5mo gradually dropping centiles

[SesameSn4p]

My LG was a big baby- almost 10lbs at birth. Feeding has generally been okay and weight gain was fine for the first few weeks. However she has gradually dropped centiles over the course of the last 5 months and she has gone from 99th to 50th and she still doesn't seem to be tracking a line.

I don't know if this should be a cause for concern? The HV was weighing her but stopped last month as she thought she was tracking between the 50th and 75th lines but I have weighed her myself since on accurate scales and she has dropped to closer to 50th.

She is my second LG and my first did a similar thing but she eventually tracked the 25th at around 4 months and she it still very slight and petite at 2 years old. I feel frustrated that I'm in this situation again but perhaps I should know better than to worry given that my eldest has turned out fine!

It is definitely not a tongue tie and my supply seems to be fine. She is still waking for usually one feed over night and has plenty of wet and dirty nappies. I'm doing all the suggested things- offering regularly, feeding from both sides, breast compressions etc. She is also very contented and naps well in between feeds. She is pretty active now and constantly rolls around and is pushing herself up onto her hands. I just don't know if I should be worried that she's not tracking a line like she should or if this could just be her growth pattern? I would be happy to top up with formula but she won't take a bottle so feel I don't really have any options anyway. Any reassurance or advice would be great! TIA

I feel like when you're weighing all the time you stress about centiles a lot, whereas other mums I know who don't weigh and have healthy weight babies aren't seeing the natural fluctuation and aren't stressing about it every week! You could go back to HV if you're worried.

But as you say, your eldest was similar and is fine and every sign is that baby is content so I think they will be just fine! If you wanted to add formula to ease your mind you can try some different bottles to see if there's one she's comfier with - some say MAM have more breast similarity and EBF babies take to the better, you would want a slow feed teat to ensure the BF is still supported. Rather than just putting it to baby's lips stroke the teat down from under the nose to the lip to encourage baby to latch on it.

Or you could try using a supplemental nursing system which has a bottle with a thin tube that you can tape near the nipple for the baby to get the formula while BFing. At 4 months your baby's suction is probably strong enough to not need the tape, our lactation consultant suggested just poking the tube into the corner of babies mouth while BFing - it's a bit fiddly to begin with but you get the hang of it pretty quickly so could be an option. The supplementers can be pricey (Medela/Hakaa), you sometimes see them second hand on eBay, but there's also a guide on making your own here: breastfeeding.support/homemade-supplemental-nursing-system/

The fact that her sister showed the same growth pattern suggests that it is genetic. Did you or your partner drop centiles in the first 5 months?

My little boy was born at the 75th centile. By 3 months he was 91-98 centile. By 6 months he was back down to just above the 75th centile. He stabilised out just above the 75th centile. Anyhow, I’ve seen the red books for me and my brother and sister and all three of us crossed centiles upwards in the first three months and crossed centiles downwards over the next three months.