Mighty oaks from little acorns grow - slow weight gain support thread

[FireworksScareMossyPets]

Thread for those of us whose los are:

• Healthy
• Meeting developmental milestones
• Producing plenty of soaking wet nappies
• Producing several pooey nappies (quantity varies after first six weeks or so)
• Gaining weight...

but just much more slowly than the centile charts tell us they should.

This is a thread for help, support and understanding from other Mums who have "been there, done that".

It's where we can share links, share our stories and what if anything we have done to help our lo's weight gain - or whether we've just ditched the scales and looked at the baby.

However, we also don't want to lull other Mums into a false sense of security; if your lo is not meeting the criteria at the top then it is best to get help from a breastfeeding counsellor (or general infant feeding specialist - not all slow gaining babies are breastfed) or supportive health care professional.

Mossy xx

Thanks vlc I can't figure out what I do wrong when I try find these things. Anyway off to plot her height now at a guess she will be in proportion she is 65 cm now at least clothes lasting her ages.

Hi I have been pointed in your direction from my tread he meets al of the listed criteria in your first post but my hv is making me doubt myself. I need to go put chhildren to bed but will pop back in when I get chance.

Welcome,

Im sure you will get lots of advice, help and support here.

I'm going to join in here too, if that's alright?
I posted earlier this week about my skinny little boy, but have enjoyed this thread and got a lot from it, so thought I'd join up.
DS was 9lb 7oz at birth, and last week at 8/12 weeks weighed 9lb 14oz. He'd dropped to 8lb 5.5oz on day six, so has put on a fair bit since then.
Last week our GP had us reweigh DS after feeding and said I should express milk to feed him, then HV brought me an electric pump to borrow and referred us to the Child Assessment Unit. The SHO concluded he was fine, but said we should express to check my supply, and then think about top-ups. The registrar then came along and said that DS was fine, and that I needed pampering, which was the best advice I've received! And the only that I've followed.
We are going back tomorrow for him to get weighed on the same scales and am pretty nervous. If he has gained less than 6oz, then he will have slipped off the 9th centile, from 91st at birth.
I'm still unsure as to what the health implications are for slow weight gain? And when should you top-up with formula?
I've spent the week eating oats, taking fenugreek and my iron tablets, drinking water and eating healthy, having a co-sleep lie-in when DH has gone to work and feeding whenever he looks mildly interested. I've also been keeping him warm, from what I read on here about them burning calories to keep warm! So obvious!
Oh, and we've been switch nursing and using breast compression.
Basically everything except the breast pump!
I'm nervous about ringing the helplines, which is daft I know, but I tend to ramble, as you can tell.

Anyway, that's us.

xx

Welcome damewashalot and wastingmyeducation

Well, DS had his weigh-in at the Child Assessment Unit and has put on 7oz! This is the most he has ever put on in a week. I'm hoping he'll keep this up and at least stay on the 9th centile.
I hope we can get more efficient at feeding soon, as he feeds for about an hour every other hour sometimes. I don't mind, but I do need to get out of the house sometimes!
I feel a bit cheeky posting here now he's put a chunk of weight on, but it's taken us nearly ten weeks to get here after a very rocky start, and some dodgy advice, so here's hoping we can keep DS weight going up, and we can share our experiences here with those who need support.

xx

vlc does she empty your breast completely before you swap sides? I always found the last few drops were so calorific irt was worth hanging on till I was completely empty. I know its hard to tell but trust your instincts.
nb you are definately not a drama queen, just a caring mum. HV needed sacking

i just wanted to drop in and say hello, and thank you for your support a few weeks ago when i posted. ds has put on 15oz in the last 4 weeks so he's still gaining but much slower than the mythical 'average' baby now below 25th centile.

however, he has had a persistent cough and in talking with the HV about that she is pretty certain he is suffering from reflux - he iss sick a lot, has slow weight gain etc. and she thinks the cough is due to the acids and sick coming up. so i'm off to the doctors on thursday to talk through it and hopefully get some gaviscon. he hits 4 months this week and she told me that i should not wean until 6 months (not that i was really planning to) as she wants to try and get the reflux under control. fingers crossed that things get better from here.

wastingmyeducation - that is a great weight gain! well done to you and your ds

hello HQ
glad to hear your ds is gaining

how is everyone else doing??

we are still gaining 4oz/week here...ds still on the skinny side but well.

due to start weaning in 3 weeks - can't wait!

Thanks for the welcome, I must say this thread has made me more sure my hv is talking rubbish.
Have got his 6wk check today (he's 9wks but too many babies were born in may) so will be weighed by the GP, hoping he's put more on as it's 2wks since last weigh. I think he's doing fine, he's just a skinny little thing, but he has grown into newborn size clothes now

Dylan has been on his SMA high energey for a few weeks now and am gonna get him weighed tomorrow, hope he's put something on, not expecting miracles though as he hasn't been on it long. $oz a week is a good gain sallyforth for ds age, hope you enjoy the weaning.
damewashalot - at ds just growing in to neborn clothes, my ds was the same, started of in tiny baby clothes, so cute when I look at them now . He's 9mo now and still in 3-6mo clothes

that was meant to say 4oz not $oz

Well, he has put on 7oz in 2wks which gp felt was still a bit low but she was quite happy with me sticking with breast feeding. She discover a heart murmer which could be linked so has refered him to a paediatrician.

Well, DS got weighed today, and has put on 12oz in nine days! He's following the ninth centile now, which is perfectly perfect! I didn't give the HV a mouthful as she is generally very helpful, but said I'll go again in a fortnight. They were quite impressed that I persevered and how much I'd learned.
It just goes to show that topping-up is not necessarily the first option when a healthy baby is gaining slowly.
Good luck to you all!

xx

GOOD FOR YOU wastingmyeducation and damewashalot

good luck with the weighing Dalrymps

Glad your lo's are all doing well. Bet your excited sallyforth about the weaning... be warned your life will never be the same again I can't even sneak a biscuit or pack of crisps now with some being pinched from me Waiting for the weigh in next week see how we go. Looking forward to 15th if your still going

Well, good news, Dylan has been on his high calorie formula for the last 2 weeks, took him to get weighed today...
Over the last 4 weeks he has gained 1lb 2 and a half oz! This is good for him, was down to about 2 oz a week before.
He's now a tiny bit above the bottom centile line and weighs a massive 15lb 4 and a half oz
Wonder what he will have put on by next month if thats the result after 2 weeks on it?

yay for Dylan! very promising indeed!

turns out I'm on holiday on the 15th for missing the meetup but to be finally going on holiday - first ever hol with LO!

What met up? have I missed something? Probably no where near me anyway as i'm up in berwick upon Tweed.

Sounds like dylan is doing great

Went for first lot of jabs today, felt mean, he's got such skinny little legs.

Has anyone else found that they got a bit sensitive about everyone going on about how tiny their LO is? People ask how old then are surprised he's not much younger and go on about it, I know he's small and I'm being sensitive but I find it hard, I wonder how many times I've done the same in the past and upset someone without knowing, all of my other 3 were bigger than he is now at birth, ds3 was 9lb 15 so this really is all new to me.

I am finding this sort of thing v annoying. DS is 9 1/2 lb at 9 weeks - we were told I was having an enormous baby, I had gestational diabetes and had a very restricted diet for 10 weeks. He was 7lb 12 oz at birth and lost weight, and has been gaining, but slowly. He's 91st centile for height but has been 9th or below for weight. He's likely to be pretty tall, if he takes after his parents.

Why do people insist on saying how tiny or "petite" they think he is? They say "oh, how big was he at birth?" and I say, and then they look at me as if they dont believe me. We have this conversation where they want to make out how very small he is and I'm saying, well, he is 2 feet tall already you know, he's growing out of his clothes. And of course I have spent quite a bit of energy worrying about how he's doing, cos I want him to be well and healthy, so am surprised people seem so determined to be insensitive.

Yes, I also get annoyed by people saying how tiiiiiiny he is, was almost a daily occurance when he was younger, happens less so now as he's not a little newborn looking baby anymore, people like to come up to you if your baby is young and tell you what they think of them, very insensitive.
I was once told (when he was 7 months) that he looks more like a 4 month old!!

Hi, I'm not sure if this thread is still that active, I hope so as I'd like to join!

I've two boys, both slow growers. DS1 is two and has stayed on one of the lower centiles all the way through. We've had lots of stress and worry but he's perfectly healthy and very active (he's about 24 lbs and is 25 months old).

DS2 is 8 weeks and 'only' gaining 5 oz a week on average so the GP just suggested formula top ups. I'm very keen to breastfeed so I was really upset but I've talked with the La Leche League and they've confirmed that he should be getting enough milk and is just a slow grower. He was 9lbs at birth so I figure he's got quite a bit of centile sliding to do until he's down with his brother at around the 5th-9th. (His father was the same way as a baby).

Anyways, I'm very frustrated to be starting this whole process of worry and well-meaning GPs/HV intervention again!

wastingmyeducation - can you explain switch nursing to me? Your son's weight gain is great! Congrats and I hope this means you can relax about your son's weight for good now!

Yes it is still active, we just pop in now and again when there's news/updates but if you put it in youe 'threads i'm watching' you'll see when one of us has posted .

Sounds to me like your boys are just built that way. If you're happy ds2 is getting enough milk and is happy then just follow your instincts not the hv!

It would be a real shame for you to have to worry about your 2nd lo after already worrying about the first when chances are he's completely fine. It's not a good idea to only rely on the charts to tell you how well a baby is (what a lot of hv's do), much better to look at the whole picture eg: is baby happy, healthy, active, producing plenty nappies etc.

Welcome to the thread

hello aberdeenhiker - 5 oz/week? wow that is a great weight gain if you ask me! I bet if you did give formula he would not gain any more than that during this "catch down" phase.