Thought breastfeeding was going great - apparently I was wrong!!

[Freddie15VES]

My little one is 17 days old and still 100g below her birthweight

We ebf and she always seems content and full but health visitor isn’t happy with how slow the gain is even though she is gaining and wants me to start expressing/bottle feeding

I feel so deflated like I’ve done something wrong

I want to ebf I don’t want to start introducing bottles into the mix 😔

Just feeling like I’ve failed massively

Feel like I should just move to formula and take the stress out of it

I'm sure there are plenty of very good health visitors but in the course of having my three children I never met one

I had four children and only one HV was any use.
I also worked professionally with them for years when I was a community midwife and their breastfeeding advice was generally terrible.

How was she born OP?

Honestly it doesn't sound like you need to waste any money on this either. You're fine!

I'd see the HV again and ask if she could consider advice that relates to breastfeeding, rather than moving immediately to expressing and formula. Ask if she can refer you to any additional breastfeeding support.
It is easy for me to say that everything you are currently doing sounds perfectly fine and just consistently carry on, but sadly, like other posters, I found some HV uninformed/ unhelpful about exclusive breastfeeding.
I hope you can ride her negativity and be confident in seeing your LO is content.

She was 96th percentile and is now on the 75th apparently - which is still fine by me. She’s a great size, very hungry, alert and more and more interested in the world everyday!!

When you're engorged, put the baby to the breast.
Your body is still figuring out how much to produce.

Hi, exactly this happened to me. I was crying when they told me my breast feeding wasn’t enough but my baby was happy and latching well. They immediately said I need to give my baby formula to top up (he also was 100g off birth weight). I didn’t do this as I wanted to breast feed and he was absolutely fine. Not hungry or unsettled and sleeping well.
i continued with breastfeeding, he gained weight and I never gave him formula.

@Freddie15VES you got this! Don’t get discouraged by HV, they don’t always know best!

She was a csection!

She was a high birthweight baby, had a rough start, and is almost back to birthweight – it's really hard when it's your baby, especially your first, but I'd really try not to worry about it for now. It sounds like you and she have very, very good odds of having it all sorted very soon.

Perhaps try breast compressions to get a bit more milk into her each feed. It's not an extra step like expressing or formula top-ups, just literally using gentle pressure on your breast to get slightly more milk per swallow. (But look up more detailed instructions that that!)

She sounds gorgeous! And you sound so proud of her. Rightly so.

So long as your baby is alert and well with plenty of wet and dirty nappies they will be fine. Don't let this HV ruin breast feeding for you, it sounds like you are doing absolutely brilliantly.

Have you looked at La Leche info online?

I engorged BADLY I used to have to express a tiny bit so there was something soft for baby to latch onto. I used to express just enough occasionally to ease the horrific pain. Things did sort themselves out by 3/4 weeks.

Mixed feeding is such a faff.

Content baby and lots of wet nappies is key, are you getting some times when baby is very alert? Mine always slept so much for those first few weeks tbh.

She sounds perfect. Is she waking in the night to feed too?

That's another thing.
Babies born by section do take longer to get back to their birthweight. Especially if they've been jaundiced.

Oh yes, she is 😂

It's sounds like you are getting on really well with breastfeeding. I would continue with what you are doing. The important thing is she's gaining weight. Expressing is so time consuming and she may not even take a bottle or she might decide she likes the bottle more and then refuse to breastfeed. My son was premmie so I had to express whilst he was in hospital we manged to leave hospital with him breastfeeding but I was so paranoid about his slow weight gain I started expressing mainly because I was unsure he was getting enough milk, he soon decided he preferred bottles and expressing is so time consume we switched to formula and I really wish I'd stuck to breastfeeding.

😂 honestly you’re doing so well, don’t let her put you off. I didn’t even bother getting my youngest weighed at baby clinic, all it did was stress me out with my eldest. Both ebf for 6 months!

That's excellent. Your breasts need the stimulation of feeding at night to produce enough prolactin.

I didn't take the last two to the clinic at all lol.

Keep going, please don’t be discouraged! As long as she is gaining weight then you are doing something right! It irks me so much that we’re told ‘breast is best’ but when there’s a problem with feeding then there’s no actual support! A good indication is the wet and dirty nappies like others have said.

Could you see a lactation consultant privately ?
They’re the experts in feeding and tongue tie. My health visitor was not helpful. Midwife told me latch was okay but lactation consultant observed for an hour and determined it was shallow latch. They can advise on nipple techniques and positioning. After seeing my consultant my DD started putting on 12oz a week!

The Breastfeeding Helpline can’t observe you feeding baby but they are supportive and encouraging and can advise .Ideally baby is meant to be back to birth weight by 2 weeks but every baby is different and if you start formula feeding you could jeopardise your milk supply, plus there’s no guarantee baby will take to a bottle. I would invest in seeing a lactation consultant if you can as they'll be able to troubleshoot what’s going on. If it wasn’t for my lactation consultant encouraging me to keep going and persevere I would have stopped breastfeeding! The lack of NHS support for breastfeeding mothers is disgusting!

If baby is otherwise well, is content, alert (well, as alert as newborns are!) and is having plenty of wet nappies, then I wouldn't worry.
My DC both lost around 10% BW and regained slowly. I continued to EBF and they were absolutely fine. Your baby, your rules.

I think the health visitor is slightly wrong. I agree just keep breastfeeding.

My DC also were born high percentile and then dropped down in percentiles which is to be expected when breastfeeding as the charts are based on majority formula fed babies who gain weight faster.

But there isn't an issue. There's no problem for a lactation consultant to address.

I would invest in seeing a lactation consultant who can better troubleshoot what’s going on

There's nothing "going on" except a HV who doesn't understand how breastfeeding works.

OP don't waste your money - unless you just want some general advice and support.

There is nothing wrong with a baby, born by caesarean section at 4.2kg who is fully breastfed and who weighs 4.1kg at 17 days, having had jaundice. Everything is normal.

Sounds like you are doing great. Do you have a breast feeding support group near you? I found it useful even when feeding is going well.