Worried about fontanelle?? What is normal?

[showersandflowers]

I'm become obsessed with feeling my baby's fontanelle. When I run my fingers over it, you can definitely feel a little dip. Does this mean she's dehydrated??? Or is this normal? Some places say it should be flat. She is still peeing often.

I should add, she is 4 weeks old.

Yes you will feel a dip in it, if your worried ask at your 6 week check up, but in all likely good any issues will have been picked up, as long as good wet nappies she won’t be dehydrated either

It will feel like a dip because it goes from hard to soft, but an actual shrunken fontanelle would feel very obvious and there would be other signs of dehydration.

Are you breastfeeding?

@Somethingsnappy I am breast feeding in combination with bottle feeding expressed milk. Does it make a difference? I'm sick with worry.

Don’t touch it too much. Most important things are weeing (decent wet nappies) and overall behaviour of the baby

I think if your child was unwell in other ways, lethargic, not feeding well, very upset etc then you would check the fontanelle to check if it had a big dip rather than checking it randomly? I've just felt my baby who is well, and defo not dehydrated, and can feel his fontanelle easily. There will be a slight dip as it's the edge of the skull bone? Does that make sense?

TLDR - sounds fine as long as your baby is well otherwise.

DS’ used to pulsate - I was horrified the first time I noticed! But I think if she’s peeing and seems otherwise well it’s normal to be able to feel it a bit

There's always a slight dip because it's going from hard to soft. A sunken fontanelle is property sunken. If she's feeding fine then why would she be dehydrated? To be that level of dehydration would be noticeable from sustained not feeding or having a vomiting bug or something.

[quote showersandflowers]@Somethingsnappy I am breast feeding in combination with bottle feeding expressed milk. Does it make a difference? I'm sick with worry. [/quote]
Please don't worry at all! If she's getting plenty of full wet nappies, then she's getting plenty of liquid. The only reason I asked about BF is because you'd monitor their intake by nappies/behaviour/weight gain, rather than actual physical amounts as seen in a bottle! Is your baby settled between feeds and good nappy output? Then all is fine.

Honestly, a slight dip where the fontenelle goes soft is to be expected. A shrunken fontanelle would be unmistakable and as I mentioned previously, would be accompanied by other worrying signs. You're just a normal first time mother worrying about everything! Congratulations on your baby! X

P. S. I've just experimentally felt my babys fontanelle, and yes, there is a dip. It's to be expected as it is not rigid and is next to the rigid skull.

If you google sunken fontanelle you will see a proper sunken one. I think all babies heads have a dip just before as it’s hard-soft