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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Worrying about possible low milk supply at 6 months...

15 replies

LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 19:47

OK so I worry a lot so hopefully someone knowledgeable will be able to reassure me.

My almost 6 month DD had her tongue tie snipped very recently (so so late!), and I know that tongue tie can cause poor feeding and so low milk supply - and I'm worried that this has happened to us and I wont be able to feed long term - and I really want to do extended breastfeeding for as long as she wants.

Basically she never seems satisfied after a feed - haven't seen that milk drunk look in a very long time, she never feeds for long - 1 or 2 minutes on each side... and has recently dropped to middle/;lower 9th centile from high 50th at birth. She's quite a fussy baby as well.... and not interested much in food yet (planning on BLW)

So... are we doomed to fail in extended feeding? Is she getting enough? Can I boost supply at this late stage if I need to?

OP posts:
PrettyCandlesAndTinselToo · 24/12/2011 20:00

How long ago was she snipped? Could she still be sore?

The best way to boost supply - and, yes, you can do so at any age - is to go back to basics and feed, feed, feed. Babymoon if you can, ie you and dd, both with as few clothes on as possible, spending hours together in close contact. With an even younger baby you'ld babymoon in bed, but a 6m will probably want more stimulation. The crucial thing is maximising skin-to-skin and feeding as often as possible.

Check that she is latching on properly. Even without the disruption if surgery, one can find oneself getting a bit slack over positioning after several months. Or you may both have settled into a feeding technique that worked for a tongue-tie, but may need to be different for a freed tongue.

The drunk look doesn't always last, BTW. Not seeing it at 6m does not necessarily mean low supply, and nor do very brief feeds.

Is she having anything other than bm?

Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 20:05

No, nothing other than bm, and TT was snipped 2 weeks ago - initially all was great and she instantly latched better, but now she's nipple hanging a bit and I can't get her to latch properly.... I am trying to feed as often as possible - but she's VERY distractable! :)

OP posts:
Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 20:07

She's sooooo funny with her tongue now btw - we never saw it past her lips before and now she's like a little snake! Curling it up at the end, waggling it, making it pointy etc - it's being stuck out so well! Grin

OP posts:
Mampig · 24/12/2011 20:27

Hey there!! No expertise here, but I've not seen that look in ages either! Just thought nothing of it tbh! Keep feeding, and try and relax as much as u can to enjoy Christmas!! All the best! x

Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 20:30

Thanks for that - and Happy Christmas to you too! xx

OP posts:
PrettyCandlesAndTinselToo · 24/12/2011 21:06

How is her sleep? Has it changed at all since the op?

How does she compare to you and her dad? If you are petite people, it could be that her weight is tending now towards her norm.

Nothing yet says 'hungry baby' - which is good! Being fussy and distractible is quite normal at this age, especially as she's suddenly got a marvellous new distraction to play with.

She sounds terrifically cute. Don't forget to video her discoveries for the sweetest memories. Xmas Grin

Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 21:32

Well last week instead of feeding every 1.5 - 2 hours at night she went 3-4. This week we are back to 2 hourly though...

DP is tall. I;m average...

She is amazingly cute! Hoping to get DP to video her tomorrow - I'm crap at using cameras! Grin

Erm.... just had a thought.... growth spurt?

OP posts:
Mampig · 24/12/2011 21:43

Yes! Yes! Yes! Think we are having one too as have been noticing that he has increased bf again, even though he's taking solids!! Last night was 2hrly feeds, and the night before, and he had been stretching longer for a short time before that. I has been wondering about growth spurt too, but I think you've just confirmed it tbhGrin.

lilham · 24/12/2011 21:46

No expert here but my 9mo DD hasn't had the drunken milk look for ages. I'm sure she's grown out of it before 6mo. When she was little she fell asleep every feed.

Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 24/12/2011 22:00

Ah - growth spurt sounds likely (trust me to panic over nothing) - haven't had one in such a long time I'd forgotten what they're like!

Phew! So I shall try to stop worrying about milk supply.... :)

How's the weaning going Mampig? My DD is still not really interested - only bananas and then not every day,...

OP posts:
PrettyCandlesAndTinselToo · 25/12/2011 00:55

TBH it sounds like you are both actually doing fine.

The fact that she lengthened her night-time intervals suggests that she is not going hungry.

She may well be about to have a growth spurt. The centiles, as I'm sure you know, show the spread across normal babies. Which means a 9th centile baby is just as normal as a 50th or a 99th. Unless the change is relatively sudden or the baby is not contented and hitting developmental milestones, the centile is not something to worry about.

If you're still concerned, then after the holidays go to a breastfeeding support group - one run by a bfing charity eg NCT/BFN/LLL etc, not by HVs - and ask their advice. Face-to-face support is invaluable.

In the meantime, focus on the latch (night feeds can be very good for this if she's a distractible madam), frequent feeding, and lots of skin-to-skin.

(Weaning...my dd was grabbing food off my plate at 5m, and my ds2 was utterly uninterested in solids until 8m!)

Mampig · 25/12/2011 20:54

LWL! hope you've had a lovely day! Weaning is going well, he takes finger foods but I'm also spoon-feeding. He had a couple of gag reactions that I didn't really cope with, so I'm letting him lead but with the spoon. And I can also get actual food into him that way! With going back to work, I'd rather he was well established than cm having to freak out worry about him choking or even gagging. But he loves his grub and even had Christmas dinner today, (including sprouts!). It was lovely that the whole family could throw food eat together!

Original poster
LittleWaveyLines · 26/12/2011 20:08

mampig - yeah I can understand the childminder thing - if I was going back early I would be pureeing not blwing.

Not too bad a christmas thanks - you? I'm at the inlaws so nice to be cooked for, but they dont really do Christmas - no tree or special food etc so it's a bit flat....

Anyway - DD went 5 hours between feeds last night!! Shock Grin

OP posts:
Mampig · 26/12/2011 20:55

WowGrin- fantastic!! Maybe over the worst then?!

determination · 26/12/2011 22:01

Could the drop in centiles be due to more exercise? Possibly rolling more or crawling now? Possibly taking a stretch lengthwise?

I got hung up on weight gain with dd1 due to an I'll informed HV (7years ago) which caused nothing but problems.

Personally, I think it's just best to read ur baby. The mother instinct cannot be beaten. You know your baby better than anyone.

ANd when it comes to bfing, it is all about believing in yourself and your abilities to nourish you baby. Obviously this can be difficult depending on the support you have etc but we need to believe that we can do it. Even if it means we eat porridge every morning (to boost supply) and dabble with more milk special blend! (like I did). We can carry on for years bfing because we are designed too!!

Ok, now I sound like a hippy but I'm just a wannabe one Wink

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