Sleep...or lack there of

I have a girlfriend who had her baby two weeks ago.  I spoke with her yesterday and boy was she exhausted.  It is sort of funny that I already forget how hard those first couple weeks are.  She was even more tired than I was because she is nursing her baby every two hours.  The doctor and lactation consultant both told her to nurse every two hours and to wake the baby if he is sleeping (and the two hours is from when you start feeding - not when you finish).  That means you literally have 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours in between feedings.  That also means you only get to sleep in 1 hour increments.  Pretty crazy.  I did not follow this routine.  I fed Maggie every 3 hours and if she was sleeping I didn't wake her up.  She didn't sleep much longer than 3 hours because she got hungry and woke up on her own.  Every once in a while I would get to sleep 4 hours straight and I thought life was great.  My poor friend is so tired and she is also stressed because nursing isn't easy to begin with.  It takes practice and patience and who has patience when you are that tired.  She is almost feeling like giving up on breast feeding because it is so hard.  I am not a doctor and I suppose you should follow your doctor's advice, but I also think you should go with your gut feeling.  If you are stressed and exhausted what is the harm of feeding every three or four hours?  Your baby will not starve.  I also feel like if the baby is hungry before the three hours then why not feed her?  I think the doctors say to feed every 2 hours because they want the baby to get used to nursing and it also helps stimulate more milk production.  All I know is that sleep does wonders and so does the breast pump!  If you are feeling stressed and frustrated try and get some rest.  A little sleep goes a long way and when you wake up you probably won't feel so overwhelmed!