dd weight issues

[moanyhole]

hi aal,
dd, exclusively bf is 18wks. 7pounds 90z when born, 11 pounds 10oz at 7 weeks, yesterday 13pounds 10oz.
public health nurse was not happy, says she should have doubled her birthweight by now, has fallen off weight curve albeit only slightly, and wants me to top her up with bottles of either bm or formula after feeds.

now im thinking this is a bit unwarranted. dd is lovely and chubby looking, bright and alert, chats for ireland, (im im ireland!), feeds efficiently-feeds only last about 5mins but plenty of swallowing, milk dribbling down face and seems very satisfied, refusing to feed anymore when finished. she feeds 7-8 times in 24 hours.

if i were to top up id be avoiding formula so having to pump. i pumped exclusively for ds for 2 years and allergic to pumping now. what do ye think? i should add that ds was the exact same weight gain wise and as i had to bottle feed breastmilk, no formula, i was certain he was getting enough.

many thanks for any advice.

Tell the nurse to bog off! What charts is she using? The ones for formula fed babies or the ones for breast fed babies?

What Ilove said!!!

As long as she seems happy, and interacts with you well then she sounds like she's fine - sure she would let you know if she wasn't?

My HV tried to refer my dd to a dietician at 18 wks old because she hadn't put on enough weight - she was 10lb 2oz born and has consistently put a lb a month on.

Take no notice of you HCP - you know your baby best.

she's using the formula ones, didnt know what i was talking about when i asked her which chart she using, thanks, feel better already!

thanks deemented-great to get reassurance. sure i know she's fine really!

Charts schmarts... healthy, happy, plenty of wet nappies? I the answer is yes to all 3 then I'm with ilove!

all of the above cheezcurl. i really should have more faith in myself but this nurse can shatter me with one look, was the same with ds.
thanks again.feel much better

doubled birthweight in 18 weeks?! I thought it was 6 months (as a very rough approximation.. it took dd more like 8m and she is fine!)

FORMULA FED babies should double in 6, triple in 12...breast fed babies shouldn't!

thats what she said!ds didnt double his actually till about 8 months now that i come to think of it, and he was grand too.
oh thanks so much, feel much better!

Yes, it's 6 months I'm sure.

Ignore her! Your baby sounds healthy and happy.

thanks kingrolo, i will!

I thought ff babies doubled in 4-6 months, tripled in a year and bf babies doubled at around 6 months and were 2.5 times their birthweight after a year. If she won't accept more breastfeeds how on earth does the nurse think she will take formula top-ups? This always seems completely illogical to me. Your dd will gain weight at her own rate and she's obviously getting plenty of milk if it's dribbling down her chin etc. (and 13lb 10 sounds great for 18 weeks. I have a real little tiddler whos only 18lb 5 at 13 months!)

thanks for that academicmum. im annoyed at myself for letting her get to me tbh. i had wondered how id get dd to take the top ups.

Make a complaint, moanyhole. This is very poor knowledge, support and advice from someone whose job it is to share knowledge, support and advice!

they r so annoying

my dd2 is 22 weeks and weighed 8lbs7ozs @ birth on 75th centile
now weighs 12lbs9ozs has dropped 2 0.4th centile
dd1 did the same so not going to see a paedatrian this time

thats it julieisindahouse, dd is following the same growth pattern as ds, so im sure genetics plays a big role, im a little person myself.

tiktok i think at this stage i will voice my dismay- ive had 4 years now of this, and what annoys me is that i dread the visits cos she seems weight obsessed, and even though i know logicallyshe's wrong, she still manages to worry me.

thanks for the reassurance ladies.x

I agree with tiktok about making a complaint. New mums are so vulnerable and anxious (well... I know I was) and it makes everything so much harder if the health care professionals give the wrong advice based on out of date information.

HVs all seem to be weight obsessed but it's only one measure of health. My dd went from the 50th centile at 8 weeks to under the 25th at 10 weeks and the HVs were all doom and gloom - I'd have to offer top ups, I'd have to feed more (how when already feeding on demand?) etc, etc - but I ignored them, carried on EBF and though dd is still below the 25th centile she is thriving. If they had their way she'd be completely forumla fed by now.

Agree with what everyone else said

And wow for exclusively pumping for two years!!

(Can I be nosy and ask why? Presuming cleft or similar )

thanks ladies, i will duly ignore her.

wuglet, nothing so serious tg. ds had severe reflux when born. he had to have meds initially in a bottle with. cue severe nipple confusion and never able to get him to latch. funny thing now is that he pretends to bf his teddy and wants to feed like dd!