What does baby eat?

polkadotteddaisies · December 2015

No matter the answer, I want everyone to know they're not alone

No passive aggressive comments please.

polkadotteddaisies · December 2015

We are all lucky to have babies to care for. Since this is a personal question, a bit about me and baby... I intended to BF but baby eats formula because i do not make enough milk. I hate being asked "how do you know you dont make enough" with a tone where the person assumes I am wrong. At five days old baby stopped crying and stopped waking up for feedings and we took him to the ER. He was admitted to the ICU for four days for severe dehydration. My early concerns were hushed with "every mom worries they dont make enough... nb weight loss is normal... he is just fussy... as long as he has good output he is fine." Turns out his kidneys were overproducing urine, draining his organs, and we could have lost him.

koriemo · December 2015

I have a very similar story!!! Mine was almost admitted for dehydration but they sent us home from the doctors office with formula and instructions to watch him. When I think back to the first 2 weeks of his life, I want to cry. I feel like you- the "advice" was basically "Everyone thinks they don't produce enough, but they do!" And "cluster feeding is normal!" And "babies do sleep a lot!" And "all babies lose weight!".... And nobody seemed to address the fact that sometimes, there really is a problem with breastfeeding. In fact, I get really angry at all of these reassurances because they were wrong. I also would get frustrated because people would tell me to pay attention to my baby to see if he was extra fussy or lethargic... I am a FTM; I have no idea what "normal" for a newborn is.

Rant over. Having a baby who has a hard time gaining weight is tough. For us, I started pumping and my milk did come in after 2 weeks and we are breastfeeding, but I totally understand formula feeding in a way I never did before.

FatPony · December 2015

I wasn't producing enough milk either, so we had to formula feed. I didn't try to pump until my milk came in - it just killed me when when my baby screamed and pushed away my breast. He much preferred formula. Other than some weird tummy troubles a couple days ago, he's doing just fine on formula. I wish breastfeeding could've worked out, but c'est la vie.

leah665 · December 2015

I'm in the same boat. She wasn't gaining weight, lost over a pound from her birth weight. I wasn't producing enough and she had a tongue tie. It broke my heart, because I really wanted to EBF. In the end it's what's best for my little girl. I pump but I don't get much. We still nurse and then give formula. Luckily, she doesn't seem to have a problem switching from breast to bottle.

Limie · December 2015

OMG ladies I am crying reading this! I've been basically mourning the loss of breastfeeding my son. My story is similar. He lost a pound after we got home from the hospital. We had to supplement until my milk came in. Then at 8 weeks I thought we were doing great. He felt heavier, his clothes fit better. He was crying every evening so I thought he just had colic. Took him to the Dr and he only weighed 7 lbs. (He weighed 7.6 at birth) my poor baby was starving and here I was thinking that breast feeding was going good. I kept hearing as long as his out put was good he's getting enough. Not true! I felt and still feel horrible that my baby was starving and I didn't even notice. We formula feed now and I let him nurse at night and I pump what I can. But he's 95%formula fed.

Reading ya'lls similar stories makes me feel 100 times better!

crbpjb · December 2015

This is very interesting to read. My baby was born 7lb7oz and at 3 days was 6lb11oz. The doctor actually weighed her before and after a feeding and determine that she was getting over an ounce (which is really good for a baby that new). At 10 days she was still not up to birth weight, but she got 2.5oz in the feeding. By the next week she was back up over birthweight so we didn't have to come again until one month old. I wonder how my situation may have compared if they hadn't weighed her before and after the feedings. I worried at first, but the doctor was very reassuring, especially knowing exactly how much she was eating. All of this is not to say anyone did it right or wrong at all (I really hope it is not coming off that way, but I worry). Sounds like a different situation, but I am just thankful that I had that reassurance. It is really tough to know otherwise, and I am sure it is very frustrating when people are doubting you. I think it's good for doctors to make sure we are producing enough, but the key word there is DOCTORS (or lactations consultants), not random people on the street or well-meaning friends.

Limie · December 2015

In my case the first pediatrician we saw who told me to supplement told me that as long as he had so many wet diapers a day he was good. I had milk but he has a lip tie and a suspected posterior tongue tie and he has to work extra hard to nurse so in the end he is burning more calories than he is getting.

Stephanieshort2 · January 2016

I feel like we've experienced every issue on the planet. Under supply, over supply, clogged ducts, and infections... And now my medication for the infection is upsetting DS's tummy. He's been on formula for two weeks and trying to resume breastfeeding but supply has decreased drastically. Thinking of throwing in the towel.

zetlopez · January 2016

I wish there was a pumping option on the poll. He is technically formula fed, but I pump and add breast milk to the formula. He was being super fussy and at about 5 weeks the doctor said if it's all day non stop it could be he's allergic to something I'm eating and to watch my diet. Well I figured the best way to test that theory was to just try formula. If he stopped fussing it meant it was my milk. It worked but I still wanted him to get the benefits of breast milk so I started pumping and adding to his bottle. He was still fine and had been gaining weight ever since we started formula (he struggled gaining weight before). To this day I still don't know if he wasn't getting enough or if there was something in my milk he didn't like. I did attempt to go back to breastfeeding and then just topping him if with formula but his stomach did not appreciate that. I don't have the patience our energy to eliminate things from my diet to find the culprit and this works for us.

polkadotteddaisies · January 2016

Saw this video on another post, and it made me cry. I think it does a great job, in such a short video, capturing how different moms can be from one another and how we shouldn't be judgemental.

https://youtu.be/2K18y1W2Lek

What does baby eat?

What does baby eat? 137 votes

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