Weight gain issue

[Isadora]

DD has just hit 12 weeks, and she is so small! I have been worried about her for the past few days, she just seems all skin and bones. So the CHN weighed her today, and in 6 weeks she has only gained just over 200g. She has been having 6 feeds a day, content after feeds and sleeping well. Overall she seems to be a very happy and easy baby (touch wood). For the past 4 nights she has slept through and missed her 3am feed, so really she has only been having 5 feeds on these days.

So the CHN recommended that I feed her more during the day and ensure that she still has 6 feeds per day. She also suggested that I express after a few feeds to increase my milk supply. The only problem is when I express, I get barely anything. Does the type of breast pump that you have make a difference? I have a tommie tippie that was given to me and I know its one of the cheaper ones on the market. Wondering if I should get an electronic avent one, or would I be wasting my money?

Also as for my supply, she asked me if I feel low. I kind of do, theres not so much engorgement anymore and I dont randomly let down as much. I just thought that was because my supply is settling down though? What other ways can I increase my supply?

Trying not to panic (but I am a panicker) and I really want to make breastfeeding work, especially seeing as how much effort it has taken me to get this far with it.

Has anyone else had a bub in a similar situation?

[black_rose]

I had a lot of trouble getting weight on dd1 and Ds. Ds was only averaging 50g a week instead of his target of 180g.

Tbh the avent pump is a waste money, it wrecked my nipples and in the end I hired a good pump through the aba before buying a medela swing.

It can be a hard path to take if you express and then top up, both dd and Ds ended up ob bottles full time. Another option you can try is offer more feeds during the day and make sure you rest and drink lots of water and see if it makes a difference.

[onthefly]

I think aiming for more feeds would be more effective if you can. Have you tried a dreamfeed at all? If there's a worry about weight gains then waking to feed in the night might even be an idea.
How many wet nappies does she have? Is she quite alert when awake? Any signs of dehydration?
What you describe is normal when supply settles down, so it's not necessarily a sign of low supply.

[Heaven]

I think aiming for more feeds would be more effective if you can. Have you tried a dreamfeed at all? If there's a worry about weight gains then waking to feed in the night might even be an idea.
How many wet nappies does she have? Is she quite alert when awake? Any signs of dehydration?
What you describe is normal when supply settles down, so it's not necessarily a sign of low supply.

What I was going to say too

I would just try and get in a couple more breastfeeds.

[Trillian]

I would be waking her and getting her back to 2-3 hourly feeding during the day and then waking her at night - if she misses a feed get up and wake her up anyway. The other thing I wanted to say was that this may just be her and the way she gains weight. One problem I had with my second bub was that she didn't gain the mountains of weight that my first bub did and I couldn't help but compare the two of them. Once I accepted that she was never going to be a massively chubby baby and gain a heap of weight each week, it made it so much easier to see small weight gains without thinking anything was wrong with her. You're in a similar situation DD1 was a chubby little thing and gained weight well, but DD2 is a different baby and is also fully BF and BF babies don't always stack on the weight like FF bubs can. I still think you are doing a fabulous job though!

[Lisa B]

Isadora - obviously I'm still learning to BF but I have experience with a breast pump. We hired a medela symphony from a chemist (about $30 a week). This is what they used in the hospital. Apparently they are very expensive machine but I must say it does the job efficiently for me. The hire fee is worth it for me as I express about 7 times a day. I haven't tried any of the other ones so I don't have a comparison point. I think I read somewhere that in the early days a bub needs to be BF about 7ish times to keep milk on track.

[Junglemum]

I've heard lots of good things about the medela swing. I never had any luck expressing, i just upped the frequency of feeds during the day. If she is sleeping well at night, i personally wouldn't wake my baby. I'd rather feed 2 hourly in the day and fit in a dream feed and get a better nights sleep. But that's coming from a lady who needs her sleep!

I think MadB's questions are most relevant. Is she having enough wet nappies? Is she alert when she's awake?

My supply settled down just as you describe, my breasts never felt full and i didn't feel letdown. So i had to rely on the nappy output to gauge if she was getting enough. So it might not be a supply issue. But if it is, those lactation cookies are great. The recipe is in the BF support section i think... https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...recipe-116517/

[Bella29]

Medela swing is the way to go, but your baby is going to get more from you than a pump. My 21 month old still has 6 feeds a day sometimes not that I am saying what is or isn't normal, but I would be increasing the feeds as much as you can. I would often cluster feed her around 3-6 in the evening and that would increase my supply for the next day. I would also dream feed her just before I went to bed so she would sleep another couple of hours. before waking..... but yeah my advice is however you can manage to feed her as much more as you can... and look at the baby not the scales.. If she looks healthy and happy don't sweat the scales. For thousands of years we didn't have scales we just used our eyes and our intuition..

[boomba]

Feed her more often babe. When ever she wants wherever. The more you feed the more your supply will boost up....have you tried fenurgreek it was a lifesaver for me when I thought I was running low!

Hope she puts on some more weight hun xxxx

[MantaRay]

That sounds stressful for you

Yes, the pump can make a huge difference, but I agree with the other posters. More frequent feeds is going to help more than expressing. Many babies at 12 weeks are having 8 - 12 (and sometimes more) feeds in 24 hours, so adding an extra one or two during the day and one at night is probably all that's needed. It doesn't sound the CHN was too worried about it, so try not to be either

[Isadora]

Thanks everyone. With her usual 6 feeds a day, the 6th feed was her dreamfeed! I really dont know how I am going to fit in all these extra feeds, unless I feed, play, feed, sleep? I really dont like the idea of waking her through the night, I am no good on broken sleep and turn into a grumpy cow. Of course if things really decline then I will.

Trill - Yep you are right, I do compare her to M. Looking at M's baby photos last night was what prompted us to think hmmm better take a trip to the CHN! And the thought has crossed my mind that she could be just a 'skinny baby' - especially seeing as she seems to be more my side of the family, and my mum and sister are very thin. Who knows. I'd still like to see a nice weight gain

MadB - She is definately alert during the day and no signs of dehydration. But the wet nappy thing bothers me, as she can often wake from a 3 hour sleep and her nappy is still dry or just one small wee. The only heavyish nappy is from overnight.

The CHN wasnt overly worried, but she has told me to attend a breastfeeding meeting next week for further advice.

I also bought herbs of gold fenugreek & thistle and I am making the lactation cookies tomorrow. I also bought activate to make the smoothie. Hahahaha if this all works I am going to be like Pammy! And I have a bone to pick with the whole breastfeeding is cheaper than FF...what the....so far I have spent an absolute bomb on LC visits, accessories, thrush medications and herbal and vitamin supplements lol!!!

[Barb Glare]

Hi, there,
Babies vary quite a lot in the amount of weight that they will gain. It sounds like you CHN made a good call though - 200g in 6 weeks is on the low side, but the good news is that it is easily rectified and there is every chance you will go on to breastfeed just fine.
Some babies get into a pattern where they take *just enough* to get by, and sleep a lot to conserve energy. They are undemanding! As others have said, most babies feed at least 8-12 feeds in 24 hours. Heck, even I wouldn't gain weight on 6 feeds in 24hours! As Trillian suggested - wake her every 3 hours during the day and feed her. Does she take both sides at every feed? If not, make sure she does.
The funny thing is, even though you feel it would be impossible to feed her more often you will probably find she takes it easier than you think, and before long she will be demanding it. (Don't be disheartened when your placid little baby becomes demanding - it is a good thing!)
I wonder, did you breastfeed your other little one? Tommee tippee is a shocker of a pump - but I don't know if you even need to go to that step yet - just feed your baby more often. I wonder, is she having very, very long feeds when she is on? Many mothers find shorter more frequent feeds work better to get more milk down the hatch.

[Heaven]

I really dont know how I am going to fit in all these extra feeds, unless I feed, play, feed, sleep?

Yep, do that I do that anyway just to try get her to nap longer. It will also make sure she's getting more fatty milk. I read this yesterday:

We mothers have, at our disposal, the perfect sleep-inducers. They are called breasts. Breastmilk contains a wonderful hormone called cholecystokinin (CCK). CCK induces sleepiness, both in the baby and the mother. When the baby sucks, CCK is released within the mother to help her rest and relax. Many mothers say that breastfeeding tires them out. Certainly caring for a new baby is tiring for all mothers, but the sleepiness caused by breast-feeding is to ensure that the mother gets the rest she needs.

In the baby, CCK release is caused by sucking and when food, especially fat, enters the stomach. There are actually two CCK peaks, one at the end of a feed, and the other higher peak between 30 and 60 minutes after the feed. The baby sucks, gets sleepy, dozes off for a while then wakes again for a top-up feed. That higher-fat feed causes the second peak and the baby goes into deeper sleep. Top-up feeds are also great for the mother's milk supply.

(from the ABA)

[onthefly]

As barb and Heaven say, it will actually be quite easy to fit extras in. And soon she'll just demand them anyway (which is a good thing).
All the best~~

[UntoldAngel]

Barb took the words out of my fingers....

My LO is slow gaining weight and was skin and bone for months. We increased his feeds to 2-3hrly, 10mins on each side for a while and it does work in them putting more weight on.

[Isadora]

Barb - No I did not BF my first, therefore I am feeling my way through with this one, I really feel like I dont know much about BFing. She has always taken both sides at each feed. Yesterday and today I have fed her every two hours. Last night I did her last feed at 9pm and she slept till 4am when I fed again. I figured the tommee tippie was a dodgy one, I only used it as it was passed on to me. I am not going to bother with a pump, I will just feed her more often. You asked if she feeds for long on both sides - up until about a week ago she would spend 15-20 mins on each side. However the past few days she feeds steadily on each side, but only for just over 5 mins. She then starts fussing and wont latch. Is this due to the fact that she has finished that side? Is it possible to empty a breast in 5 mins at this age? This also makes me wonder if my supply is a tad low? (I really dont feel as full but I put that down to reaching the 12 wk settling down mark). Also how do I know if she has taken the hind milk? Sorry for all the q's!

Heaven - I have been doing feed, play, feed, sleep today. Thanks for that info.

Thanks for all your suggestions. Hopefully I will get some more one on one help at next weeks clinic.

[onthefly]

Yes, 5 minutes is often enough time at this age
That sounds good! Give it a week like this and see

[Isadora]

Oh good good MadB! She has been confusing me as she has suddenly gone from 15 odd mins on each side to 5. After 5 mins she fusses and wont attach, but put her onto the other side and she is on straight away no hassle. However is 5 mins enough time for getting the hind milk? Hopefully she has a gain at her next weigh in next week.