Help! Help! Help!

[misspollysdolly]

Gorgeous DD is four DAYS old. We have been readmitted tohospital because she has lost 13% of her birthweight (she was c-section born and fat with fluid if that makes difference to anything). She is my third DC and I am passionately committed to exclusively breastfeeding. My milk us only just coming in today. DD is feeding well. Latch is fine. Very content and sleeping between feeds. Poo and wee are both appearing at intervals. However here we are in hospital. She isnow subject to a delightful 'feeding programme' and I have just declined topping her up with formula against advice and am now feeling thoroughly confused about what to do for the best for my baby. She is now to be fed three-hourly (not 'on demand') I can only keep her on the breast for 30 mins each time 'so that she doesn't use up too much energy feeding' (apparently the amount used fretting and yelling for Mummy isn't the same thing at all) and I need to express using a pump so that she can be topped up with my milk on too of her reduced feed from me. Allof this goes against the grain and yet I'm adamant not to add formula in at all. I think that will muckabout with her system ament supply. Can someone help me make sense of all this and tell me what to do. DD is yelling. DH is holding her. I want to feed her. Help!

Sorry that you are struggling and upset MPD.

It seems that the weigh ins are increasing your stress levels, understandable of course.

I think green poo is within the range of normal for most babies, but hopefully tiktok is around and can reassure you about this.

Hope today goes well.

Green poo: all babies have green poo at least occasionally; some babies have it all the time. It is not a problem - in a basically healthy baby (as yours is) all it means is that gut transit time has shortened a bit, and the residue of milk has not been in the gut long enough to turn yellow.

From everything you say here, I would expect your dd to show she has gained weight, when she is weighed today :)

Well, she didn't lose any more weight, but she didn't gain either...don't know what to make of this anymore really Please say encouraging things...

What did they say at the clinic, MPD?

Staying the same is perfectly possible in a healthy baby - she was last weighed 4 days ago, is that right? And she is still only 2 weeks old. I think it makes sense to continue to keep an eye on things, until everyone is satisfied she really has turned a corner, to discuss having her weighed again in a few days, and to continue feeding frequently.

It goes without saying that she should be weighed naked, on digital scales, and that you have confidence in the weights you are comparing her with.

To be honest I don't think they really said anything...! Except that they'd come to the house on Sunday to weigh her again - so 48 hours to pile on the grams...

They asked 'how my boobs felt' - I said much the same as they did with DC2 - not hard or full, but milk easily expressed (by hand at least) and DD seemingly content, sleeping between feeds (other than in the evenings when she seems to cluster feed/suckle for comfort and cries if removed or put down (Grr!)

Of course she did a spectacularly green poo at the mw's - not helpful in the mix at the moment, thanks a lot! (Thanks for the reassurance about this though, tiktok)

They have gone back to recommending expressing and topping up with my milk between feeds if need be - 'to get as much into her as possible' - funnily enough I thought I was doing that already! So far I have not expressed anything as the evenings do not allow a moment to do this. The mornings may allow it though...we'll see.

I have started drinking fennel tea alongside rooibos and have also started taking motilium (domperidone) tonight. Poor child may drown in milk at this rate. What I hate more than anything else is a pervading sense that 'something is going wrong here' instead of just letting me calmly and confidently feed my baby. I also hate the feeling that I am always wearing a brave face - when people ask how everything's going and 'is she good?' (most ridiculous question ever...!!?) and I make encouraging noises when really I want to say to them 'bloody well darned if I know...!?' I feel like my intuition is being slowly eroded - thank God for DH who keeps making the right noises and stroking my arm - and this thread too. My soul says 'just feed her - all will be well'. It's my head that keeps asking 'But what if...???' MPD

Sounds like you're doing all the right things MPD.

The frequent weighings must pile the pressure on for you, although it's good they are keeping an eye on things.

I can't remember if this has been discussed, but has anybody had a check for tongue tie? Just a thought - it's something that might be worth ruling out.

Hope you manage to have a good weekend.

oh, and I remember that 'good baby' comment so well. I just wanted to respond, "no, this baby doesn't feed well, doesn't sleep....so does that make him a bad baby?!" Drove me mad.

DD has put on another 40g today. AND I had a midwife visit who was both reassuring and encouraging. She watched me feed, said that from what she'd observed and been told by us DD is feeding well/correctly, the right number of times per day, pooing, weeing and sleeping as she would expect, and with the exception of a significant and consistent weight gain was doing everything as normal and expected. Phew! Still does leave the issue of consistent, continuing weight gain...which is fairly much unexplained given that everything seems to be going to plan. She - like others beforehand - questioned whether the recorded birth weight was actually correct, but also stated that the birth weight recorded is the one that we HAVE to go by, since it was the one recorded officially at birth - no way round it.

The only lasting niggle I have now is that she said that their overriding concern is for babies who do not regain their birth weight within three weeks (which will be this coming Thursday). She said that after this point if weight is still an issue, they become concerned about the ongoing development and brain development in particular . Since DD is unlikely to gain 330g in the next four days, can anyone put me right on the reliability of this concern and how likely it is that this early weight issue could affect DD...?!

I have started using Domperidone, Motherlove More Milk Plus supplements and am drinking fennel tea like there's no tomorrow! Next weigh in is on Thursday. The saga continues... MPD

Glad your baby is doing well, MPD!

It would be crazy to alarm you if she did not gain 300 g by Thursday when she is gaining, when she is seen to be healthy and thriving, and feeding well, and where there is doubt about the accuracy of the birthweight.

Wouldn't it? :)

PS I know of no evidence that being below birthweight at 3 weeks means problems with brain development. What a thing to say :( :(

Ask them where they have got that one from

God I hope that's not true, as my LO didn't get to birthweight until he was 6 weeks old.

Glad to hear that you've had a weight gain MPD and are sounding more confident and happy about your dd's well being.

Keep going, you're doing fantastically.

Thank you both!

Tiktok - you always help me feel justified in feeling a bit about some of the things I'm getting told - I have a fairly sharp 'bulls**t-o-meter' generally speaking, and having breastfed before - twice - with relatively few problems, I am not really taken in by some of the suggestions or claims (and there have been a fair few this time around, to which this thread seems to have become a testament!!) However, with all the medicalisation of and stress around DD's feeding and weight, it can sometimes feel hard to trust the instinct that says and to easily feel more .

Anyway thank you both for your support - will continue to check in and update. MPD

Hope things calm down a bit soon for you - just on the poo front: - my lovely midwife said anything from green scrambled eggs to orange juice was perfectly fine and normal in a bf baby - we certainly had the whole range :)

Thanks animol - that's really reassuring. It's never ceasing to amaze me at the moment how the midwives I have encountered seem to vary so much in their opinions about such things! It can be a confusing minefield! MPD

20g more on today - keep feeding little lady! Still regular green nappies tho (every other more or less, alternating with yellow/mustardy) - are you sure this isn't cause for concern...?!

Yay for the 20g :)

Green nappies are on the normal spectrum. In a healthy baby, they are normally of no concern.

If formula is "poison" then how come my family is alive and well? Sorry to hear of your troubles but IMHO you might want to chill out, and just do your best, thinking of formula as poison won't help any of you. Good luck.

Thank you tiktok

Good news on the weight gain MPD - you're doing great.

Superene- I don't think OP has said that formula is poison and I'm not sure your comment is really warranted is it?

Thank you crikeybadger

Interesting - though gross and possibly unrelated - development here. Passed a really quite big clot this afternoon. Completely unexpected - bleeding has been up and down from next-to-nothing to fairly heavy. The clot was about 4-5 inches and my Auntie - who was a MW - said it might have been a bit of retained placenta. Anyone know anything about this or whether i should be concerned?? Having had a planned c-section so would really surprised if they'd missed a big bit like that, but then I suppose it could add a different view on the concerns about DD losing weight and whether or not my milk 'came-in properly'. If it is placenta tissue, will my milk be affected at all - for better or worse? MPD

Gosh, that is interesting. I have heard about retained placenta leading to milk supply problems but I'm not sure if it is the same for all cases.

I wonder if its worth giving someone a call to check especially if you're still bleeding this morning? Not sure who though, NHS Direct, the mw or one of the bfing helplines who would know about the impact on milk.

Hope you're OK.

Really unlikely to be retained placenta, MPD. It is not at all unusual for a big chunk of clotted blood to be passed, often after activity, even this no. of weeks on but I agree a word with your doc or midwife would be useful.

My understanding is that a piece of retained placenta this size would have caused serious problems with bleeding long before now....but I am not a midwife and may have this wrong.

Thanks both. Midwife was calling today anyway and confirmed it was just a big clot - no placenta tissue. I would have been very surprised if it had been that because of DD's birth being a planned c-s - they tend to v thoroughly hoover you out Still it was reassuring to have seen/shown the MW.

Oh, and DD has had her biggest gain - more than 100g in a week! - since, well, ever - yay! MPD

That's all good news, MPD....hope it all means you are regaining you confidence :)

Good to get some reassurance MPD and three cheers for the weight gain.