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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

In hospital urgent advice needed!

137 replies

RachaelLaurenDaisyStone · 14/10/2016 04:54

Hi, my baby is 10 weeks old breastfed only and we've been admitted to hospital for a few days observation as she has had a very slight weight loss since her immunisations 2 weeks ago (lots of dioreah) born 7lbs 6oz. Was gaining along her percentile and only lost 7%of birth weight. Went from 8lbs 15oz to 8lbs 10oz and has gone back up to 8lbs 12oz but they still have admitted us even though I protested. So anyway the advice I need desperately is that I feel I am being bullied into giving her formula, and they are forcing me to wake her up in the night for a feed. She feeds well in the day every 2-4 hours on both breasts and I have a very good supply I express every morning and get 6 oz in about 10-12 mins. But she has slept through the night since 4 days old. This has never effected her negatively before. I really feel the jabs are the reason she's lost the weight and is slow gaining. Can I refuse to wake her up in the night to the doctors? I'm now giving her a 150mls as well with both breasts at every feed I see think that will be helping her gain without waking her up and without giving her formula. Please can anyone give me advice on what my rights as a parent are?! It's not like she's underweight she's still in the 50th percentile!

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

uhoh2016 · 14/10/2016 05:04

Can you not lift her to dream feed from your breasts whilst she's sleepy?
I totally get you don't want to wake a sleeping baby who in their right minds would but I'd be inclined to go with it. They want her putting on weight so realistically the best way to do that is too feed her more. Your looking at the long term picture of maybe your dd will get used to waking for a feed and stop sleeping through. The Dr's are looking at today only and aren't concerned with future sleeping habits etc.
Wake and feed her get her bigger the sooner she put on weight the sooner you'll be home again

uhoh2016 · 14/10/2016 05:06

Also why do they want you to feed her formula? Why can't you wake her to breastfeed or at least take expressed milk if they want to see how much she's taking?

msmorgan · 14/10/2016 05:28

What time are you giving her last feed before she goes down for the night and what time is she waking?

I breastfed my dd approx every 2-4 hours through the day and she slept roughly 12-6 from quite early on. I was told that as long as she got enough milk in a 24 hour period it was ok. I only ever took her to get weighed twice but she was clearly getting bigger and doing plenty of nappies.

How long do you have to stay in hospital? If you are producing plenty of milk I'd refuse to give formula but would consider a night feed depending how long your baby is sleeping for.

Highlove · 14/10/2016 10:07

Sorry if I've misread this, but if your 10 week old is around 8lbs12, she's about second centile, not 50th. (Or was she prem?) Either way, she's only a bit over a pound up on her birth weight at ten weeks? If I've got that wrong then apologies. If not, then that is worrying. My DD is the same age, 7.10 at birth and now somewhere around 11lbs (weighing her next week) and has been steadily tracking the 25th.

Whether or not you top-up with formula, you express, introduce a night feed, has to be your decision but if I've read the figures right then it sounds like you DO need to do something. In my experience, the paeds tend to be far more relaxed than HVs, midwives, etc, about slow growth. So if the Drs are taking it seriously, I would too.

Good luck.

cathaka15 · 14/10/2016 10:14

If they've admired your dd in hospital then I would take it seriously.

You don't actually need to wake your dd to feed her.
Also combination of the formula and breast milk could be better for her to gain what she's lost a lot faster imo.
When you're back home and her weight back to normal you can continue your routine of exclusive bf.

MrsLettuce · 14/10/2016 10:35

TBH I'd be offering the breast at least every 2 hours day and night. Likely enough she'll latch without waking in the night or if she's napping. The more milk you can get into her the better, at this stage.

gonetoseeamanaboutadog · 14/10/2016 10:38

She does probably need to have a night feed while she's under 12lb. I would be expecting to feed a baby of that weight twice during the night. If she's sleeping through at that weight, I would say you probably should be waking her up.

I'm not a doctor though.

user1466690252 · 14/10/2016 10:42

If your in hospital with a baby that young I would do whatever they suggested to be honest. Formula top ups wont hurt and you can still breastfeed when she ops her weight. Being underweight will hurt her more than the formula. Its tough and i cant imagine how stressed you are but do as the medically trained professionals tell you for now

DangerQuakeRhinoSnake · 14/10/2016 10:44

Feeding at night will boost your supply so it's well worth doing OP. I'd be doing that as a minimum.

JennyOnAPlate · 14/10/2016 10:48

for you op, what a stressful situation.

I completely understand you not wanting to offer formula, but I would follow the advice about waking to feed in the night. And make sure you are consuming enough calories to produce good quality milk (not easy when you're stressed and anxious, I know.) I remember my midwife telling me to eat a mars bar every day!

willconcern · 14/10/2016 10:50

I'd be worried too. She's only gained 1.5 lb since birth? And she's 10 weeks old. That's a tiny weight gain.

If I were you I'd be waking her every 2 hours in the day and twice at night (or feeding her when I went to bed and again at, say, 2 am).

When DS1 was born, we had a similar issue as he list a lot of weight in the first week. Bit different to you as it sounds as though your baby just hasn't put much weight on at all. I stayed in bed with him for several days, just feeding him loads. You could do this. He gained 500g in one day at one point. By 10 weeks he was well over 10lb. By 12 weeks he was over 12lb.

Good luck

SpeakNoWords · 14/10/2016 11:00

I would also be feeding 2 hourly and feeding twice in the night given the very little weight that your baby has gained. I really can't see how having her jabs could have caused an issue with weight gain. My baby had a horrible case of chicken pox at 3 weeks old, and his weight gain slowed down somewhat due to him not wanting to feed as often or as long as usual. But even then he gained more weight than what you've described.

I would do what the doctors are asking you to do. You could ask if you could give expressed milk rather than formula, if it's easy for you to express. If they say no, then you could ask them to explain why they want to give formula instead.

Original poster

RachaelLaurenDaisyStone · 16/10/2016 13:32

Hi, the jabs effected the weight gain as she was having large watery poo nappies and projectile vomiting through every single feed x

OP posts:

Northernlurker · 16/10/2016 13:36

Jabs don't usually have that sort of effect. Are they wanting to offer formula to see if she reacts in it the same way? My oldest went all night very early on but gained considerably more. Your dd seems very low weight I'm afraid.

Original poster

RachaelLaurenDaisyStone · 16/10/2016 13:37

The doctors have also effectively reduced her feeds? As they are telling me to only feed her every 4 hours and give a 70ml top up if expressed milk. And today they've told me to stop feeding her fir so long as she was doing 20/30 mins each boob and then taking about 15 mins fir the bottle. So they want me to spend 30 mins all thogether with the boob and 10 mins on the expressed. She's alert and happy soft spot is fine reaching all development, smiling, noises, tummy time etc. We are stuck in this room all day and night since Thursday min here tell Monday. Missing out on our mummy and baby classes, being with her daddy. I'm not able to eat my normal fresh fruits and vegetables and get us out walking instead they either forget to give me food or take it away before I've eaten it because I'm feeding her. It's ghastly anyway. I just don't understand why we are here when we could be doing the same at home. Not one person has observed me feed, looked inside her mouth,even checked my blood pressure or temp etc. I just want to get out of here!!!!

OP posts:

Original poster

RachaelLaurenDaisyStone · 16/10/2016 13:40

The hvhas never flagged up before the weight loss that her weight was an issue. They kept telling me she's in the 50th percentile. I was a very small baby and dipped below the bottom percentile so I wasn't expecting a chunky baby. X

OP posts:

imip · 16/10/2016 13:46

This happened to me with dd2 8 years ago. Following protocol, she was automatically admitted when we went back to get her jaundice levels tested at hospital. Is she your first? I was kept the whole weekend virtually feeding the whole time. Like you, no one checked her, I'd just had mastitis and had no help breast feeding.

It was awful....

It was on a Friday, and when we saw a consultant on Sunday (first we'd seen) he said it was ridiculous that dd was admitted. Based on the experience with my first dd, mine were always slow to put on weight and had jaundice. They were otherwise alert, smiling and happy.

My two subsequent dds were the same, they were not admitted. While they were always small till they started food, after eating they took after their dad and they are very solid and tall girls. Not sure why they remained so small before food, but it was the same experience with all my 4dds.

Sugarpiehoneyeye · 16/10/2016 13:51

Rachael, it must be very stressful for you, being in hospital, with your baby daughter. I think you must try to relax a little. The hospital wouldn't have admitted your daughter, unless they considered it necessary, they know what they are doing. As you say yourself, she is sleeping, feeding, smiling and gurgling, so she's doing nicely. You have to trust the professionals, they are not trying to undermine you, as a Mother. You'll both be home soon sweetheart, and normality can resume. Sending you a handhold 💐

SpeakNoWords · 16/10/2016 13:51

What do they say when you ask why they want you to do this feeding schedule?

Can you get your DH to bring you proper food?

gallicgirl · 16/10/2016 14:00

I had similar with my daughter at a week old and it was very frustrating as I felt they weren't doing anything to investigate the causes of poor weight gain. The message was just to express or feed formula. In hindsight, she probably had a tongue tie and we got fuck all breastfeeding support. I was a lot more vocal when my son was born!

In regards to the vaccination, has your baby had the rotavirus vaccine? My son had diarrhoea for 5 weeks afterwards. No other adverse symptoms and docs weren't worried but just thought I'd mention it to show you're not alone.

I would suggest shouting up for more investigation of the causes and seeing a lactation consultant to rule out any problems with feeding. I hope it improves soon, not least because hospital food is abysmal!

OhTheRoses · 16/10/2016 14:05

Hospital doctors and nurses understand diddlysquat about bf. Ask to see the lactation consultant. Breast feed every two hours and yes, do wake he - she is v tiny for 10 weeks compared to birth weight. When they come to remove your food tell them not to.

We were admitted when DD was four months and a daft reg went on and on about how many ounces dd was drinking and wouldn't take no for an answer. She insists on telling me that I should know from the weight of my breasts. Saw her again in outpatients and when less stressed tried to explain breasts weren't calibrated like bottles and when bf was well established they didn't fill visibly. I couldn't express at all but dd was 8.6 at birth and about 14 at 4/5 months if not more.

TigerLily666 · 16/10/2016 14:09

Oh god your post took me straight back to the issues I had with DS. The medics all think that the reason breastfeeding fails is because women are feeding too frequently - they have this four hour rule. They also don't like baby latched on for too long because they think baby is using you for comfort - like a dummy. I ended up on an unsustainable program of bf for 20 mins, then bottle feed, then expressing. I'd only just finish that and it would start again.

I wish I had just bf when baby wanted for as long as they wanted - within reason, then immediately offered top up with a bottle.

Medics v good at offering differing advice but What I actually needed was less stress and 1 to 1 bf support and clear action plan regularly reviewed

However that said it is really important to give your baby feeds o/n it is not usual for babies to sleep through at this age.

I would do what they say bf and then give top ups, get weight on baby and get yourself home where it will be less stressful and you can begin to find your own way again - maybe spending lots of skin to skin time.

Thirtyrock39 · 16/10/2016 14:10

im surprises about the sleeping through from 4 days old...your health visitor shd have told you to feed as a minimum every 4 hours at night as its not good for newborns to go more than this without feeds cos of low blood sugar and the effect on your supply... Is there not an infant feeding team at the hospital who would be able to support you with your breastfeeding while taking on board the Drs advice?

PikachuSayBoo · 16/10/2016 14:13

Ring up the postnatal ward and see if they can sort out a lactation consultant or even a midwife.

Waking her at night for now is probably good. I wouldn't give her formula. She was putting on weight prior to the d&v, so this is a blip and I'm sure she will start to gain again.

Northernlurker · 16/10/2016 14:14

Rachel, why would they take your bp? Is it you that's the patient rather than dd?

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