Should I wake 14 week old for extra bf? WWYD?

[WalkingBoob]

I had my ebf DD weighed this morning and at 14 weeks she is 10lb 9oz and on 2nd centile, so a little lady! HV not overly worried as she is a contented little girl and seems to be doing fine in all other respects. However she is only gaining 3oz per week and I feel that I must do more for her.

She currently feeds at (approx!!) 7am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm, 5pm, 7pm, 9pm and 11pm, and I always offer at least two sides. She has slept through from midnight until 7am for weeks now.

I'm going to add another feed at around 9am if she'll take it (she's fed on demand), but my real dilemma is should I wake her for a night feed at say, 3am?? She always sleeps so well and I don't want to disturb her if she has got into a natural rhythm! WWYD? Your fantastic advice and support would be so much appreciated.

No don't weigh her.
3 oz a week is fine.
Some weeks she'll put more on, some weeks less and some weeks nothing at all.

Sounds like you have the same bfing pattern that I had and it worked brilliantly for my dd - especially the sleeping through.

The cluster feeding in the evening is making sure she gets enough to get her through the night.

She'll probably start waking up at about that time in a few weeks as it's a growth spurt kicks in about then so make the most of some unbroken sleep!

(I'm not a doctor)

Thanks DrSpec...I tend to agree with you that she's doing what she wants and she'd let me know if she wanted a midnight feast! Not knowing any other bf mums I just need reassurance. Would it maybe be worth a middle of the night express to boost supply??

No, you're both doing fine. She's feeding lots during a day and anyway I wouldn't count on her sleeping through the night- babies often go through phases of different sleep patterns.
At 14 weeks there's no reason to wake a baby for a middle of the night feed unless ahe does it herself.

If she's sleeping through (i'm dead jealous by the way ds 12 months still wakes for a feed in the night, but he's a grubber! ) I wouldn't wake her, if she's hungry she'll let you know. She is putting on weight every week, so I wouldn't worry.

Hehe, yes I'm not going to get too used to sleeping at night! HV is threatening referral to paed if DD drops to 0.4 centile, so fingers crossed she won't!

It sounds like you're both doing really well. There's nothing wrong with gaining 3oz a week imo.

Forget the weight charts. Is she alert when awake? Has yellow poo's and lots of wet nappies? If yes to all of these then there's no problem imo.

Maybe consider not having her weighed every week if you find it stressful. I didn't bother. I could see ds was thriving so there was no need to weigh him. Weight gain is only one reflection of a thriving baby.

If you're feeding on demand then there's no need to try and fit in extra feeds, and she maybe wouldn't take it if she's not asking for it. By feeding her when she asks for it you are allowing her to regulate her own appetite which I think is a good thing.

As always brilliant advice Thank you - I'll er, keep doing what I'm doing then!!

Just a different perspective we saw a paediatrician when my daughter was around 3 months and she said I had to wake her in the night for a feed, and that she shouldn't go more than 4-5 hours. (Our visit was about something different the discussion of sleep/feeding was just for background.) I had always had to wake her because she was a sleepy baby and she didn't really demand enough. I still wake her up once and she's almost 6 months.

I don't think this is what all pediatricians say, though, and I think reasonable minds can differ. Part of the reason I still do it, though, is that my daughter sleeps more overall in the night if I wake her to feed. She might sleep 7-8 hours without a feed, but then she'd be up and ready to start the day. Instead, I feed her halfway through, she barely wakes up, and her total night sleep is 10 or 11 hours. You might find your daughter sleeps longer, too, which could be better for you both.

Very reassuring to read. My DD is 11 weeks, bottle-fed, but having almost identical issue. She has gained 2oz this week, making her 9lb 6oz.
HV said not to wake her in night but to go shorter between feeds in the day. Tried it today and yesterday and she wasn't really interested....not sure what to do now! Good to read the comments here though.