Ugh. Did anyone go back to EBF after supplementing due to poor weight gain?

[Anonymous]

If you're concerned, triple feed. I had low supply with my first and triple fed. It did not help, but it's possible that the problem was hormonal (medications I was on prior to birth).

With my second, I did supplement due to poor weight gain. Eventually, we got to the EBF stage even after those weeks of supplementing. Some of that (at the very start) was due to triple feeding, but most of the time it was not. Triple feeding is a lot of work. I just made sure she cleared the breast each time and tried to add in an extra feed here or there. I am not EBF anymore but that's more of a choice now to just top off at night.

[Anonymous]

Yes. I had to triple feed my first. It was awful. But he eventually went back to EBF, it got way easier, and he nursed for quite a long time.

Eight days is so young. What you do now is NOT setting a pattern for the whole first year. Don't listen to all the crap about nipple confusion, babies getting used to formula, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My baby is eight days old. She’s been EBF and I thought it was going well. We’ve done two weighted feeds (3 oz and 2 oz respectively) and had two sessions with a lactation consultant. Everything seems good - good latch, strong suck, lots of swallowing, plenty of wet and dirty diapers. But she lost 9% of her birth weight and still isn’t gaining - no weight gain at all in 3 days. So, the pediatrician wants us to supplement with formula after every other feeding for a few days.

I’m oddly upset about the whole thing. I EBF my first child with no issues, and after the initial toughness of the newborn stage, found it very easy. I hate to think I’m giving up on that already!! The ped and my husband seem to think this is short term - a week or two until she starts gaining. But I just feel like my supply will inevitably take a hit and I’ll never get back to nursing exclusively.

Anyone BTDT?? How did it turn out for you??

My friend EBF her first two from the get go. Her third was losing weight so she had to supplement. She ended up supplementing for 10 weeks I think then she managed to get her supply high enough to EBF. She ended up breastfeeding her third for 9 months. Another friend had to supplement in the beginning with both her kids but then also managed to EBF for a year. I know countless stories like this and can keep going’. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to up my supply and ended up formula feeding. But from my friends it seems like I was the anomaly. Hang in there OP! You are doing the right thing. Most important thing is to make sure that your baby is getting the nutrition she needs and isn’t dehydrated. Just keep pumping to up your supply. Every lactation consultant I’ve seen is pro-supplementing. For your baby to demand more she needs to be stronger and have more energy. Supplementing provides her with that energy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes - 2nd child lost 11% at 2 days so Ped said I had to supplement - cue the tears for me. I did triple feeds (nurse, pump, supplement ) for two weeks and stopped then. A few days in I was able to change the formula supplementing to pumped breast milk and stopped the extra pumping and supplementing at two weeks.

My 2nd seemed to be latching fine, but my milk takes about 5 days to come in and I dont think she fought as hard as my 1st for the milk. My first did have latch problems and lost 9% but ped did not say I had to supplement - just sent me to the breastfeeding center.

I nursed them both to 25 months - you should be fine - just start using the pumped milk instead of formula as you can and evaluate when you can cut it out - hopefully after about 2 weeks. Good LUck!

OP here. Thank you for your response. The thing that’s confusing is the pediatrician isn’t recommending triple feeding or pumping or adding feeds or anything. Just topping off with formula after half the feedings temporarily. That doesn’t feel right to me and I’m worried about my supply.

That’s what a lactation consultant is for. Pediatrician is here to tell you what your baby needs. Lactation consultant will talk about triple feeding because her focus is on increasing supply while still abiding by what your pediatrician is saying.

[Anonymous]

Yes. It took my son over 3 weeks to regain birth weight. I had to weigh in at the Ped or do a weighed feed at the breastfeeding center on K st. It was a grueling few weeks of feeding, then pumping, then massaging. I took ALL the supplements, drank a ton of water, ate oatmeal with flax and walnuts, etc.

By 6 weeks I was fully EBF and he didn’t have any formula after 4 weeks and didn’t have a bottle from 6 weeks until starting daycare at 5mo. I nursed him for 22 months.

[Anonymous]

Yes. Supplemented until the baby was about 2.5 weeks old, and then the baby started to put on weight and we never looked back. Ended up with a very good supply. Two factors in making it work for us were lactation consultants and pumping every time I supplemented.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes - 2nd child lost 11% at 2 days so Ped said I had to supplement - cue the tears for me. I did triple feeds (nurse, pump, supplement ) for two weeks and stopped then. A few days in I was able to change the formula supplementing to pumped breast milk and stopped the extra pumping and supplementing at two weeks.

My 2nd seemed to be latching fine, but my milk takes about 5 days to come in and I dont think she fought as hard as my 1st for the milk. My first did have latch problems and lost 9% but ped did not say I had to supplement - just sent me to the breastfeeding center.

I nursed them both to 25 months - you should be fine - just start using the pumped milk instead of formula as you can and evaluate when you can cut it out - hopefully after about 2 weeks. Good LUck!

OP here. Thank you for your response. The thing that’s confusing is the pediatrician isn’t recommending triple feeding or pumping or adding feeds or anything. Just topping off with formula after half the feedings temporarily. That doesn’t feel right to me and I’m worried about my supply.

yeah - follow up with an appointment at the breastfeeding center or an LC you trust. Pediatricians are not always extremely well educated in specific breastfeeding info. (before DCUM jumps on me - im not saying to not supplement, but not to only do that.)

I do remember at my 1.5 week appt with the LC - we did a weighted feed and she got about 2 oz and LC was happy with that and had been gaining for a few days by then. So you may have a slightly different issue than supply or maybe baby just needs a few more days. Definitely do another LC visit (I really trust the Breastfeeding Center even though I had to pay out of pocket for them).

I wouldn’t listen to this advice. Lactation consultants are pushed to recommend breastfeeding and it can be detrimental to your baby’s health. I would still work on getting supply up with nursing and pumping, but I would still supplement.

I had a friend who was told to supplement when her two week old didn’t gain enough week with breastfeeding. She saw a lactation consultant who told her to breastfeed and pump and that she didn’t need to supplement. A week went by and her baby had lost even more weight at the next checkup and they considered admitting him. She then finally supplemented and he regained his birth weight back at 4 week appointment. She went on to exclusively breastfeed from 8 weeks until a year.

I recommended getting a very high quality formula like Happy Baby Organics or Bobbie and supplement.

[Anonymous]

Both of my nieces were supplement for two-three weeks after birth to regain their weight, and then went on to EBF. My sister says she makes soft-serve because they may have started slow but once they got the hang of it they both were adorably chubby babies.

[Anonymous]

The desire to breastfeed is admirable, but I would supplement if a doctor I trusted strongly advised me to do so. Keep pumping if you want as long as your baby's health is not in jeopardy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes - 2nd child lost 11% at 2 days so Ped said I had to supplement - cue the tears for me. I did triple feeds (nurse, pump, supplement ) for two weeks and stopped then. A few days in I was able to change the formula supplementing to pumped breast milk and stopped the extra pumping and supplementing at two weeks.

My 2nd seemed to be latching fine, but my milk takes about 5 days to come in and I dont think she fought as hard as my 1st for the milk. My first did have latch problems and lost 9% but ped did not say I had to supplement - just sent me to the breastfeeding center.

I nursed them both to 25 months - you should be fine - just start using the pumped milk instead of formula as you can and evaluate when you can cut it out - hopefully after about 2 weeks. Good LUck!

OP here. Thank you for your response. The thing that’s confusing is the pediatrician isn’t recommending triple feeding or pumping or adding feeds or anything. Just topping off with formula after half the feedings temporarily. That doesn’t feel right to me and I’m worried about my supply.

If you’re worried about your supply, do what another PP suggested and pump after your baby feeds, for like ten minutes. You might end up with an oversupply though.

[Anonymous]

How is everything going OP?

[Anonymous]

Girl, once you have that freedom, you will not want to go back, LOL!

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks so much everyone, these responses were really helpful.

I think one of the things that’s hard about nursing is the extremes are well represented (“whatever, just give some formula” and “do whatever you can to breastfeed even if it costs you your sanity!!”) and when you’re sorta in between, it can be really hard to chart a path. I felt really alone (and hormonal, which doesn’t help).

Well, my husband made a great suggestion - we got on the phone with his sister, who EBF her three kids, not without challenges, and is a family doctor. The first thing she asked me was “how important is breastfeeding to you, on a scale from 1-10?” I said 7 and that response shaped our whole conversation. She had great suggestions and perspectives, and she would say things like, “yeah, you could do that, but that’s like more if you’re a 9 or a 10.” It was exactly the conversation I needed, and I feel so much better.

Anyway, we’re triple feeding after every other feed, and the ones in between just nursing. It means pumping 4-5 times a day, for the short term, which seems manageable, and I’m getting enough from pumping to use for supplementing about half the time. So, she’s getting lots of additional calories, but only needs formula about twice a day. Hopefully, this will get her weight up and increase my supply over the next week or two. If it seems like it’s going on longer than that, we’ll reevaluate - I’m not willing to do this much pumping indefinitely.

Thanks so much for all the encouragement and positive stories!