Poor weight gain

[FCase15]

My daughter is 7 weeks old and has only gained 1lb 1oz from her birth weight.

She’s EBF but has been having mysterious feeding issues on and off since she was 2 weeks old. She’s been super fussy when feeding, loosening her latch, unlatching after a few minutes of feeding and at times pulling of crying. It doesn’t ever feel like she’s getting full and she is constantly showing hunger cues regardless.

We’re working with various health professionals to get to the bottom of this but I am so worried about how this with impact her development.

Doctors and the health visitor both say despite her feeding problems that she is meeting the milestones expected (smiling, holding up head etc.)

Our health visitor has been so concerned about her and has been coming out to weigh her weekly. It’s been stressing me out a lot too.

Does anyone else have experience of such slow weight gain? I didn’t think we’d have to worry about something so basic with her. :(

@Juicylychee Thank you!

If baby won't take a bottle OP, have you tried a supplementer tube (SNS)?

If baby won't take a bottle OP, have you tried a supplementer tube (SNS)?

You could call a BFC, maybe on one of the helplines to talk about alternative feeding methods. You might find cup feeding would help to get some extra milk into her and would support BFing.

Has anyone suggested trying breast compressions when she is latched on?

How are things tonight @FCase15?

@PritiPatelsMaker I hadn’t heard of supplement tube feeding before perhaps that would be an option. I’ve been in contact with an NCT Breastfeeding Counsellor who comes highly recommended. She’s agreed to speak to me tomorrow about things and go from there.

The paediatrician recommended doing breast compressions so I have been. It does seem to help sometimes but other times she’ll unlatch after a couple compressions.

She’s always especially fussy at night and her feeding habits are even worse in the early hours of the morning. We don’t get to sleep until between 2am and 5am because she’s so fussy and won’t sleep.

Today she has been ok. She had 3 decent feeds (still not great but better than her usual feeding). For the last couple hours she had been more fussy though and the last 2 feeds haven’t been very efficient I wouldn’t have said (latching and unlatching, wriggling and crying).

The HV was in today. She’s been coming out weekly for weigh ins because of her concern. My daughter is beginning to consistently track along her centile so I think they’re going to stop coming in for such frequent weigh in. It’s just very frustrating how much I’m fighting my daughter day-in and day-out to eat for her to barely be making weight from week to week. I was pretty much encouraged to stop trying to breastfeed. Not sure if I’m being selfish by trying to persevere.

Anyway, just feeling super down about it all. Have been getting conflicting info from all the various professionals and am feeling totally lost as to what to try with her next. Guess I should feel encouraged she is gaining weight but I know it’s only because I’m CONSTANTLY trying to get her to feed.

My DS weighed 6lb 9oz at birth but dropped to 6lb and took 3-4 weeks to gain it back. We’ve had issues with slow weight gain ever since and like you were seeing the HV every week for weigh ins. We were eventually referred to a dietician and he was prescribed infatrini (a high calorie milk). We were FF anyway so this wasn’t an issue. If you want to continue BF this should absolutely be supported.
He went from the 0.4th centile to the 9th but has recently dropped again to just above the 2nd due to a recent illness. At the beginning I was emotional, stressed and obsessed with his weight and gain (or lack of!) but I’m not anymore. The centile chart works by one baby being at the top, another at the bottom and every other baby inbetween. Someone has to be at the bottom, and this is my DS. He’s now found a love of food alongside milk and he’s meeting all of his milestones.
I don’t have any advice regarding BF but I just want to say I have been where you are and it does get better.

I'd try and wait to see what the BFC says tomorrow.

It's perfectly normal for BF babies to be unsettled in the evenings and in early hours, this isn't necessarily an indication that she's too hungry or that there's anything wrong.

So glad that she's had 3 good feeds.

Also glad that the HV isn't going to be coming in quite so often. Weekly weigh-ins sound very stressful.

And I can totally understand you feeling down. Perhaps talking to the BFC tomorrow will help you work through your feelings about BFing and if you want to continue

I have been having similar with my (now 12 week old) baby. Static / Slow weight gain - dropped from 75th to 9th centile. Screaming / frustrated, taking forever to feed - had silent reflux, really messy feeder, chews when feeding, always unlatching (I gave up breastfeeding after a few days as was impossible) - she had a significant tongue tie which was cut, but the infant feeding team also said the mechanics of her jaw are off so wasn’t sure even if the tongue tie was the cause - she feeds only using the front of her tongue, not the back and she chews as well as sucks - they suggested cranial osteopathy which we did, he said she had a low palate but nothing else wrong.

She’s been a lot better since the tongue tie etc but she still isn’t a great feeder, she’s messy, loses interest as it’s hard work. HV and feeding team basically at a loss and we think it’s just the way she feeds and just to persevere and that they bet I can’t wait to wean! She’s my 2nd and the 1st I had absolutely no troubles with

Breastfeeding counsellor today was pretty stumped too as to what might be wrong (although she did offer good tips for feeding in general). At the end of our appointment she took a look at a close up video of my daughters mouth while crying and said she thinks it looks as though she might had a posterior tongue tie.

We’ve now made an appointment with the qualified tongue tie practitioner to be properly diagnosed and released if necessary.

Hopefully this’ll be it. 🤞

@FCase15 just wondering how you got on with your tongue tie assessment?

Im in a very similar position to you, flogging myself to feed a sleepy/disinterested/fussy feeder. I have been pumping and topping up and got excellent weight gain but without the top ups and pumping her gain is super slow. MW and HV unconcerned and keep cheerleading me along but it’s totally unsustainable (have two other kids at home!).

I had a tongue tie assessment and she has one but the practitioner suggested not to cut it as her tongue mobility is good. At 4 weeks I’m totally regretting not having it done as I’m still struggling.

would be interested to know if you had yours cut and if it improved things. Really hope so!

I would definitely have it cut @HousePlantNeglect

DC1 had TT so I didn't have any other DC to look after and it still nearly broke me.

@PritiPatelsMaker totally. Am kicking myself for not being more assertive. However, it made no difference to either of her siblings (one who I EBF and the other who I ended up FF) so I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I’m told there is a 4 week wait for an appointment so might be a bit late for us now.