Well, that didn't go how I had hoped...

jfb29 · April 2014

Just got back from the LC. While Adaline is gaining weight, she isn't gaining quite enough. She will be 3 weeks tomorrow and just got back to her birth weight according to the LC's scale (this scale and the ped scale are majorly not correlating). So, she gained 7 oz in 12 days. The weighed feed showed she got an ounce total from both boobs (20 minutes on each). Her latch and suck are good, so I'm just not making enough milk. Despite doing everything right to increase my supply, the amount has decreased in half in those 12 days. So, she said we need to increase supplementing to 4 times a day. I'll go back in a week to have her weight taken again to see how she is gaining.

I'm really sad about this. From the beginning I've said (1)I really didn't want a c section and that happened, (2) I really feared not being able to breast feed and this looks as though it is coming true and (3) I'm scared to have to wear a strapless bra for a wedding I'm in in 3 weeks, so we will see how that one goes.

No real point to this post, just venting my sadness. I just feel like my body is failing in yet another way...

NorBar39 · April 2014

I'm so sorry. My supply is inadequate as well....when I pump I get 20mls from both combined

it's so hard to accept when I was planning to EBF. We just have to do what is best for our babies and that may mean using formula more than we hoped. It does not mean we are bad moms at all-just doing what we have to do.

rockopera · April 2014

I am having the same BFing challenges. M actually stated showing signs of dehydration and lost weight between day 5 and day 10/11.

I am constantly sad about it. I keep rationally telling myself that baby is fed and happy and healthy. But there is definitely a grieving process associated with not being successful at this.

SmittyPants · April 2014

I'm sorry. Keep in mind that your body grew another human being so it isn't a failure.

angelsnight · April 2014

I'm sorry, it sucks when our bodies don't do what they should. I also had to have a C section, and my LO won't latch on. She'll suck on anything you put in her mouth, except my boob apparently. She actually pushes me away when I try. It upset me at first, but there isn't anything I can do about it, and the most important thing is that she gets nutrition somehow, even if it's from formula. She's not even getting BM right now because everything I pump goes in the freezer. Her tummy can't handle my dairy consumption (I've tried cutting it but it still bothers her) so we'll try the frozen BM when she's a little older.

Hugs to you, I hope her weight gain goes well. FWIW, my little one is slow to gain weight too. Five days after birth she had lost a whole pound, and now she's still only up 2 ounces from her birth weight so her weight gain is on the low end but her pedi is fine with it.

lnvane00 · April 2014

I know it's frustrating. I had to have a csection and my son won't latch either. My dream of breastfeeding never happened.

jfb29 · April 2014

Thanks ladies for the support. I know she is a miracle - it took us 2 years to get pregnant and she was our last IUI before moving to adoption (IVF wasn't for us). DH is disappointed about the breast feeding too but from a cost perspective. I'm trying to tell myself that it's ok but logic and feelings are two separate things...

akflutterby · April 2014

I'm so sorry you're going through this. With my first I had a lot of supply issues and he was on formula from birth with me attempting to nurse until he was 4mos. Did your LC recommend anything to 8ncrease your supply? Cookies, tea, pumping, etc?

Hdhtk4 · April 2014

This is the exact same thing that happened to me, except I was making enough milk. Do you pump at all? Just wondering how many ounces you get when you pump because I had plenty of milk and my LO had a good latch and suck but for some reason was still not swallowing/getting enough milk. Thought this might also be happening with you. The best weighed feeding she had was 1 1/2 ounces in an hour. The LC couldn't figure out why but finally decided she had a posterior tongue tie. I was very upset and discouraged but finally in week 4 LO got the hang of it! At her 4 week weight check she had gained 20 ounces in 7 days! We had been supplementing as well but the pedi said in order for her to have gained that much in one week she has to be getting what she needs from me. So I've quit supplementing and LO is still gaining. This may not apply to you but just wanted to give you some encouragement if it does.

Also we have since decided that LO does not have the tongue tie.

jfb29 · April 2014

@akflutterby‌ - LC said I've done everything I can. I've been taking fenugreek and blessed thistle. Diet is good. She said she is afraid that as Addie needs more my body will fall further behind. She told me to double the supplement from what ped said based on her weights (since the weights from ped are very different than hers)

@Hdhtk4‌ - I have been pumping to try to increase supply. When I pump after a feeding I'm getting around 1-2 tsps, so I'm being sucked dry when she feeds. If I pump not after a feeding I'll get around 1.5 oz total (.5 on left and 1 on right). That isn't enough - she said she needs to be getting 2.5-3oz each feeding based on weight.

teaforthree · April 2014

Sorry you're going through this, I know it's hard. I didn't have a c-section, but BFing was something I was really looking forward to because it didn't happen with my first DD, and sadly it's not happening this time, either. This LO lost nearly a pound in the first three days, and when we went to the LC we found that she was hardly getting an ounce from me (after sucking for 45 minutes), and was basically burning more calories than she was getting. I started pumping at that point so that we could measure the amount she's eating, and we supplemented with formula, but my supply has steadily decreased and it's at the point where I can't seem to get more than 1-2 ounces per pump session. Now she's pretty much formula fed with a bottle or two (maybe 3-4 ounces total) of BM per day. It sucks, and I'm sad and feel bad that my supply is not adequate for her, but as others have said, she's being fed and gaining weight and that's what's important. My 12 year old DD never got any BM at all, and I can attest that she's very smart, rarely ever sick, and perfect in every way

It's not the end of the world, I promise. Hang in there, I know how shitty it can feel, but you're doing the best you can and there's plenty of us in the same boat who can relate. Best wishes to you...

akflutterby · April 2014

It sounds like you're doing everything you can and using every available resource. Keep fighting the good fight and don't let it get the best of you. Best laid plans and all that. Also, I'd look at trying to weigh LO somewhere else to get a third "opinion" on size since doc and LC are so far apart and you're getting differing opinions and recommendations.

bumpuser1282882 · April 2014

I know how you feel. LO lost weight in the hospital and was slow to gain weight ever since. He has some BFing issues too. You're not alone, that's for sure. It's hard not to feel discouraged but it does sound like you're doing everything you can.

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