How long is slow weight gain in a newborn tolerable

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Could someone sit with me to pick over if it is time for top ups with DD.

She is 15days old and still 8% below birth weight (birth weight over 9lb) - only slightly above her day 5 weight.

Day 10 weight was 60g down on day 5 weight. Day 12 weight made the 60g back - and day 15 has made 20g. So she's now gaining but it's very slow.

She's exclusively breast fed. Latch checked by experienced counsellor & basically OK. Feeding frequently day & night. Started fenugreek a few days ago and breast compressions. Alert, generally happy,wees and poos. I'm expressing several times a day (after feeds) - and feeding the measly output back to DD.

MW has been very supportive - but question is how much further we can continue down this road.

OP I hope you're ok.

My first lost 10% of his birthweight, and was 5 weeks old before he was back to birthweight.

He was happy, weeing, pooing, holding his head up - in other words completely healthy but just slow to gain his weight back. He was a big baby 8lbs 9oz at birth - he dropped to the 50th centile and is now a very healthy almost 7 year old, who is on the 50th centile :)
I refused to have him weighed more than once a week, refused top ups - because I could see that he was fine. I was supported in this by my mum (v.experienced GP) and by my own GP. The midwives were a total PITA.

DS2 was another big baby - just over 9lbs. He also lost 10% of his birthweight - weighed flat for just over 2 weeks. Fortunately my midwife that time was lovely, could see that he was perfectly healthy and was happy to weigh weekly rather than more often. When she came when he was 23 days old, he had put on 10oz in a week.

I understand your stress completely - here's hoping that the scales play ball.

There is a significant difference between slow weight gain, and weight loss. No baby should be losing weight for very long, this would be a significant health issue. But this is a very different thing to a baby who is putting on weight, albeit slowly.

My DC3's weight flat-lined by 2 weeks old and by 3 weeks old he was still losing weight. Never mind not getting back to birth weight, it continued to drops weight.

After easily and successfully breastfeeding both my first two children longer-term, DC3's breastfeeding problems came as a huge, huge shock to me.

Ultimately he was formula fed exclusively from 5 weeks old.

I have no regrets at this. DS's health is by far more important than my personal agenda regarding breastfeeding. He thrived (in every possible way) on formula and it was definitely right for him.

If baby seems healthy then make all the right noises about offering to see doctor etc but keep on bf and don't do top ups just yet. I think 2 weeks is way too early to panic. Slow weight gain is normal. They just make you feel bad about it. Worse they weight dc more often making it more of an issue.

Ds2 born 9lb8, lost 10% then flat for over 2 weeks, very slow gain after that and dropped through the centiles from 75 to 25. He eventually got posterior TT cut at 6wo and he gradually gained back up to his birth centile by 5mo.

If you haven't seen a TT clinic or specialist then I'd check this again. I met with our lovely and highly qualified lactation consultant and she said that although she couldn't see a TT it didn't mean it wasn't causing problems. The TT clinic said he did have TT but his lateral tongue movement was fine but cut anyway as I'd suffered mastitis and abscess by then so it was a 'do what we can' approach.

The weight gain was quite dramatic, I don't rule out that babies just 'get' feeding better after 5/6 weeks.

She gained 100g in 5 days (aided with 4oz daily top ups from Wednesday). This is enough for now - but another weigh in booked early next week o review.

Not such a good morning today - as I was too tired to pump last night - and I think baby is missing her regular morning 2oz EBM - but I'm hoping we can make it up by letting her cluster feed this morning - without increasing the formula already.

That's excellent news the she has put weight on and it isn't flat. Long may the weight gain continue.

Don't worry about it being closely monitored as my ds2 needs to be weighed again nxt week but I'm just happy it's going in the right direction. X