Nervous about LO's weight

Re: Nervous about LO's weight

• koriemo member

  December 2015

  I'm so sorry you are going through this! Are you EBF? Have you worked with a lactation consultant? I recommend it if you haven't seen one yet. 
  
  Our LO lost a LOT of weight and almost had to be hospitalized for dehydration. It was the scariest moment for me as a mom. I nursed him constantly, but he just wasn't getting anything. We started to supplement with formula and pumped breastmilk. But I felt like such a failure because I was trying to feed my son, yet he was starving.
  

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• LaurenBee24 member

  December 2015

  My daughter is in the 3rd percentile so I know what it's like to have a small baby. Keep in mind that some babies are larger or smaller and that it might be normal. Was she born very small?
  You ought to see a lactation consultant as pp mentioned, but you should ask your pediatrician tomorrow to weigh the baby before and after a feeding. Make sure when you do this little hasn't eaten in 2 hours. I'd call today to be sure they will. This way you know how much your lo is eating each time.
  I go to a group every other week and do this just for my peace of mind. It's a nursing support group at the hospital.... Maybe find one yourself. They have the digital scale. I even got a large produce scale with a basket and weigh her at home daily. I just want to be sure we stay on track. She gains about a half ounce a day and that's low, but ok for her for now. We are working with the pedi and a gi because she has food allergies.
  
  Also, do you have a pump? You might want to try nursing then pumping and offering what you pumped. This helped us tremendously when she wasn't gaining at all!! I rented a hospital grade pump for $65 per month and it's awesome.

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• Limie member

  December 2015

  We had a similar issue. At 8 weeks I thought he was just colicky but took him to the Dr. Found out he was only 7 lbs! (He was 7.6 at birth) my poor boy was starving and I thought breast feeding was going great! He felt heavier,his clothes fit. He just was really skinny (but long). Go see a lactation consultant! It sounds like it could be a tongue tie. Unfortunately for us I'm not producing enough milk anymore so we formula feed and give him what milk I can. It was a hard reality at first but now my baby is gaining weight and is happy and I'm not stressed anymore. I wish we had caught the issue sooner though.

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• crbpjb member

  December 2015

  They can weigh her before and after a feeding to see how much she is getting which would be more telling than weight alone. I also second seeing a lactation consultant. There are also things that can help with supply.

  

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• leah665 member

  December 2015

  What all these moms said. Also, don't feel like a failure if you have to supplement. That does NOT make you a bad mom. I had the same issue, I felt terrible, but I also wanted to make sure my baby was getting fed. My LO still nurses and gets some from me and I just top her off with formula. She hasn't had any issues switching back and forth. You're doing great momma!

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• FatPony member

  December 2015

  You are doing great, don't get down on yourself. Like pp said, there's no harm in formula feeding to top baby off. I wasn't producing near enough for my 9 lb newborn monster, so we switched to formula. He now weighs more than my cousins baby who is 3 months older. Her poor guy had issues getting enough milk too.
  
  When you're pregnant, you hear all about how the boob will be best for baby - never once heard about supplementing. I learned that one the hard way!!
  
  Good luck!!

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• kingbaby2015 member

  January 2016

  thanks everyone.. she still didn't gain enough but the doctor wants me to try reflux meds before we talk about formula. she thinks maybe she isn't eating enough because the reflux makes her uncomfortable. I don't think she is right but I guess we will give it a shot. I am also going to make an appt with a lactation consultant, so thanks for that recommendation! 

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• koriemo member

  January 2016 edited January 2016

  My LO also has reflux which was causing him to be fussy while eating and not take as much. However, as a result, my milk supply was too low because he wasn't taking as much. I started taking some supplemental pills and they really helped! Morher's Milk Plus I think.

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• leighann1 member

  January 2016

  Same story for us. My girl was gaining about 3-3.5 ounces per week, and at 10 weeks she weighed just under 8 lbs (6,4 at birth). She is barely on the chart, at the 1-2 percentile range. I went to a lactation consultant and found out she had a posterior tongue tie, which was causing her to not take in milk as efficiently as she should. We had it clipped a week ago and so far she's had a 4 ounce gain in a week, her record so far! I've been going to a weekly breastfeeding support group at our hospital where I can weigh her. I would definitely recommend getting some breastfeeding support if it's important for you to continue with that, otherwise, supplementing with formula is a great option too. Our ped recommended a bottle or two a day just to help boost her calories. We haven't started that yet because I wanted to see if we can see improvements after the tongue tie procedure, but I'm not opposed to it if we need it. 

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• swcm member

  January 2016 edited January 2016

  I'm right there with you. Little guy was in 0% at 2 month appointment. He was 6 lb 6 oz at birth and at 2 months up to 8 lb 3 oz. I thought that was pretty good but not good enough apparently. Dr. told us some things to try over the next 2 weeks but its just giving me a ton of anxiety. I thought breastfeeding would get easier as time went on but right now I just feel like all the Dr.s suggestions are making things so complicated and frustrating. I'll be back at work in less than 3 weeks so I'm worried about that too.

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• Octbowbaby member

  January 2016

  This is where we were when LO was born. But thankfully we had a lactation consultant at the pediatrician's office. I know its frustrating see your babies weight not go up. I would definitely recommend seeing a lactation consultant. We had to pump after every feeding the first month and then offer that or a formula supplement. Luckily we found out it was just that LO didn't quite know how to suckel and would just hang out on the boob. We had to teach him while pumping amped up my supply. He's doing very well now. Praying for you ladies!

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