Can someone please help calm me down/reassure me?!
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Anonymous
DD has wicked reflux and has been on meds from the start; I've managed to continue bfing by cutting pretty much everything from my diet. We had a weight check at ped's yesterday. She was 50% at 2 mo, and now she's dropped to 25% at 3. Oddly for a reflux baby, she sleeps well at night-some nights she sleeps 10 or 11 hours w/o feeding. Ped wasn't too worried until I nursed her-she only took in 2 oz (late afternoon). Now they want me to rent a scale and weigh before and after every feeding to see how much she's taking. I'm concerned I'll have to start supplementing, or waking her up at night to nurse. We have a ped GI visit in 2 weeks, but I'm not really sure what it will net us. I'm just feeling overwhelmed and really worried about my baby...I really thought things would be good at the weigh-in, as she's got rolls and still nurses for 30 min every 2/2.5 hrs 
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Anonymous
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Trust your own gut, OP. Do you think she is doing fine? Forget what the scales say, what do you think when you feed her, hold her, change her, cuddle her?
Nurse as much as you can, I'm sure she is fine. Try to relax when you feed her so that your mild flows. |
Anonymous
We've been weighing before and after every feed and it's actually really reassuring to know how much he's actually eating. It also helPs me to know when I should push him to stay weak and nurse more rather than drift off. The 2oz at the office isn't bad, and you might see that in the morning you nurse much more -- yesterday he nursed 6.8 ounces in the same time it takes him to get 2 in the evening! 10 or 11 hours is a long time to go without eating, if the baby is not getting a day's worth of ounces while awake. Why are you so worried about adding one night feeding? It's rare for EBF babies to sleep that long without needing food. As for risking supplementation, I'm with you in feeling scared that's how we'll have to go soon. But truth is, I'm just not producing enough to keep up with his demand. You might be, buy a sale will help you keno for sure! Good luck. |
Anonymous
Both of which are better than failure to thrive, if that's where this is headed. |
Anonymous
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If you have to nurse at night, then you'll just be like the majority of moms of 3 month olds. I would rather do that and drop the meds if possible.
If you have to supplement then you'll probably feel great that your kid is thriving. Neither of those things are terrible. Your run of good luck with 10-11 hour sleeps will end at some time, anyway. I'm interested to know, though, what are your baby's symptoms of reflux? Also, since you are having to cur pretty much everything from your diet, I think you will feel much better (and then be a much more relaxed mom) if you supplement. It doesn't sound good for you. |
Anonymous
This. Hopefully using the scale will show you that the child is receiving enough milk. If not however, formula is not the devil's food. If for whatever reason, your baby is not receiving enough milk from you, then she must get it from some where else. As a mom, you are doing the very best you can, and that's what's truly important. |
Anonymous
| I nursed at night until my son was 6 months old. Nothing wrong with that. |
Anonymous
| Supplement and move on. These kinds of threads really concern me. Exclusive breast milk is not the best thing for your baby if she isn't gaining enough weight. There are far more negative implications from not getting enough to eat versus giving a little formula. |
Anonymous
| Why not pump and supplement with breast milk? That's what I do. I only have to pump 2x a day. |
Anonymous
+1. I could not have said this better myself. |
Anonymous
But "not getting enough" =/= falling on the growth charts. Most EBF babies have supercharged growth in the first month or two because BF is so digestible and has growth hormones from mom in it. It's totally normal for EBF babies not to stay on the curve they were on at the very beginning. OP, my DD went from 50th percentile at birth to 5th percentile at 6 months (and has stayed there ever since). Try not to worry. Some kids are just small, and EBF babies really do gain a LOT faster in the first few weeks than FF babies (making them sometimes seem bigger than they will be eventually). Do the specialist visit and the pre- and post-feed weighs for reassurance, but know that this is pretty common for EBF babies. It's not a reason to ditch breast milk and go with formula, unless a specialist (I would not listen to a ped, they are not specialists in infant nutrition or BFing) says otherwise. Finally, as someone who has BTDT, I say with all due gentleness (and hope I don't get flamed): ALL 2-month-olds have reflux. There is seriously an epidemic of inappropriately medicating babies because they are fussy and spit up. Believe me, I did it, too and regret it -- but since you haven't been to a specialist yet, I'm assumed your ped prescribed reflux meds -- I wouldn't medicate unless you absolutely have to. Also, your baby will be fussy regardless of what you are eating, so ditch the elimination diet unless you have been to a pediatric allergist and they diagnose an allergy to something in your BF. Most babies that age are fussy. Medicating your baby and eating only sweet potatoes and almonds will is not healthy for you or baby 
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Anonymous
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Hi all, I appreciate the responses. I'm on an elimination diet because she reacts to a lot of allergens (wheat, dairy, eggs) by getting extremely mucousy poops and blood. I wouldn't be worried if she was just gassy and poopy or just spitty. She hasn't been tested, but if I eat a scrambled egg and a day later there's blood in her poop...well that's enough for me to stay away from them. I know elimination diets are controversial/considered faddy, and others may not feel that way, but this is what works for us. I can still eat fruit, veggies, and meat, just not all my high carb comfort foods .
As for all babies having reflux, I do know that. My first was a big spitter. BUT my daughter from the beginning was screaming and pulling away every few minutes when feeding, wouldn't sleep on her back for longer than 10 min, would projectile vomit practically all milk, and had started a nursing/bottle strike from the pain. This is not your average spitty baby! We were on the verge of hospitalization. I didn't want meds, but the minute they kicked in, it was like a different baby. So again, others may choose to keep baby med free and deal with all of the above, but watching my baby nurse without screaming was reason enough to medicate for me. I guess I just feel embattled-we've worked really hard to beat this, things had started going really well, and then her weight dropped. Obviously if she's not getting enough I'll supplement if necessary, but I'm just hoping its not. And her height is still on the curve, so I don't think we're headed towards FTT. |
Anonymous
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It sounds like you have a lot going on with this little one. I think supplementing every now and then would help you feel more in control. I'm the PP who supplemented of and on - it was very easy for me to go back to exclusive breastfeeding - perhaps others haven't had it that easy.
Above all, you are doing an amazing job with this baby and you need to not blame yourself and not worry if you decide to supplement. Your baby will be just as smart, don't worry! |
Anonymous
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And if you need to supplement for a few weeks, what is the big deal....
relax, listen to your doctor and remember that whatever works is good for your little one |
Anonymous
| If she's eating frequently during the day, 2 oz may be plenty. 10-11 hours at night is a loooooong time for a 3 month old, though, and I wonder if it's had an effect on your supply, too. |