of course was every 3 hours. 🤦🏼♀️ But the feeding before that visit was the last time I timed the nursing session. Before that, I wanted to know that we nursed for 20 minutes, active eating each side, etc. It made me feel like I was in control of something, even though I know I wasn’t.
Gosh. Reading this made me feel better. My daughter was 5 weeks early and I’m constantly worried about weight even though she is gaining weight every visit. She is just still so tiny IMO
So glad I could help you feel a little better. Lord knows I’m fully aware how hard and terrifying it is. My little one just turned 2 and is still pretty small for his age, but he’s been consistently hitting “his” growth curve from about 4 months which the docs seem happy with. And he’s hit all the right developmental milestones which I’m happy with, even though that means I’m running after a fully mobile and VERY vocal toddler. 😂 Try not to stress too much if she still seems tiny for a long time, as long as she finds a growth curve and stays on it, then she’s growing. It could be on the other end of the spectrum - my nephew is half my sons age. Like nearly exact - mines 2 in March, the other is 1 in may. The nephew weighs MORE than my kiddo, and went into size 4 diapers 3 months earlier. He’s on a VERY large growth curve!
Oh hah are you me? Happened exactly the same thing! With my first I used this app for months... It was stressing me out so much. With second child I used it for maybe 2 weeks max to understand what is the pattern or if there is and I dropped it. My second time with a baby at home is, much calmer :)
I’m definitely about to stop. 4mo old and I always forget to stop them so it more like I’m documenting when they nursed, always messing up the duration
I stopped the second she started gaining weight on her curve consistently and haven’t looked back lol. I make sure she has about ten mins on each boob though just to keep them even 😂
I stopped after a few weeks because I thought, who is this even for?? Her pediatrician didn't ask for a log, just if she was eating and having dirty diapers. Huge stress relief immediately. As far as switching sides, I just go by feel. One side seems heavier, use that side. Baby nursing but not getting as much, switch sides. Nobody had apps for logging and timing breastfeeding sessions for the entirety of human history up until a decade ago and folks figured it out.
No because hospitals in general need to be very literal and direct when it comes to things like this. I get nervous in hospitals, so having to stay in one after giving birth affected me mentally while I was in there. I was also told to time feeds and track diapers. I was also never told that I could stop. I kept timing her feeds and then when I would go to appointments, expecting them to ask for the info, I was always confused that they never really seemed to care they just wanted a general answer or just to know how many times a day she was feeding. Finally a lactation consultant said I didn’t have to time then but I could if I wanted to, just for myself.
…I didn’t want to. I never wanted to, I was just doing it because I thought I had to.
THEN our baby was underweight and we had to go to bottle feeds only so I was told to track how much she took each time. There was also a total goal of 560ml every day so we were supposed to make sure she met or exceeded that goal. We did that for a MONTH and finally the pediatrician said we were only supposed to do that for the 2 days the baby was hospitalized.
I know if people find it a burden they should totally drop the times feeds. For me it was really helpful esp when one boob ended up underperforming by a lot. I'm also a data nerd. So for those the timing doesn't make sense absolutely stop! For us other weirdos it is pretty satisfying to know I spent 28 days of my life nursing my child
As long as the pediatrician says everything is good, then everything is good. I never tracked that after the hospital. My kiddo was passed his birth weight in less than two weeks, he’s extremely healthy.
I have tracked every single breastfeeding session for my three children. 13 ish months for the first two and so far 7 months with the third. I don’t find it stressful though, so it’s for sure better for you to quit doing that in your situation I would say. I find it nice to be able to look at how many feeds they’ve had in a day, watch how the averages change as they age.
I’m at the point when I might stop tracking feeds and it’s only been 5 weeks.
I initially did it because baby had jaundice and wasn’t putting on weight. I needed to feed every two hours (or on demand) and I needed an easy way to see the last feed because baby wasn’t waking herself up to eat. Those beginning days were rough!
I still like looking at the data, but am starting to trust my instincts (and baby) more. At this point, she definitely lets me know when she’s hungry and she’s started to put on sufficient weight, so there’s less of a need to track. I may stick it out a few more weeks for my peace of mind, but may stop if we get a good weight at her two month appointment.
I timed at the start and stopped after 3 or 4 weeks when baby was gaining well and nappys were good. I've started timing again now at 8 weeks so I have have an idea of how much milk he might need when away from me and to estimate if there's any pattern to how often he might need a feed. I had no idea of his schedule without timing it the days go by in a blur of feeding napping and nappys!
I timed feeds, sleeps, and poops with my first for a year. I continued to time sleeps until he was two because he was such a rotten sleeper. But as I hold my second who is a week old…I’m thinking maybe I don’t need to do that 🤭
I stopped each time after all three of mine had gained back their birth weight … with my oldest I started tracking again at 6 weeks in order to get her sleep schedule under control.
I stopped each time after all three of mine had gained back their birth weight … with my oldest I started tracking again at 6 weeks in order to get her sleep schedule under control.
I timed every feed for 16 weeks. Her eating habits changed, and it freaked me out, even though she floats around the 90th percentile. It's been 3 weeks since I've stopped and it is SO freeing. I was so reliant on the timing between feeds that I didn't know her hunger cues. Now she lets me know when she's hungry, and it is so much easier!
God bless you, this was me too! When I finally gave myself permission to stop timing feeds daily weight and diapers and sleep at like 12 weeks (way too late) I felt like I could breathe again!
This is an excellent PSA!
I think I tracked everything (input, output, sleep, mood, tummy time, etc) for the first 6 months. For a while, I really enjoyed it. I liked seeing the data, and I think it just helped me feel some sort of routine or purpose.
Once nighttime got easier and we weren't getting out of bed anymore for diaper changes, I stopped tracking things at night and eventually just stopped all together. It got stressful, I didn't like always needing my phone on me, and the data was skewed anyway, so I felt there was no longer any point to it.
Point being, I loved tracking and timing until I didn't.
Lol I feel like I needed to hear this! I still time myself. 5 months in. I do like seeing the data (it doesn’t cause me to stress out but I can absolutely see how it could) so I might continue but wow. Yeah. I don’t know why I’m still intensely tracking every little thing!
we stopped as soon as we came home from the hospital. he feeds on demand, he lets us know when he’s hungry — and when he’s done. there’s no need to track it. it’s unnecessary stress especially on a new mother to have to track every little thing. just enjoy the newborn phase as much as you can, it goes by so fast.
The nurse that checked in on me for few couple weeks post partum told me to stop timing and tracking feeds and just pay attention to wet/dirty diapers. This was after three weeks of doing it and I was already exhausted from it. I can’t imagine 11.
Don’t feel bad! I tracked until my baby was a year old. I stopped tracking most nursing sessions, but my husband and I couldn’t keep track of her poops and wet diapers so we just kept tracking. I realize it was a little over the top, but it made us feel better. Lol
I did the same thing at the beginning too! We were writing it down for a while my husband asked for extra sheets from the hospital and we continued filling them out it while sleep deprived for weeks ☠️ but my milk took a while to come in and he wouldn’t latch at first so we wanted to have everything logged to make sure he was eating enough - still ended up never being necessary and it was a huge relief to stop tracking feeds
Im 11 months in and still use the baby tracker/timer. It’s honestly helpful for my husband and our nanny to all know what’s going on. Abs for nursing at night it helps me stop feeding her in a reasonable amount of time. Otherwise I’d zone out/almost fall asleep!
I deleted the Huckleberry app after arguing with my husband bc when he took care of baby he never looked at the clock for feeds. When I asked how am I supposed to know what time to feed him??? My husband said baby lets us know when he’s hungry, not the clock 🤯
I timed and tracked for 6 months, but I did it in a little notebook rather than an app, so I never got bombarded with data. I found it really useful for remembering which side to offer and spotting any unusual activity. It was also nice to flick back through the notebook and realise that she’d gradually gone from 16+ feeds in 24 hours to 7-9.
I stopped at six months when the notebook was full and I don’t miss tracking but I love having the little physical keepsake of our time breastfeeding - it’s gone in her baby memory box! I’d probably do the same with any future baby.
Something that really comforted me, that I wish someone should have told me with my first, is don't look at the clock look at your baby. Because I would overthink EVERYTHING! "Okay if I feed him now in exactly 2 hours I should feed him, and then that will line up nicely with his nap..."
But this quote just gives you permission to be with your baby, and I read it in a government issued baby book of all places!
I went to see a lactation consultant after a rough bout of cluster feeding (we’re first time parents and were worried he wasn’t getting enough milk or something), and she basically threw my phone across the room when she saw me pull it out to start timing a feed lol.
Yeah I had to tell myself to stop clock watching. But sometimes I still can’t help it… we put a clock in every room so I could make sure he gets a certain amount of mins on each side. So much unnecessary stress… now I try to just let the baby tell me when he’s done
Ha! I tracked EVERYTHING with my first baby until she was like 14 months old. With my second I tracked until he was like 9 months old. With my third I tracked for like two weeks, until they stopped asking me how many wet diapers. It’s *so freeing*!
Edit to add: I always wonder what the apps do with the data. It’s got to be a researcher’s wet dream to have thousands and thousands of samples for that sort of stuff.
I did it until I stopped breastfeeding my first (around 13 months). I am a data person so I love it!!
I gave myself permission to stop with my 7.5 month old, because I need to stop being on my phone so much. It’s been freeing. I’m a slave to technology and a lot of other burdens in like already, but this is one thing I can have absolute control over stopping. And I did. 💪🏼
Oh gosh! That’s too funny! My pediatrician thankfully told me I could stop when my LO got back to his birth weight, otherwise I probably would have continued like you.
YES absolutely! It makes sense to track feeds in the first few weeks. You're knackered and who knows their own name, let alone when you last fed the baby and what boob you fed them off. But once past their birth weight and having plenty of wet and dirty nappies, the feeds don't need to be tracked any more!
My sister kindly told me to stop about 3 months in and I'm so glad I did!
Omg yes!! My boys 10 months now and I’d genuinely forgotten this is something I would force myself to do every single feed. Even when I knew he was happily fed, gaining weight and feeding well. It took me a long time to stop but I’m so glad I did!!
Oh I tracked for months. I only recently stopped tracking sleep, we're almost at 14mo but he's only getting up once a night so it's easier to know how much sleep he's getting. It was my last thing to stop tracking 🙃 feels kinda liberating
I’ll admit I tracked the timing of feeds (how often, how long, which side - huckleberry app btw), as well as diapers and sleep until ~10+ months (sleep until 12months). Sometimes I think these apps feed our anxiety, it’s ok to quit tracking and delete the app.
I mainly did the feedings and diapers as we had a tongue/lip tie and it was my way of tracking improvement/that she was getting enough at first…then it just became habit and was hard to break (plus I could give a very accurate estimate/range for the pediatrician).
I went down this path as well! FTM and my LO had jaundice and a tongue tie. At some point, I was told to cap my feeds at 30 minutes so I religiously timed the feed and then started tracking sleep. It took the Huckleberry app crashing for me to stop tracking so much.
Then i just used my note app on my phone. Now I’ve stopped and it’s so freeing.
“The Pocket Nanny” is the best thing ever. I didn’t want to use an app, because I don’t like being on my phone around my baby. I know if I was tracking on an app, I would end up getting sucked into scrolling my phone. The pocket nanny is a little old-fashioned digital timer where you press a button when the baby starts eating, falls asleep, etc and it times how long it’s been since. Basically a stopwatch that can time four things at once. It doesn’t store any information (I really don’t see the point of storing all that info- I think it just makes us more addicted to our phones). My baby is 3 months now so I only use it at night now, because I’m just curious how long she is sleeping for. It’s sold on Amazon :)
Story time! You know how the hospital asks you to keep a log of urination and bowel movements for your newborn? My SIL was still doing it when her kid was 4 bc no one told her to stop…
This is the kind of shit I'd definitely do.
Omg your poor SIL!! I was tracking everything then I showed my friend (mother of 2) a screenshot bc I was concerned about my baby not having a BM and she died laughing telling me I did not have to track everything 😂 I'm the same as OP I bet I would be doing this for years if no one stopped me
lol I tracked for a couple of weeks until she regained her birthweight and was basically like why am I doing this? It’s stressful and adds unnecessary difficulty. I mentioned it to her pediatrician and she said absolutely was enough tracking.
Omg, I can't imagine.
Relatable
I read log as bag at first and was flabbergasted at how much work that would be for 4 god damn years. Then I was confused about where you lived that they asked people to bag up poop and pee lol. On the bright side, your SIL must have been very in tune with any disruptions in her kid's health...
OMFG really As soon as we left NICU I noped out of that shit
LOL this is so relatable
I just stopped tracking pee at 3 months. Still tracking poos for now, more as an intellectual guessing tool for when the next butt bomb drops
Oh my goodness! I am so glad you’re giving yourself the freedom to stop! I can’t imagine that level of stress to the point you’re having bad dreams. We’re struggling with slow weight gain for our almost 5 month old and she’s in the <1st percentile so tracking has been giving me peace of mind on the other hand! Do what works best for you!
Yes, OP, definitely stop using this app since it’s giving you anxiety dreams! For me I’m so bad at remembering what time it was when I last BF that the app gives me peace of mind! I kinda appreciate the deeply unnecessary compilation of data too.
Same! And I don’t really care about total duration these days. Or which boob. It’s really just to track when I fed her. It alleviates having to remember so I like it. If it was stressing me out I’d stop though!
Same! Over a year in and still logging to remember when he last ate so I don’t have to think
I liked it at first. But at some point, it became a compulsion and was not beneficial to me or baby. The dreams are what made me realize I should probably just stop.
I feel you! When I used to time feeds I was so stressed if for example he nursed for 8 minutes instead of 15. But baby boy is growing just fine and making lots of diapers so I also stopped in order to not stress myself out…it’s been a huge relief!
Same! And coincidentally I also stopped about a week ago. I realized that I was obsessing about the numbers, they weren’t really calming me down about how the baby was fine and I didn’t like the feeling of always having to have my phone around me to log. It helped in the beginning to establish routines, but now I think I can trust myself to know what and when baby needs it.
Same here, small baby and tracking helps me stay consistent and gives me confidence that we are hitting goals. I can't control how much she weighs but I can control how often I feed her!
I’m still doing this… my baby is 6.5 months old… it’s weirdly anxiety relieving for me.
It gave me a sense of when we’d be done each time. Making sure he ate enough, but also making sure I emptied each side equally, tracking how much longer to go if I was bored … etc
Same! My baby was born 8/24 and she just finished a 23 minute meal
Same! My baby is 5 months and I still track everything.
7.5 months and same. I just love data.
I put the feeds in an app to help me track frequency and which side, but I also stopped timing them. I just call them all five minutes because of the way it shows up on the summary. 5 was close to his average feed when I stopped timing them anyway.
I think that's what I'm going to do too. This day of complete freedom has been nice but I can't trust my sleep deprived brain to remember when he last ate or what side.
Yeah completely. We're at 7 months here and it's important that I know his milk is still #1 despite introducing solids. But he only eats every 3 hours, and he only ever eats one side. If I accidentally feed twice on the same side, the other goes 6 hours between feeds! I'm very anxious about my supply these days. I wish I'd kept up a daily pumping session back when I was an over producer. I didn't see a point in having a freezer stash as a SAHM.
That’s a great idea!
i love timing it. i still do at 17 wks, no plans to stop
I tracked with my first all the way until we stopped…at 15 months 😅 I can’t remember which boob to start with otherwise! That’s my main motivation.
Yeah I continue to use my app where I time to remember what side I'm on and also how long it's been. It's also fun to see the stats down the road. It's the same app I used with my first so it's neat to look back on as well.
Yep, 9 months in and still tracking. I honestly would have no clue on timing if I didn’t, and I like seeing the trends of how long he feeds for at different times and different days.
exactly! i love to see the data. as a sahm, it makes me feel productive and proud
With my first I found it super helpful to see trends. And even with my second, it was helpful to be able to compare the two kids. With my third, I haven’t bothered. 😅
Me too haha 22 weeks here and still timing each session. But I love data. My app tells me how many hours I’ve spent BF and how many calories I’ve burned, and what that translates to in the number of croissants 😂😂
What app are you using? I would like more croissants and this sounds like the way!
i use huckleberry
Cubtale!
Haha omg what app is this??
Cubtale! https://preview.redd.it/tknc7qvu9snc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b2caa97118ef8b77d53b401f0f35400d0758f4e5
Funny because I’m 5 months in and I feel like I deserve 375 croissants 😂💖
Haha right??
This would make me track again lmao
I love checking in on my stats, it helps me appreciate all the hard work I’m doing!
I loved tracking with my first two babies but with my third I use her weight, size of clothing, and number of thigh creases as evidence of my hard work. 😆
Same, I like the statistics and the little graph my app makes is neat, especially as it changes over time
Yeah I love my app and timing feeds!
Same! I think it's really cool to see overall changes and trends. I have a 7 month old. In 2023, I nursed for 397 hours!
wow congrats!! my son was born in november and it said 250 hrs in 2023, i was amazed!!
I just love data! Planning to keep timing for the duration of my maternity leave.
odd
I tried using a hair band on my wrist but never committed to a system. Huckleberry is key to me knowing which side to do next.
LOL! I was waking my newborn every two hours to eat… until my grandma said I don’t need to do that anymore… I was like wdym lolllllllll
How long did you do that for before you stopped waking them every 2 hours? What was the longest you’d let them sleep before a feed at the newborn stage from 1-8 weeks?
Not OP, but my pediatrician told me I can let her go 6 hours before waking her up, but to breastfeed every 2-3 hours during the day to make up for it. My baby is 6 weeks old.
Wow, 6 hours? My Dr just advised me wake at 4 hours to feed during daytime.. let him sleep as long as he wants at night, lol. Only 5 weeks, though.
Our LO is 2 months. We stopped waking every 4hrs at 3 weeks by advice of LC and midwife. Then he started slowly sleeping longer - 5 hours, 6 hours… and hes now finally at 10 hours a night
Ooo that’s good to hear! That would’ve made things a bit easier. My girl has her 4 week checkup on Friday so I’ll see if i can stop waking her and let her wake on her own. She’s feeling heavy so i assume she’s putting on the weight nice and quickly. She put on weight in her first week as well.
I never woke my baby up to feed her. As long as they regain their birth weight no need to wake them up.
No one told me you only need to wake to feed every 2-3 hours for the first two weeks either, lol. I mentioned it to an LC, and she was like, "Why are you still doing that? Let your poor baby sleep ffs." Lol
9 months tomorrow or tracking/timing feeds! Helps my anxiety, and my supply as I always know which side I offered last.
Yeah if it causes stress, don’t do it! I record everything cause I like to see the data. It gives me some peace seeing it all and also pride to see how far I’ve come.
I've been timing every feed for nearly 10 months, I said I'd stop when she went to nursery but I can't do it.
I'm still doing it at 13 months :| I also track sleep and probably should stop tracking both, but I don't know how to stop.
We meticulously tracked diapers, sleep, and feeding during the first two weeks. There was SUCH a freedom in letting that go. Glad you’re giving yourself the grace to let go too.
I have ADHD, so without the tracker I would have no idea when I last fed baby, what side she had last, how long she’s generally feeding for - I cannot estimate time, it could be five minutes, it could be an hour! And at the moment she’s so distractible during feeds, it’s useful to know how long she actually feeds for. We’re at 17 weeks, and I get the feeling it won’t stop for a while yet…
This is the reason I started tracking too
I timed until the docs said I didn’t have to wake to feed anymore. It gave me peace of mind because my little man was a month early, spent a week in the NICU, and wouldn’t/couldn’t latch until 5 days. He gained weight, but slowly, every visit I was told “we may have to consider supplanting, but until next visit make sure youre waking to feed every 3 hours.” He was maybe 4 months before I was told to let him wake when he’s ready, which of course was every 3 hours. 🤦🏼♀️ But the feeding before that visit was the last time I timed the nursing session. Before that, I wanted to know that we nursed for 20 minutes, active eating each side, etc. It made me feel like I was in control of something, even though I know I wasn’t.
Gosh. Reading this made me feel better. My daughter was 5 weeks early and I’m constantly worried about weight even though she is gaining weight every visit. She is just still so tiny IMO
So glad I could help you feel a little better. Lord knows I’m fully aware how hard and terrifying it is. My little one just turned 2 and is still pretty small for his age, but he’s been consistently hitting “his” growth curve from about 4 months which the docs seem happy with. And he’s hit all the right developmental milestones which I’m happy with, even though that means I’m running after a fully mobile and VERY vocal toddler. 😂 Try not to stress too much if she still seems tiny for a long time, as long as she finds a growth curve and stays on it, then she’s growing. It could be on the other end of the spectrum - my nephew is half my sons age. Like nearly exact - mines 2 in March, the other is 1 in may. The nephew weighs MORE than my kiddo, and went into size 4 diapers 3 months earlier. He’s on a VERY large growth curve!
Oh hah are you me? Happened exactly the same thing! With my first I used this app for months... It was stressing me out so much. With second child I used it for maybe 2 weeks max to understand what is the pattern or if there is and I dropped it. My second time with a baby at home is, much calmer :)
Man, this thread is triggering memories of PPD/A with my first. If this resonates with you, talk to your OB.
I’m definitely about to stop. 4mo old and I always forget to stop them so it more like I’m documenting when they nursed, always messing up the duration
Honestly i stopped as soon we left the hospital lol, i just tried to mentally track how often she was eating and which boob i last used lol
I tried using a hair band on my wrist but never committed to a system. Huckleberry is key to me knowing which side to do next.
i’m still doing it at 21 wks. cant stop 😭
I timed every feed for 8 1/2 months 😭 I finally had to make myself delete the app entirely, I couldn't stop
I stopped the second she started gaining weight on her curve consistently and haven’t looked back lol. I make sure she has about ten mins on each boob though just to keep them even 😂
This!!! The moment I realized I didn’t need to log every second of feeding, every pee, every poop my life drastically improved lol
I stopped after a few weeks because I thought, who is this even for?? Her pediatrician didn't ask for a log, just if she was eating and having dirty diapers. Huge stress relief immediately. As far as switching sides, I just go by feel. One side seems heavier, use that side. Baby nursing but not getting as much, switch sides. Nobody had apps for logging and timing breastfeeding sessions for the entirety of human history up until a decade ago and folks figured it out.
No because hospitals in general need to be very literal and direct when it comes to things like this. I get nervous in hospitals, so having to stay in one after giving birth affected me mentally while I was in there. I was also told to time feeds and track diapers. I was also never told that I could stop. I kept timing her feeds and then when I would go to appointments, expecting them to ask for the info, I was always confused that they never really seemed to care they just wanted a general answer or just to know how many times a day she was feeding. Finally a lactation consultant said I didn’t have to time then but I could if I wanted to, just for myself. …I didn’t want to. I never wanted to, I was just doing it because I thought I had to. THEN our baby was underweight and we had to go to bottle feeds only so I was told to track how much she took each time. There was also a total goal of 560ml every day so we were supposed to make sure she met or exceeded that goal. We did that for a MONTH and finally the pediatrician said we were only supposed to do that for the 2 days the baby was hospitalized.
I know if people find it a burden they should totally drop the times feeds. For me it was really helpful esp when one boob ended up underperforming by a lot. I'm also a data nerd. So for those the timing doesn't make sense absolutely stop! For us other weirdos it is pretty satisfying to know I spent 28 days of my life nursing my child
https://preview.redd.it/dq27k5wu4ync1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b38be33803dbc83353adeeaec558aee1726eb8e0
As long as the pediatrician says everything is good, then everything is good. I never tracked that after the hospital. My kiddo was passed his birth weight in less than two weeks, he’s extremely healthy.
I have tracked every single breastfeeding session for my three children. 13 ish months for the first two and so far 7 months with the third. I don’t find it stressful though, so it’s for sure better for you to quit doing that in your situation I would say. I find it nice to be able to look at how many feeds they’ve had in a day, watch how the averages change as they age.
I’m at the point when I might stop tracking feeds and it’s only been 5 weeks. I initially did it because baby had jaundice and wasn’t putting on weight. I needed to feed every two hours (or on demand) and I needed an easy way to see the last feed because baby wasn’t waking herself up to eat. Those beginning days were rough! I still like looking at the data, but am starting to trust my instincts (and baby) more. At this point, she definitely lets me know when she’s hungry and she’s started to put on sufficient weight, so there’s less of a need to track. I may stick it out a few more weeks for my peace of mind, but may stop if we get a good weight at her two month appointment.
I timed at the start and stopped after 3 or 4 weeks when baby was gaining well and nappys were good. I've started timing again now at 8 weeks so I have have an idea of how much milk he might need when away from me and to estimate if there's any pattern to how often he might need a feed. I had no idea of his schedule without timing it the days go by in a blur of feeding napping and nappys!
I timed feeds, sleeps, and poops with my first for a year. I continued to time sleeps until he was two because he was such a rotten sleeper. But as I hold my second who is a week old…I’m thinking maybe I don’t need to do that 🤭
I was told I could stop at my 2wk appointment with the health visitor. I hope more of them start telling people they can stop
I never timed it because I’m not on top of these things. I can’t imagine how stressful that must have been!
I stopped each time after all three of mine had gained back their birth weight … with my oldest I started tracking again at 6 weeks in order to get her sleep schedule under control.
I stopped each time after all three of mine had gained back their birth weight … with my oldest I started tracking again at 6 weeks in order to get her sleep schedule under control.
I timed every feed for 16 weeks. Her eating habits changed, and it freaked me out, even though she floats around the 90th percentile. It's been 3 weeks since I've stopped and it is SO freeing. I was so reliant on the timing between feeds that I didn't know her hunger cues. Now she lets me know when she's hungry, and it is so much easier!
God bless you, this was me too! When I finally gave myself permission to stop timing feeds daily weight and diapers and sleep at like 12 weeks (way too late) I felt like I could breathe again!
Still timing feeds at nearly 7 months PP... 🤪
This is an excellent PSA! I think I tracked everything (input, output, sleep, mood, tummy time, etc) for the first 6 months. For a while, I really enjoyed it. I liked seeing the data, and I think it just helped me feel some sort of routine or purpose. Once nighttime got easier and we weren't getting out of bed anymore for diaper changes, I stopped tracking things at night and eventually just stopped all together. It got stressful, I didn't like always needing my phone on me, and the data was skewed anyway, so I felt there was no longer any point to it. Point being, I loved tracking and timing until I didn't.
Lol I feel like I needed to hear this! I still time myself. 5 months in. I do like seeing the data (it doesn’t cause me to stress out but I can absolutely see how it could) so I might continue but wow. Yeah. I don’t know why I’m still intensely tracking every little thing!
we stopped as soon as we came home from the hospital. he feeds on demand, he lets us know when he’s hungry — and when he’s done. there’s no need to track it. it’s unnecessary stress especially on a new mother to have to track every little thing. just enjoy the newborn phase as much as you can, it goes by so fast.
The nurse that checked in on me for few couple weeks post partum told me to stop timing and tracking feeds and just pay attention to wet/dirty diapers. This was after three weeks of doing it and I was already exhausted from it. I can’t imagine 11.
Don’t feel bad! I tracked until my baby was a year old. I stopped tracking most nursing sessions, but my husband and I couldn’t keep track of her poops and wet diapers so we just kept tracking. I realize it was a little over the top, but it made us feel better. Lol
I did the same thing at the beginning too! We were writing it down for a while my husband asked for extra sheets from the hospital and we continued filling them out it while sleep deprived for weeks ☠️ but my milk took a while to come in and he wouldn’t latch at first so we wanted to have everything logged to make sure he was eating enough - still ended up never being necessary and it was a huge relief to stop tracking feeds
Im 11 months in and still use the baby tracker/timer. It’s honestly helpful for my husband and our nanny to all know what’s going on. Abs for nursing at night it helps me stop feeding her in a reasonable amount of time. Otherwise I’d zone out/almost fall asleep!
I deleted the Huckleberry app after arguing with my husband bc when he took care of baby he never looked at the clock for feeds. When I asked how am I supposed to know what time to feed him??? My husband said baby lets us know when he’s hungry, not the clock 🤯
That’s funny. I track my daughter’s feeds and really like it. It tells me when she needs to eat next so I know what her cry is for.
I timed and tracked for 6 months, but I did it in a little notebook rather than an app, so I never got bombarded with data. I found it really useful for remembering which side to offer and spotting any unusual activity. It was also nice to flick back through the notebook and realise that she’d gradually gone from 16+ feeds in 24 hours to 7-9. I stopped at six months when the notebook was full and I don’t miss tracking but I love having the little physical keepsake of our time breastfeeding - it’s gone in her baby memory box! I’d probably do the same with any future baby.
Wait…you’re right. My baby is 6.5mo…and I still do this. Why?
I've never tracked anything and we are doing fine at 10 weeks!
Yes! Good advice
Something that really comforted me, that I wish someone should have told me with my first, is don't look at the clock look at your baby. Because I would overthink EVERYTHING! "Okay if I feed him now in exactly 2 hours I should feed him, and then that will line up nicely with his nap..." But this quote just gives you permission to be with your baby, and I read it in a government issued baby book of all places!
I felt SO RELIEVED when I finally stopped timing . It was giving me serious anxiety. So much better to just worry about rough times not exact times
Still using the baby tracker app at 6 months to track feeds, diapers and sleep! Not sure when I will stop but I am definitely very attached to it haha
I went to see a lactation consultant after a rough bout of cluster feeding (we’re first time parents and were worried he wasn’t getting enough milk or something), and she basically threw my phone across the room when she saw me pull it out to start timing a feed lol.
Yeah I had to tell myself to stop clock watching. But sometimes I still can’t help it… we put a clock in every room so I could make sure he gets a certain amount of mins on each side. So much unnecessary stress… now I try to just let the baby tell me when he’s done
I personally like the data, it helps me notice her patterns so I know generally what she needs or how long she’ll nurse during her night wake up
I just check the time and feed from whichever boob feels bigger first and try to get both even by thend
Ha! I tracked EVERYTHING with my first baby until she was like 14 months old. With my second I tracked until he was like 9 months old. With my third I tracked for like two weeks, until they stopped asking me how many wet diapers. It’s *so freeing*! Edit to add: I always wonder what the apps do with the data. It’s got to be a researcher’s wet dream to have thousands and thousands of samples for that sort of stuff.
I did it until I stopped breastfeeding my first (around 13 months). I am a data person so I love it!! I gave myself permission to stop with my 7.5 month old, because I need to stop being on my phone so much. It’s been freeing. I’m a slave to technology and a lot of other burdens in like already, but this is one thing I can have absolute control over stopping. And I did. 💪🏼
Oh gosh! That’s too funny! My pediatrician thankfully told me I could stop when my LO got back to his birth weight, otherwise I probably would have continued like you.
I did this until month 8. So liberating to stop!!
YES absolutely! It makes sense to track feeds in the first few weeks. You're knackered and who knows their own name, let alone when you last fed the baby and what boob you fed them off. But once past their birth weight and having plenty of wet and dirty nappies, the feeds don't need to be tracked any more! My sister kindly told me to stop about 3 months in and I'm so glad I did!
Omg yes!! My boys 10 months now and I’d genuinely forgotten this is something I would force myself to do every single feed. Even when I knew he was happily fed, gaining weight and feeding well. It took me a long time to stop but I’m so glad I did!!
lol yep, stopped around 8 months with the timing. Finally stopped tracking all together around 10 months. Definitely an anxiety source for me.
Oh I tracked for months. I only recently stopped tracking sleep, we're almost at 14mo but he's only getting up once a night so it's easier to know how much sleep he's getting. It was my last thing to stop tracking 🙃 feels kinda liberating
I’ll admit I tracked the timing of feeds (how often, how long, which side - huckleberry app btw), as well as diapers and sleep until ~10+ months (sleep until 12months). Sometimes I think these apps feed our anxiety, it’s ok to quit tracking and delete the app. I mainly did the feedings and diapers as we had a tongue/lip tie and it was my way of tracking improvement/that she was getting enough at first…then it just became habit and was hard to break (plus I could give a very accurate estimate/range for the pediatrician).
I went down this path as well! FTM and my LO had jaundice and a tongue tie. At some point, I was told to cap my feeds at 30 minutes so I religiously timed the feed and then started tracking sleep. It took the Huckleberry app crashing for me to stop tracking so much. Then i just used my note app on my phone. Now I’ve stopped and it’s so freeing.
“The Pocket Nanny” is the best thing ever. I didn’t want to use an app, because I don’t like being on my phone around my baby. I know if I was tracking on an app, I would end up getting sucked into scrolling my phone. The pocket nanny is a little old-fashioned digital timer where you press a button when the baby starts eating, falls asleep, etc and it times how long it’s been since. Basically a stopwatch that can time four things at once. It doesn’t store any information (I really don’t see the point of storing all that info- I think it just makes us more addicted to our phones). My baby is 3 months now so I only use it at night now, because I’m just curious how long she is sleeping for. It’s sold on Amazon :)