Very confused and upset about the weight gain

[knopk@]

Hi ladies, maybe someone knows and can help, its all very confusing and the nurses are upsetting me even more, they all have different opinions as well.

So Anton was jaundiced and was sleepy so took us 3 weeks to get back to his birth weight. He was on 50 centile but is now sliding off. He is exclusively breastfed.

Week after he regained his weight, ie week 4, he gained 140 grams, week 5 he gained 160 grams.

They are saying it isnt enough according to their charts and he should have been 3920 a week ago ()week 4)
But given he was a week behind regaining his birth weigh, he is exactly a week behind on the chart ie at 5 weeks he is 3910

I think he might have a bit of a reflux as he doesnt like being put down, wants to be upright and also brings up a little bit of milk but not that much.

I saw a GP and she suggested we either top up or I can express and mix Gaviscon is but i need to express for every feed. There is no way I can do this when he screams if not held or driven about in a pram.

Went along to the breastfeeding cafe and chatted to them, they said i am doing everything right

I dont know whether to send them to hell or start topping up

 

[Hope81]

how is your milk supply??

if it dosent bring up lots of milk i don't think thats the reason of slow weight gain. and how are the nappies and the baby? is he fussy? maybe he has an allergy on dairies that you consume.?

i would try eliminate those from my diet for one week and see how it goes. if it dosent gain weight i would top probably in a couple of weeks but as he dosent loose , just he slow gains i will wait it a little longer i think.

 

[Belfast girl]

emma took 3.5 weeks to regain her birth weight and that was with top-ups.

the top ups broke my heart as we started off giving by syringe to try and keep breast feeding going but it got to the stage where she wasn't putting on any weight and we had to switch to a bottle as were giving 60mls. she never really latched on properly after that so stopped breastfeeding.

she is still only on the 5th centile but is very very active and thriving. she was a different baby when we went onto formula - from fussy and crying etc to kicking away. i just don't think i had enough supply and she was crying from hunger.

thinking back the top ups were the right thing to do at the time, and so was switching to formula but every baby is different. don't let the midwives bully you into anything, you know your baby the best!!

 

[Sarah13]

I really wouldn't worry as he is gaining. These charts are based on bottle fed babies and breast fed babies are slower to gain weight. As long as you get plenty of wet and pooey nappies then your doing fine. Kynon lost a lot of weight too but then fed loads and loads a few days later so it went back on. They don't weigh them much here as it worries mums too much my health visitor told me if he's wetting and pooing and I've noticed him getting heavier and bigger that's all that matters.

How often to you feed him? Im feeding every 2-3 hours and he cluster feeds quite a lot too. Sometimes windy or reflux babies need feeding a bit more as well as it can settle their tummies, I found it does work but you have a baby strapped to your boob a lot! Are you drinking loads as well as this can help, also read oats help milk supply, not tried this yet but planning on making some flapjacks!

I wouldn't top up, that's the worst thing you can do for your milk supply unless you are planning to switch to formula as your supply will reduce to allow for the top up. Everyone says things get easier after 6 weeks so hang in there x

 

[Maria1977]

He is gaining, and that's all that matters. It's normal to bring a bit of milk back up, the valve on their tummies doesn't work like ours does yet, it will take a while to work properly. My LO still brings up a bit of milk or food sometimes, not often but he does.

Be strong, don't worry about fitting within their guidelines. They are a pain in the ass.

You don't need to top up with formula atm and you definately do not need to worry about your supply, your body will always make enough it's what it does so please don't fret. Your baby is gaining weight, if he stayed the same or started losing then yes maybe a different approach is needed, but they are stressing you out for nothing at the moment.

Stay strong hun.

Do you have a local BFing support group? Just chatting to some woman there might make you feel a bit more positive and stronger so as to just take what these HVs etc say on the chin. Maybe leave it longer in between his weigh-ins? Give you a break from their stresses.

 

[knopk@]

Hi ladies, I will try to reply to all of the questions.

I did get flap jacks as when i cut the biscuits out, started noticing that milk supply started dropping.

He does cluster feed and i let him do it, lots of skin to skin etc. I went to the breastfeeding cafe and spoke to a consultant and they said I am doing everything right and there isnt much I can do.

He is fussy in the evenings and generally wants to be held or he screams but i dont know whether its because i dont have enough milk.

But at the same time he sleeps 3-4 hour chunks during the night. He wouldnt sleep if he was hungry, would he?

Sometimes he latches on/off or sucks on the boob but not properly, i cant hear him swallowing. So i think it might be for comfort.

I will go next week but wont ask for their advice, I just want to see how he is gaining.

He does seem to have reasonable amount of dirty/wet nappies, dont think its a problem

 

[Dragonfly Fi]

is he bright eyed?
is his skin the right colour?
is he eating normally?
is he weeing?
is he pooing?
If yes, simply stop taking him to be weighed. They are worrying you unneccessarily

a baby is a baby, not an average baby or a 'normal' baby, just a baby that is growing as HE is supposed to.

unless he is loosing weight noticiably, or drab and lifeless, or his eyes loose their shine or his skin changes colour you have NOTHING to worry about

HV charts are based on bottle fed babies anyway. They are pointless for BF babies

he is putting on weight every week and developing at a rate that is right for him. You dont need to do anything (except buy a sling so you can have a break from holding him in your arms all the time )

 

[Squeakz]

what everyone has said!!!!!!!!!! hugs hun x

 

[ZMD]

Im sure he's getting plenty from you Hun, when Tegan was first born she took 5 weeks to regain her birth weight and the hvs worried me sick. i wouldn't give him top ups if i was you, like you said he wouldn't sleep so well if he was hungry xx

 

[frankie707]

G took a month to get back to birth weight and people suggested topping up but I knew in my gut that he was ok - he was generally happy, slept ok, fed every 3-4hrs. If he's not losing weight I dont really see a massive issue esp if he seems happy and healthy. they all grumble in the evenings so that sounds normal.
Stick with it and if he carries on gaining then I wouldn't worry at all. Sounds to me like your doing a great job

 

[Binzy]

I'm far from the expert and worry as much as anyone but here they (the Liga Leche) say minimum weight gain is 120g and as long as they do one poo every 24 hrs they are getting enough. Hope you're ok

 

[knopk@]

He is definetely doing 2 big poos every day bar small ones with wet nappies. He is a very hungry boy though and cluster feeds a loy in the evening. My bum is sore from sitting on the bed!

 

[Binzy]

Bless you, I wonder if I'm going to get bedsores too! Maybe try nappy ras cream
M

 

[Dragonfly Fi]

have you tried feeding lying down ladies? Its lovely

look at this x

http://www.biologicalnurturing.com/

 

[Sarah13]

Lol my bum hurts from all the sitting too, and my legs feel fidgity all the time!

 

[Bunnykins]

Lol my bum hurts from all the sitting too, and my legs feel fidgity all the time!

I get this its awful! I had really swollen feet for ages after the birth as I was constantly sat down and not moving cos of all the cluster feeding he does!!!

 

[Sassysugar]

I get that fidgety feeling in my legs too, it's horrible, as nothing you can do while bf

 

[knopk@]

I thought it was only me with fidgety legs. They are horrible, aren't they ?

 

[knopk@]

so he gained 210 grams this week but they still wont leave me alone, now they got hv on our case. I just dont see how they can help, they only make it worse

 

[Sarah13]

Sounds like a good gain to me! A gain is a gain and they can have little growth spurts where one week they will gain more than another. Try not to let them worry you xx