constantly breastfeeding but really slow weight gain - help :(

[Khaxby]

Hi all,

My LO is 4 weeks tomorrow and we're having a mare trying to get him to gain weight. I am EBF and he feeds regularly plus I'm feeding on demand. He rarely ever goes 3 hours without food. He's had a few spurts of cluster feeding too.

The problem is - he's not gaining a lot of weight. He's gained on average 100g a week hitting his birth weight at just over 3 weeks. The HV made me go to GP on Monday and I went to weigh clinic yesterday to find that in 4 days he'd only put on 20g :( He doesn't seem to be putting on fat layers and isn't skinny but certainly isn't a chubster (unlike his mum!!)

He is wetting his nappy and pooing reguarly but the poos are yellow and pretty liquid/explosive but there's a lot of it. I'm not seeing these 'seeds' people talk of. Some wees have been pretty epic as well!

He does have a tongue tie but latches pretty easily. There's a lot of clicking during the first bit with gasping but feeds for hours...

I'm at a loss and the breast feeding lady wasn't much help :( So frustrating and it's so devastating to know he's not getting what he needs

Others will post whose babies are much newer than mine but at this stage settle yourself down with a mug of tea and healthy snacks in easy reach and just let him feed as much as he wants to... and make sure you get regular meals too...

And take it easy on yourself... get lots of rest - make sure you have to remote etc to hand and just try to enjoy the early weeks

He is gaining albeit slowly and you need to be kind to yourself...

I'm sure GP will reassure you it's nothing to worry about....

Do you have a local la leche league? Alternatively they have a 24/7 helpline. They're all breastfeeding mums and trained bf councillors and might be able to help shed some light on the slower weight gain. Is the TT due to be snipped?

I have been experiencing the same with my dd. Its a first for me as I breastfed her three siblings no problem but she will be 4 weeks on Sunday and was 2.9KG on birth. Dropped to 2.6 and is now 2.96. MW sent me to docs on Tuesday and they insisted on one supplementary formula feed (HA prescribed from pharmacy) a day of 90Ml. However, I have never introduced formula this early and am so reluctant and subscribe to the school of thought that we produce what our baby needs. she is not distressed between feeds and I am 100% feeding on demand. Like even stopping the car when she starts looking for it and latching her on (where I can of course :-)) Her nappies are normal and she is to me how her sibs were at 4 weeks. The doc suggested my milk quality may not be there but I can see that the quantity is there as while I am not leaking and never get that over full feeling I think that is cause I am feeding so much on demand right now that my breasts do not get the chance to feel full to bursting! However, she really pushed me that I could be putting dd at risk if I don't start to help her gain weight so am stuck not wanting to introduce formula but wanting my baby to be developing as she should!!! Would be good to know if anyone else has been here?!

@OllyPea She is gaining weight though, but the GP/HV thinks it should be a bigger weight gain? Is she now following a centile?

I'm dubious about a GP that suggests that your milk "quality" might be to blame, as it's extremely unlikely. Has anyone talked to you about how to get more breastmilk into your baby, or did they just go straight to suggesting formula?

How often does she feed? Could you express and give that as an extra rather than the formula?

Confusing to talk about two babies on same thread - OlliePea prob best to start your own thread?

Khaxby, this might be concerning or might not be. Can you give more exact details of his weight?

I had this with dd, bit it's 11 years ago now so I can't remember all the details. I would strongly recommend the book "my child won't eat". I think the authors name was Gonzales. It really helped put my mind at ease.

Hey, my DS 16wks, took a while to pile on, always gained but tiny amounts, keep at it, keep your fluids up, truly I always have a 1.5l boottle with me at night because it's thirsty work, you'll get there, first a neck roll, then the thighs....try not to worry took much

I had the clicking too, you are giving him what he needs, honestly you are x

You need to get the tongue tie assessed. It's possible that although baby is latching ok, he's not getting the tongue movement needed to fully strip the breast completely of milk. So he may well be getting the more watery stuff, but not 'dessert' so to speak, so although he's getting enough to sustain him, he's possibly not quite emptying the breast fully enough to lay down fat stores and support the rapid growth that he'll be doing over the next few months.

Please think about contacting a lactation consultant or tongue tie specialist (some trusts run midwife/paediatrician led tt clinics) and get an assessment done.

I had this with all 3 of my babies. They all lost a lot more than the average amount of weight and took weeks to get back to birth weight.
They all had to go and be checked by peadratrician to make sure they were healthy etc.
I went to a breast feeding clinic where they watch you feed and show you different ways to feed.
I found feeding while laying down on my side the easiest and comfiest position to feed in at first.

I would get your latch looked at as I am sure clicking meant it wasn't quite right.

With my first I was quite distressed over it all but by my 3rd I knew that my babies just didn't put the weight on quickly but that they were healthy and feeding ok.