Help! Breastfeeding worries

[muppetmummy]

Logan is 7 weeks old today. When he was weighed yesterday he'd lost 2oz in a week. I wasn't too worried as my normal HV normally comes to my house to weigh him, but because she's on hols I took him to the clinic.
The HV I saw said that it might be the scales, or because he'd been put down as gaining 11oz the previous week maybe that weight was incorrect.
Ive got to take him back on monday to be weighed again.
His skin is also a bit dry so Ive been given cream for that.

Whats got me worried is he's just poohed and it had quite a greeny tinge, Ive heard green pooh is a sign of not getting enough milk! He's done 3 or 4 poohs today but I didnt take much notice of the others so cant remember what colour they were.

Another thing is he normally wakes up in the middle of the night for a feed, but didnt last night, he slept 6 hours straight. I was surprised when he woke me at 6am cos I was expecting his terry nappy to be dripping wet but it was only slightly damp.

I cant help worrying now that the boob feeding is going tits up, he has been wanting to suck a lot more the last couple days and hasnt been sleeping much in the day.

anyone have any idea what might be going on, and is it normal?

ETA: recently he seems to be possiting more than usual, especially when he's lying on his back, he's always been quite windy too

 

[DebbieM]

Perhaps he has a bit of reflux? Might be worth seeing what the HV thinks. In the meantime raise one end of his cot and see if that helps.

Dont worry about him not getting enough. He wont go hungry! Babies never do! Poo can be all diff colours.

 

[trixipaws]

im not sure sorry melissa didnt do any green poo's after she was a few days old. but it is normal for BFing mothers to worry they are not feeding their child enough- i was like that too, really uncertain! i thought if the baby is producing wet and dirty nappies and is not crying with hunger then ur doing fine i dont suppose the colour matters AS much, if theres stuff coming out there must be stuff going in! colour of poo depends upon diet i think, how is your own diet? are u getting enough vitamins etc- if not try taking supplements- i swear by supplements! speak to ur HV tho bout ur concerns, let us kno how u get on. xx

 

[Sherlock]

Another thing is he normally wakes up in the middle of the night for a feed, but didnt last night, he slept 6 hours straight. I was surprised when he woke me at 6am cos I was expecting his terry nappy to be dripping wet but it was only slightly damp.

I cant help worrying now that the boob feeding is going tits up, he has been wanting to suck a lot more the last couple days and hasnt been sleeping much in the day.

anyone have any idea what might be going on, and is it normal?

The sleeping more and wanting to suck more sounds like a growth spurt possibly. HV told me ysterday Galen will have another round of them in the coming two weeks or so and he is 5 weeks today.

And sleeping through for 6 hours I'd not worry about either. Galen has managed 5 hours on one or two occasions but most he goes it 4 atm.

I'd think he was getting enough if he is staying on. Galen is on and off inside of 15 minutes now and I worried he was taking enough in. But then I saw my milk flow (its like Niagra Falls ) and reaslised that while it was short and sweet, he really was filling up his tank.

Hang in there, I'm sure Logan is doing just fine.

 

[muppetmummy]

thanks guys Im feeling a bit better about it this morning.

He slept 7 hours last night! I changed his nappy (another greenish poo) and fed him, and he slept for another 4 hours! Maybe it is a growth spurt

I hope he's put some weight on on monday, he doesn't seem hungry so hopefully its just an error from the scales

 

[Rosieroo]

DS would posset and have green poo if he was feeding too often, I'm pretty sure he had lactose overload which was causing it. He'd have little feeds every hour or so which gave him tummy ache, made him sick and give him green poo. But that doesn't sound like your LO at all.

I've read before that green poo can be a sign of too more foremilk and not enough fatty stuff

Whatever it is it does sound like he and you are doing really well, particularly with the sleeping spells. Woohoo! Good luck on the scales next week

 

[Happybunny]

Hi MM,

I am no expert at all in BF, but I wanted to add my experience as it may be useful for you with regards to the long sleeps....BUT, remember, I am not an expert and this might not be the case for you.

I am having very similar worries to you. My little girl isn't losing weight, but she is gaining VERY slowly. (She has only gained 1 pound in 7 weeks!)

April began sleeping for long stretches very early on (about 6-8 hours on a night.) I questioned my HV who reassured me that it was fine to do so.
Now I am working very very closely with a Breast feeding counsellor from La Leche League and she has told me that this advice was very wrong and has helped to reduce my supply.
Apparently, babies who sleep so much so early on are doing so because they don't have enough energy to be awake. Even though we should BF on demand....I was told I had to wake baby and feed every 2 hours if she was having a big sleep. This was to increase supply and aid weight gain.
I have been doing this for two weeks now. It is exhausting and to be honest I am very very close to giving up now...but April is beggining to show signs of faster weight gain so I will tough it out a bit longer.

Also...my supply was reduced because of undetected anaemia. Apparently untreated anaemia and thyroid problems can affect your supply - so if you're worried, get them checked out. April's weight gain has been increasing since I have been taking iron.

I wish you all the luck honey - BF is wonderful, but it is soo hard sometimes. I am thinking of you!

 

[muppetmummy]

I've read before that green poo can be a sign of too much foremilk and not enough fatty stuff

I read this too when I googled, Ive been making an effort to keep him on the same boob for as long as possible just in case. I think maybe when he's been fussy in the evening Ive sometimes switched him to the other boob too soon.

Happybunny....He's been gaining ok up until now, he lost 8oz in the first week, then put on 4 or 5oz a week until the week before last when he put on 11oz. He was following the 50th centile on the Breast chart perfectly until the last weigh in.
He slept 6 hours last night, I will ask the HV tomorrow whether this is a problem. If he has lost tomorrow I think I'll start setting my alarm to make sure he gets a feed halfway through the night.

 

[Rosieroo]

MM one thing I started doing was making sure I only fed off one boob for 3 hours worth of feeds, then used the other for the next 3 hours. This used to help make sure he got fore and hind milk, don't know if this would help or if you're doing it already.

 

[Sherlock]

FWIW I don't change boobs during a feed ever either. I stick to one boob for 2 hours from the start of a feed. If Galen wants anything else in the 2 hours following he goes back on the same boob. Plenty of milk for him in one feed from one boob

 

[muppetmummy]

Thanks for all the advice guys He was weighed again today and has put on 2oz so it looks like the scales were wrong. Im so relieved, I was worried Id have to start supplementing with formula

 

[Rosieroo]

Awww hon, it's great he's put on weight. Please have faith in your breastfeeding ability, you're doing a great job!

 

[badgergirl]

I wish I'd known about the green poo! Sprog had this up until last week - HV told me is was wind. I've just started to do one boob for every 2 hours as a different HV told me too much foremilk can cause colic (which he's just started with) - if I'd put 2 and 2 together earlier it would've saved me a lot of anguish.