Ever wish you could magically extend your baby’s sleep – and yours? Enter dream feeding – a nighttime technique that could be the secret to a more restful night for the whole family!
Today we’re unpacking all things dream feeding related in hopes that this little nugget of magic might be your ticket to a few extra zzz’s.
Without wasting another minute, let’s get down to it!
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What is dream feeding?
Dream feeding is when you feed your baby without fully waking them up. This feed is typically not initiated by the little one (remember, they are sleeping) and is usually the last feed of the day.
Deciding whether or not to dream feed your baby is personal. It works great for some and not so well for others. The goal of dream feeding is to top off baby’s belly so they sleep for a longer stretch. In an ideal world, this means you also sleep for a longer stretch, mama – sounds dreamy, doesn’t it?!
When to start dream feeding?
The ideal time to start dream feeding is when your baby is around 2 – 3 months old. There are some things to consider, however, when making this decision, it’s not a “one size fits all” answer. A general rule of thumb though is to start dream feeding before your baby is 6 months of age. Here are some other things to consider:
Baby’s weight gain: before you introduce dream feeding, ensure your baby is appropriately gaining weight
Mama’s preference: if your baby appears “ready”, is appropriately gaining weight, and you are just really struggling with sleep deprivation, you might want to give it a whirl prior to 2 months of age
Baby’s sleep cues: look for signs that your baby can sleep longer stretches before waking up hungry
Related Reading: 14 Newborn Sleep Tips You Can Use To Get More Sleep Today!
How to dream feed
Slowly introduce dream feeding by starting with one per night and gradually increasing the frequency to fit yours and your baby’s needs. If dream feeding isn’t buying you any extra sleep or is disrupting your baby too much, don’t hesitate to stop.
1. Gently pick baby up from bassinet or crib
- Keep the room dim and quiet (except for sound machine)
2. Keep baby swaddled
- No need to change baby’s diaper or unswaddle
- The less stimulation the better
3. Offer a brief feed
- Gently touch baby’s cheek or lower lip with your breast or bottle to stimulate the rooting reflex
- This should be enough to get baby to open their mouth and start sucking
- You can always squeeze a drop of breastmilk on the tip of your nipple if needed
- Don’t forget that burp (nobody wants to be dealing with gas pain later)
4. Back to bed
- This step can be tricky and might take a little practice so be patient with baby and yourself
- Slow and steady movements will help minimize potentially waking baby
- Follow safe sleep guidelines (be sure to put baby back in bassinet or crib on their back)
Does dream feeding really work?
The effectiveness of dream feeding is a bit of a mixed bag! Some parents absolutely swear by it and then others, well, not so much. The research on dream feeding and its effectiveness is somewhat limited and a bit inconclusive.
Anecdotally, however, you can find lotsss of parents out there that swear dream feeding helps their babies sleep longer stretches. Dream feeding might work for your little one and it might not. There is no way of predicting or knowing the effectiveness with your particular baby without giving it a whirl.
We’ll dive a little deeper into the potential benefits and drawbacks below. When deciding whether or not dream feeding is a good fit, it’s important to consider your little one’s individual needs and sleep habits, as well as your own parenting style.
Potential benefits of dream feeding
Dream feeding might offer a handful of benefits for both mama and baby. Below are some of the most common possible benefits.
Longer sleep stretches (for baby and mama)
Filling baby’s belly up before mama heads off to bed might result in a longer stretch of sleep for everyone! Again, there is no guarantee that dream feeding will be effective for your little one, but if it is, you just might get to score some extra zzz’s.
Maintains milk supply
For those mamas that are breastfeeding, I’m sure you are familiar with supply and demand as it pertains to milk supply. The more frequently you empty your breasts the more it triggers your body to produce more milk (at least that’s how it’s supposed to go.)
Ensures baby is getting enough calories
When babies are really little they need to eat pretty often. Their bellies are so tiny that they fill up fast. By the same token, their little bellies need to be filled frequently because of their size. Some really little ones have trouble holding onto and gaining weight.
A dream feed is one way to throw an extra feed in the mix to help ensure they are getting enough calories! As you will see in the post below, as babies grow, their bellies get bigger, and their feeds can eventually start to space out.
Potential drawbacks to dream feeding
You knew it would be too good to be true for there not to be any drawbacks, right?! Unfortunately, just like with almost anything, there are potential drawbacks when it comes to dream feeding too.
Just doesn’t work
One of the biggest possible drawbacks is that dream feeding just doesn’t work for you and your little one. Remember how we discussed that the research is a bit limited and inconclusive? Well, there are plenty of babies out there that just don’t take to dream feeding.
Dependence to fall asleep
Some little ones might become dependent on feeding to fall asleep or to fall back asleep. This one is a big reason why some mamas and parents are completely turned off by the whole dream feeding concept. To each their own though, I’m here to educate, not to judge!
Interrupting sleep cycle
Even a gentle and subtle waking (goal with dream feeding) can disrupt your baby’s natural sleep cycle. A disruption in the sleep cycle can make it harder for them to fall back into a deep, restful sleep. Some babies do very well with this though and exhibit little to no evidence of sleep disruption.
When to stop dream feeding
Ultimately, the decision of when to stop dream feeding your baby is up to you. Here are some general guidelines and things to keep in mind though!
Baby’s age: around 4-6 months old a lot of babies start sleeping longer stretches at night. If this is the case with your little one, dream feeding may no longer be necessary
Baby is sleeping through the night: if your baby is consistently sleeping through the night without waking up for a feed they might be ready to drop the dream feed
It’s no longer working: when I say it’s no longer working I mean for you or for the baby. Don’t force it if it’s not benefiting anyone, mama. Like I said above, dream feeding just doesn’t work for some babies and that’s perfectly okay. Try it out for a little bit and if it doesn’t work, or it stops working, feel free to drop it
Looking for more?
My resources and information are heavy on pregnancy and birth content. I am, after all, a labor and delivery nurse! What a lot of people don’t know is that I have lots of postpartum and feeding content as well!
So, whether you are after pregnancy and birth information, postpartum and feeding content, or anything in between, my team and I have you covered, mama! Here are a few of my favorite postpartum and feeding resources but be sure to check out my website, MommyLaborNurse.com, for a lot more information!
- The Breastfeeding Essentials You Need as a Nursing Mama
- Supplementing with Formula: The Guide Every Mama is Looking For
- Learn All About Newborn Reflexes
