Unhappy with advice from health visitor

[CanISayOfHerFace]

I went to the local clinic to have my DS weighed today. He's 19 weeks and weighed 16lb 10.5oz. Since his last weigh in five weeks ago when he was 15lb 12oz he has gone from just above the 75th centile to just below it.

Today I was told to go back in two weeks and if he is not tracking his current centile I should give him formula top ups or introduce some solids. I said I was not happy about doing this and that he is a happy, big, energetic baby and didn't think this was necessary. She said let's check him in two weeks!

Despite my best efforts to talk myself around she has made me feel shitty. I was asked if I'm eating enough and whether I'm doing too much exercise. I'm not doing any exercise other than walking and I eat between 2000 and 2500 calories a day (depending on how hungry I am). I feed on demand every 2 to 3 hours and at night go no longer than 5 hours between feeds. DS feeds for 30 minutes on one breast before I offer the other. Once a day DS may have a 20 minute snack but the rest of the time feeds last between 30 and 40 minutes. He normally does between 1 and 3 dirty nappies per day and plenty of wet ones too.

Am I doing anything wrong? I love BF'ing and don't want to offer solids until 6 months. Obviously if my baby's health is at risk I will do whatever is necessary but I'm not happy that the HV is giving me the correct advice.

[MabelBee]

She can't tell you what to do! Just don't go back. What you are doing sounds spot on.

For what it's worth, my HV said that breastfed babies sometimes slip down the centiles in the weeks leading up to 6 months.

[BertieBotts]

He sounds fine, I don't know what her problem is. I wouldn't go back in 2 weeks. It's not compulsory. Go in a month or two if you want him weighed.

[BertieBotts]

And eating and exercise don't affect milk quantity, supply or quality so she sounds misinformed in general TBH.

[TinyTear]

Just don't go!!!
They can't make you... I had similar (but on a much lower centile) and just didn't go to the weight clinic.

You know your baby more than anyone... and that is a tiny dip...

[DramaAlpaca]

It sounds like you are doing everything right.

Trust in your instincts and don't go back to the HV for a few weeks.

[ShineSmile]

Yes just don't go back. You could always weigh him at home if you want to.

[eurochick]

Do what everyone I know does and ignore most of what comes out of your hv's mouth.

[fledermaus]

How ridiculous! Few babies stick exactly on one line, they bob around going up or down a line or two.

Was it definitely a health visitor you saw? Often they have nursery nurses doing the weighing now.

[fanjobiscuits]

Well solids have fewer calories than bm so how does hv think that will help? There are different charts for bf babies as they tend to put on less weight (does hv even know about these?). Babies have fits and starts of growth and different clothes/full or empty stomachs, was it the same set of scales as that can make a difference.

[fanjobiscuits]

Plus sounds like a negligible difference in weight anyway

[fledermaus]

There aren't different charts for breastfed babies - all the charts are based on breastfed babies.

[DinoSnores]

Sounds like you and he are doing a great job.

(I've never bothered with weighing in with DD and only did with DS before his tongue tie was snipped and we got BFing established.)

[MigGril]

Ok let's take a look at this, he's gone from just above the 75th centile to just below in 5 weeks. He's feeding well, producing lots of wet and dirty (although not as relevant withan older baby dirty nappies wet ones are) nappies. He's bouncy happy content, did she look at him?

As it sounds like breastfeeding is going really well, no baby follows one line exactly they do tend to go up and down a bit. As long as they are happy healthy still growing, stick within two lines. Then there isn't a need to do anything else if there was then the best option would be to breastfeed more. I'd take him back in 4 weeks as weighing in 2 weeks won't be helpful you'll see in the back of your red book the recommended weight intervals. See a different HV and it'd you feel upto complain about the one who made you question how well your doing when everything sounds like it's going really well.

[AntoinetteCosway]

Sounds like she thinks babies are machines who should follow exactly one line forever-utter nonsense!

[Sleepytea]

Babies often drop a little weight gain round about 4-5 months. They're starting to become more active, rolling and using lots of extra muscle. I would worry if he dropped from 75th to 5th centiles but the trend you've described sounds perfectly normal.

[gamerchick]

Tell her to stick her line.

It was this kind of crap why I didn't do baby clinics.

[fuzzywigsmum]

OMG - don't go back! It's the luck of the draw with HVs. Some of them are really not supportive of BFing and many are just not very bright. Why would you introduce solids to a baby who's not gaining enough weight? All the the foods you're likely to wean on are far less calorific than milk. Anyways your baby sounds absolutely fine.

If it's any comfort DD2 dropped from the 50th to the 9th. When I saw the HV at 3.5 months she said the baby looked fine, to keep doing what I was doing and not come back for 2 months! So like I say, the luck of the draw!

[Igggi]

Re the growth charts - there is confusion over this as depends when you has the baby. So, ds1 had "old" charts; ds2 had the new ones.
BBC article here:
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8035784.stm

[naturalbaby]

Sounds very similar to my ds2 at this age. She wanted me back in 2 weeks, he still hadn't put on enough weight and she told me to start weaning. I didn't. He started blw himself at 5 months by grabbing a rice cake off me and eating the whole thing. The HV had nothing more to say about it and I skipped the next weigh in clinic.

[DPotter]

Don't go back and don't worry. My exclusively breast fed DD was referred to a paediatrican for failure to thrive at 5 months- she was bouncing along on some low or other centile, but was happy, gaining some weight each weigh in. Paediatrican took one look at me ( a statuseque 5ft 1), another at DP ( a mighty 5ft 6) and told us our DD was small and beautiful and said 'don't have her weighed ever again' so i didn't. She's now 14 3/4 and is eyeball-to-eyeball with me.

You're not doing anything wrong - in fact you are doing everything right.

[AnnieLobeseder]

Oh, just don't bother going to get him weighed unless you're worried. I didn't bother as long as my DDs were fitting into the appropriate age sleepsuit and eating and pooping as required!

Your boy sounds fine! Stick with what you're doing.

[museumum]

Actually I think going back in 2-4 weeks is a good idea. But don't worry about it till then.
If you go back and he's back on his line, or slowly dropping down a bit. Again, don't worry, just keep an eye on him and go back again in 2-4 weeks. By then it'll be weaning time anyway.

My ds gained pretty much nothing between 7 and 8 months. I got him weighed again at 9mo and he was back on his line again.

The issue is not about monitoring his weight gain, it's about how you react to natural blips and variation in growth. Do not feel shitty at all, not for a moment!!!!

I think of it like my own weight (but in reverse). If I notice I've gained a lb I don't think anything of it. If I'm heavier again next time I weigh then I start thinking about what I'm eating. If I'm heavier again a third time then I take some action and make some changes.

[CanISayOfHerFace]

Thank you so much everyone!

Fledermaus Actually I'm not sure she's a HV. When they visited me at home they said the clinic was run by HVs but can't be sure this particular person is one.

I really appreciate the reassurance you have all given me that I'm not doing anything wrong. There is another clinic I can go to so I think I'll try that one if I do decide to go back.

My DS is in 6 to 9 month clothes already and is a really chunky little boy so I wasn't worried until this morning! I feel much better now though. It sounds like it's just normal fluctuations.

Thanks again

[BertieBotts]

Yep, if you think about a class of 13-14 year olds, they all have growth spurts at different times. They don't all grow steadily in sync with each other. Babies are the same. They will cross lines and that's okay - it's if they cross more than two in a short time that you want to worry.

[StrangeGlue]

I've only read the op so apologies if this repeats anything.

When a hv have me a hard time about dd dropping from just above 50th to just below I took her to doc as advised. Doc said she'd only begin to be slightly interested or worried if dd had dropped down and crossed 2 centile lines.

Doc could of course be wrong but I think your hv had given poor advice. If in doubt see your doc before changing anything.