Losing weight

[Bee]

Finlay has just been weighed and he's lost weight again - he's now 6lb 4oz

He was 6lb 7.5 last week, 6lb 6oz the week before and 6lb 2oz the week before that, he's now 5 weeks old

The health visitor thinks he's not feeding properly but he's on the breast for ages and is sucking. She's coming on friday to weigh him before and after a feed but I still feel useless. The next stage is a bottle which I really don't want.

I don't know what to do really

 

[Tiggy26]

Have you got a local Milk Group or breastfeeding support group thats local? If so, ive known of a lady from breastfeeding support to go round to peoples houses and show/help you to get the baby latching on right. Its really worth trying hun.

HV's always tell you not to express before 6 weeks but if I was told that I have to give my baby forumla before 6 weeks then I would be inclined to try expressing anyway as its better than being forced to use formula completly.

If all else fails you may be forced to try the bottle as loosing weight isnt good, especially If HV is showing concern. Im not saying that you will definatly have too as you might get the BF issue resolved however its something you need to be prepared for HV to say.

Let us know how you get on

 

[purple13]

are his poos & wees normal?

connor was 1oz less than his birth weight at 1 month and i supplemented each feed with as much ebm as i could produce. i used formula as a top up on a couple of occasions too but didn't like doing it very much. feeding and expressing were a right faff (all i seemed to be doing was either feeding or pumping all day ) but it all just seemed to come right in the end.

now he's got reflux instead, just to keep life complicated

i'd try giving him expressed ebm before moving on to formula top ups? good luck

 

[Bee]

His poos and wees are fine - not changed.

My mum weighed him - we get 6lb 13oz so something isn't right. And we checked the scales by weighing something else and they are fine.

He doesn't seem unsettled - he sleeps most of the time and doesn't scream for more once he has fed so I don't think there is any problem with his feeding.

I'm going to speak to her when she comes on Friday

 

[daftscotslass]

I don't have any advice but you know where I am if you need a rant

 

[lisa&alex]

i have plenty of advise for you hun.. as ive been there..

im glad you havent been treated the same way i was..

so here goes.. plan to breastfeed most of the day.. get the remote,a big bottle of juice.. some food the phone and either lay in bed or sit on the sofa and keep the baby skin to skin.. let him feed as much as he wants to even if its just using you as a dummy coz its still nipple stimulation.. express as much as you can and as often as you can even if its jsut for 5 mins ehre or there. plan to do absolutly nothing.. get your mum round to help with the washing cooking cleanng etc.. or just get takeaways and leave the cleaning untill your partner gets home. its important to increase your milk supply and let the baby feed as much and as often as possible. perhaps this was one of my mistakes in not just laying on the sofa and feeding for a few days.. because i am down to 1-2 feeds a day now and the rest formula because of his weight loss.. as the hv is comming tmro..

dont introduce formula unless the baby is starving..because it will effect ur supply.. be strong and even if you have to substitute some breast with formula try and carry on breastfeeding because one mouthfull of breastmilk is better than none xxx

 

[muppetmummy]

i would ask if the HV could check with a different pair of scales if you and your mum have got a different weight.
Id have thought he'd be screaming if he was hungry
i hope he puts on weight soon

 

[Bee]

Thanks girls

great advice Lisa - thats what I will do after she comes today is she's still adamant that he's losing weight but I am sure its her scales. He feeds well though - 20 minutes then always wants the other boob and is asleep after them both so I'm not worried about my supply. Sorry to hear u had some problems

I'm going to weigh him before she comes and then let her weigh him., If she gets the same as me then I'll leave it but if she doesn't then I am going to say something. I don't really want her here to watch me feed him. I'm not doing anything wrong

He is so settled between feeds - only cries when he wants fed and sometimes cos of his colic. I would have thought the same thing too muppetmummy.

Thanks Midna - I thought the same thing. The whole thing is making me think that his weight has been wrong the whole way through. He feels solid and heavier - still skinny and doesn't fit his skin though

Oh I'll see how it goes later on and let u all know. Hopefully it is her scales. I weighed him on another set too and got 7lbs.

 

[lisa&alex]

how did it go hun?

 

[KJ]

Hiya,

just wanted to say that one health visitor weighed my friend's baby as like 3 or 4 pounds more than he actually was. She knew it was a mistake and got him re-weighed.

Also, on one of Ash's weigh-ins, the health visitor put his weight down as 10 lb 11oz when it was actually 11lb 10oz!!

So, they are not always right, in fact quite frequently wrong! So don't go by what they tell you. Obviously if he is losing weight then you'd need to think about what to do. But he might not be.

K.xx

 

[Rosieroo]

How did he get on Bee?

 

[debecca]

I would take it with a pinch of salt as the other girls say because:

1) Weight can vary depending on whether baby has just fed / pooed etc.
2) DODGY SCALES!!!! My midwife weighed Connie at 7.5lb and she was actually 8lb 4oz at the time (she conceded her scales had been broken when she next visited!)...

Trust your intuition, does he look like he's growing?!

Best of luck

 

[Bee]

Well he weighed in at 6lb 4.5oz on friday but I am still sure he's heavier

He is fine - sleeps well, doesn't scream, seems settled and feeds well to

I'm just going to keep doing what I am doing

She's coming on thursday so i'll keep u updated

thanks

 

[Rosieroo]

Well he weighed in at 6lb 4.5oz on friday but I am still sure he's heavier

He is fine - sleeps well, doesn't scream, seems settled and feeds well to

I'm just going to keep doing what I am doing

She's coming on thursday so i'll keep u updated

thanks

I'm so glad you're sticking to your guns Bee, especially the way some HVs can pressurise women into going against their instincts. You should be really proud of yourself!

Good luck on Thursday

 

[Bee]

Thanks Kina - I'm not giving in!

He's now got thrush - we've not had it easy Colic too

 

[Bee]

6lb 10oz - a huge improvement