Considering giving up BF

[TwoWeeSausages]

Ds2 is 4wks old & is currently EBF but I am considering giving up.

This is because I feel i am not feeding him enough as he has not gained any weight in a week.

I am feeding on demand but hv has advised that I should be feeding every 2hrs to get his weight up.

At birth he was 7lb 3oz

At 6 days 6lb 13oz

At 10 days 7lb 5lb

At 19 days 7lb 15lb

At 26 days no weight gain.

HV wants to see him again next week and has mentioned that if there is no significant change I should consider FF top ups.

Basically I am feeling shit and feel that I am depriving my baby. Have tried the 2hrs feeding but DS is not intetested in this and feeds when he is hungry.

Am I doing something wrong? Should I be pushing the 2hr feeds?

[thisisyesterday]

hmm, a healthy baby with no obvoius feeding problems shouldn't really be weighed more than once a month... and this is why!

feeding on demand is good. if your son wanted to feed more he would! there are various reasons why he may not have gained this week, and it's fairly unliekly that you aren't feeding him enouh

my advice would be to see a breastfeeding counsellor, or at least ring one of the breastfeeding helplines. Get some good advice. Health visitors can be great, but they have very, very little training on breastfeeding.

why has she suggested formula? you can express and top up with breastmilk if necessary

it's worth seeing a BFC in real life just so they can watch you feed and make sure baby is transferring milk efficiently. you haven't mentioned it so I assume you're having no problems yourself with breastfeeding? sore nipples? anything like that?

[MoonUnitAlpha]

How often does he feed - does he take both sides?

How is he generally, content? Lots of wet and dirty nappies?

[MoonUnitAlpha]

Agree with TIY too - babies aren't going to gain steadily every week! They grow in fits and starts with growth spurts and plateaus.

[MoonFaceMamaaaaargh]

Firstly well done on getting this far!

I am only a stop gap to say hang on in there till someone more knowlegable comes along.

Your lo is gaining weight and you are certainly not depriving him. Quite the opposite in fact.

Babies don't grow in nice straight lines so he may well have had a growth spurt by the hext time you see the hv.

Hopefully someone will be along to reassure you soon. smile]

[MoonFaceMamaaaaargh]

I am so slow! (nak)

[islandbaby]

I second not relying just on the HV. Mine admits that she's no expert and doesn't want to give definitive advice. My NHS BF support person on the other hand is a wealth of information, and a real reassurance to have keeping an eye on me.

[TwoWeeSausages]

Thanks for your replies.

No sore nipples. Latch is fine, I think. Bit of discomfort with let down but goes away very quickly.

Ds is feeding roughly every 3-4hrs during the day, every 1-1.5hr ish in the evening (5pm til 10pm). Night feeds are generally 1am and 4am ish. Day usually starts bout 7am.

Feed usually lasts 20-30mins but I usually need to wake him about half way. Tried to offer both but is not interested.

Wet nappies every change. Dirty nappies are now about every 5 days but have told that is normal.

Generally he is a happy wee chap and I thought I was doing well (no nipple issues, sleep deprivation not that bad) but this has really knocked my confidence in BF.

[TwoWeeSausages]

Have not spoke to any BF councillors.
Community midwives were great and have found out the run a weekly BF group which Im going to attend.

[MoonUnitAlpha]

If you look in the back of your red book (in the fold out bit with the growth charts) it actually says that after 2 weeks babies should be weighed no more than once a month - for just this reason! Causes unnecessary worry.

If I were you I'd keep feeding him at every cue, and maybe don't get him weighed again for a couple more weeks.

[tiktok]

Why is the HV worried? Your baby has gained 18 ounces between day and day 26. This is perfectly normal....and it's not surprising he did not gain between day 19 and 26 as he is just 'adjusting' to a normal, slightly slower weight gain :)

Having said that, this is very frequent weighing - very poor practice indeed for a mother to be encouraged to weigh as often as this. Once a baby is at birth weight - and yours reached birthweight quite quickly - it is misleading and creates anxiety and gives wrong information to weigh more often than once a month at the most.

:( :( to talk about top ups to you :( :(

[TwoWeeSausages]

Thanks ladies.

Not sure why she wants to weigh him so frequently but I will definetly be asking this when I see her again (Wednesday)

[smk84]

You're doing well. Remember he has not lost any - that's great ! Ditto everyone above. People on here seem to give better advice than HVs ! Wish I had been a member when my son was tiny !