Please help - uncomfortable with advice given by paedatrician & don't know what to do

[BlueJellie]

I had a few complications in the last bit of my pregnancy which meant my baby didn't gain any weight in the womb over the space of about 2 weeks, I had an emergency section at 37 weeks, he was born 5lbs10oz. While this is a healthy weight I believe had evrything gone normally, he would've been born a couple of pound heavier.

He is now 10 weeks old and 12lb7oz, and just under the 50th centile. He is bottlefed, BUT I do demand feed him. Paedatrician yesterday told me we are overfeeding him (was refered to her to check his breathing which is fine ) - as he shouldn't have doubled his weight in 10weeks, they expect babies to do this in 5 months. She said I should feed him evry 4 hours only, and if he cries for food in between distract him or give him water. She also said he shouldn't be waking in the night so soon for a feed, and I should be giving him water in the night also. He only wakes up twice in the night at the moment - which I thought was normal for a baby of this age?

Anyway Ihave tried her method today and my baby is really distressed. I gave him 6 ounces and 12:30 and he is no screaming the place down. I cannot comfort him and he is refusing to drink the water. Because he is crying when I give him water he is taking lots of wind down which is making him more frantic.

I am really upset as I know that all I need to do is give him a bottle of formula and he will be happy - this routine I have been given is going against all my instincts. I don't know whether to go to my HV tomorrow, as when I asked her last week if his rapid weight gain was normal she didn't seem worried - so don't know why the paedatrician made such a big deal?

I am also wondering why, if he is FF, I have to have a routine with feeding and why I can't demand feed him??

Please help I just want to go give him more food, but will I be doing the wrong thing???

How much does her drink on average in 24 hours?

Sorry but mine all trebled their weight in 6 months.

Stop giving water and go back to milk. Try giving a bottle every four hours but if your baby is hungry - feed him!

I would think unless you are giving him an awful lot more than the rough guide lines on the formula boxes then it would be hard to ever feed, I would think he's been "catching up" to where he should be if there hadn't been a growth problem in utero & born heavier?

Between 35-40 ounces. She said he should be having 30

Feed him. You can't overfeed a baby that young, he knows what he needs. Trust your instincts, they are right on! My dd1 was
6lbs 2oz at term, she came out starving and doubled her birthweight by 8 weeks. She is now a very healthy and slim toddler.

what does it say on the formula info which is only a guideline anyway. You are not feeding him much more anyway, that is only one feed extra.

Was she registrar or consultant?

I saw a registrar that told my dd3 was overweight. She was on the 98th centile for weight and height

DS2 had doubled his Birthweight by 16 weeks, and he was EBF for 9 of those! I can't quite work out whats wrong with demand feeding a baby?? DS2 has a little appetite compared to most of my friends babies (and DS1) and he has between 35-40 oz a day (he is 20 weeks now).

Go with your instincts and don't feel guilty about it! If a baby is hungry there isn't much you can do about it! (other than feed them)

my dd had almost doubled her birth weight at 10 weeks and is now on the 25th percentile at age 3

my son had doubled his birth weight by this age as well

I think they catch up to what weight they would have been as both of mine wer born at 38 weeks and around 7pounds but my family have a history of big babies.

so ignore the doctora and feed him
they will always put on a lot of weight at this age before they start to move around

your his mummy, you know best. go with your current insincts.

if its any consolation, I took my n2 son at three months old to be weighed.
the health visitor was shocked at his weight and demanded to know how much formula I was feeding him.
he was 20 lbs, and as big as 6-9 month old.

I pointed out that he was breast fed, and that he was a big baby.

and that he never lost any weight after birth, in fact gained during his first week.

I knew she was going to go into a spel on overfed formula infants, which is so crap.
some babies are fat, some are thin, everyone is different.
why is this nation trying to get infants to diet? whats wrong with baby fat? isnt it needed? AHHHHHHHHHH! !

If your baby is demand fed, and gaining weight and is healthy, at his age its not greed, its need.

Your paed doesn't know when your baby is hungry. Your baby knows more than your paed.

Babies often double birthweight by 3months ime.

Ignore paed and feed your baby when he's hungry.