Constant worry my milk is not enough :(

[babyjan]

Ok so my 3 month old was weighed at 9 weeks and was 5.65kg if I remember correctly (hv didn't put it in his red book for some reason) he was on the 50th centile but his been vomiting a lot from the early days so I only recently started gaviscon which has helped a bit. Today he was weighed and is 6.2kg? I thought he'd be more tbh and his gone down slightly on the centile, now I'm worried. Not sure if I should be worried or not but when you have people telling you his small it doesn't help :/

I think his good height wise as he outgrew 0-3 month length wise quickly. Just not sure about weight. His a happy baby, has a lot of wet nappies and poos fine so not sure if I should worry? I'm gonna have him weighed again in 4 weeks.

I think because my first baby was really slim and I had hv telling me I'd need to supplement etc plus his allergies has made me anxious. I'm constantly worried my milk isn't enough and I don't get much out on pump whereas I see some women fill bottles

Birth weight was 8lb 5oz if that helps x

 

[noon_child]

If my calculations are correct he is averaging 5.8oz per week. 6oz is what HVs want to see on average to rule out anything being wrong, BUT if your LO has had undiagnosed reflux then there was something wrong, and I would expect him to be a little behind and playing catch up. I guess most of your worry is that his weight gain has been slower since 9 weeks than previously, but the growth charts are not a straight line, they curve because weight gain does slow down. Having one measurement half a centile lower than previously isn't a drastic drop - it is well within normal fluctuations of weight. If they are happy to wait another 4 weeks before they weigh him again then they are obviously not concerned.

Is there a reason why you think your milk wouldn't be enough? Most nutrition issues are caused by latching problems or infrequent feeding or, like you have experienced, severe reflux. If the milk gets in and stays in it is the perfect food.

PS If it is any consolation, at 14 weeks my LO's weight had just gone up enough to touch the bottom of the 0.4th centile line having been below the entire graph up until that point (although she was only born on the 2nd centile!).

 

[babyjan]

Thanks for replying noon, your always really helpful

Dr did diagnose reflux at 9 weeks and prescribed gaviscon, she told me to wait 4 weeks before starting him on to see if he improves but no improvement and his literally been vomiting loads since the first week of birth! Since I started the gaviscon on Monday I've noticed his barelt vomiting and if he does its only a small amount. He use to bring up almost all his feed before


I don't know, I guess I just have this fear I don't have enough milk or maybe my babies are just slim. My 4 year old is about 14kg.

I'm also wondering if he may have cmpa like my first who also had reflux at this age :/

 

[noon_child]

Since I started the gaviscon on Monday I've noticed his barelt vomiting and if he does its only a small amount. He use to bring up almost all his feed before

Wow, I'm impressed he has put on as much weight as he has if he appears to be throwing up nearly all his feed! There's no way you aren't producing enough milk if he is managing to gain weight despite losing loads of his milk by chucking it back up!
If he is now keeping it down better he will gain more weight - that's just a law of energy isn't it?

 

[BunnyN]

There is quite a high chance of having another baby with cmpa if you have had one already. Have you considered trying a dairy free diet? Both mine had cmpi and cutting dairy out of my diet helped a lot. DD was very slow to put on weight and dropped to bellow the 3rd percentile from the 95th percetile. It was quite worrying at the time but it didn't seem to do her any harm otherwise. She has caught up since and is large for her age at 3.

 

[babyjan]

Do you guys have any tips on how can boost milk supply? Any supplements or food that help? Thanks

 

[noon_child]

Do you guys have any tips on how can boost milk supply? Any supplements or food that help? Thanks

I honestly don't think you need to. You need to see if now that his reflux us under control his weight gain increases. If you increase your supply it could cause issues of its own (more milk isn't always better) like taking in excess air and then bringing up milk when he burps, or never getting to feed from emptier breasts (which is when milk is fullest of fat).

 

[babyjan]

Noon, I only ask because I can never seem to get more than 2oz when pumping but always see ladies with full bottles of expressed milk?

 

[noon_child]

Noon, I only ask because I can never seem to get more than 2oz when pumping but always see ladies with full bottles of expressed milk?

Some people with tons of milk never get a drop from a pump. I could get 4oz if I pumped at 4am during the first 6 weeks of nursing. Other than that I never got more than 1 or 2 ounces. Ae you trying to build a stash?

I've heard good things about the silicone suction relievers, so you might want to give that a go, but they don't work for everyone.

 

[babyjan]

Noon, I only ask because I can never seem to get more than 2oz when pumping but always see ladies with full bottles of expressed milk?

Some people with tons of milk never get a drop from a pump. I could get 4oz if I pumped at 4am during the first 6 weeks of nursing. Other than that I never got more than 1 or 2 ounces. Ae you trying to build a stash?

I've heard good things about the silicone suction relievers, so you might want to give that a go, but they don't work for everyone.

On the 3rd August I'm going to a wedding, I'll probably be away from him 3-4 hours max maybe even less as the venue not far from me. How much do you think I should pump? Once again thanks you always offer really good advice

 

[noon_child]

On the 3rd August I'm going to a wedding, I'll probably be away from him 3-4 hours max maybe even less as the venue not far from me. How much do you think I should pump? Once again thanks you always offer really good advice

If you will be feeding before you go and as soon as you get back, you might not have to leave any milk (depends on his usual feeding schedule). If you'd like the person looking after him to have a bottle or two just in case, I wouldn't make them any bigger than 4oz. After all, babies naturally throw up if they take more than they need, but if he has reflux he may well get rid of too much if he does this. 2oz portions are a good size because if he starts drinking but then rejects it you don't have to chuck away a full bottle and they make a good top-up amount if he finishes one lot and is still hungry, so maybe 6oz split in to two or three portions, but if you've not got this much he'll not be starving by having to go 3-4hrs without. I know babies who have gone 8hrs without a feed waiting for mummy to get back, so if he does refuse a bottle while you are away he'll just make up for it when you get back!

 

[RaquelDee]

I have found fennel seed tea to be an excellent supply booster if you really need it - it was invaluable when trying to get my supply back up after being dehydrated due to illness.

 

[babyjan]

Ok thought I'd update as I'm still not sure what to think..

He was re-weighed last Friday so 4 weeks on and is now 6.75kg? Surely that's not a huge difference from the 6.2kg he was 4 weeks ago? Even the health visitor said yes it's not much but he hadn't dropped below where he is. She also said I should bring him in again 4 weeks later and if his dropped or hasn't gained much then we can discuss formula top ups.

I've been giving him gavisxon since the first weighing and two weeks into it I had to do half a sachet as he was getting bit constipated. HV said I should start giving one sachet again and see if that helps with the weight before considering top ups

 

[minties]

My first daughter gained less than that at the same age and dropped more than a centile, was strange as she'd gained pretty well till then. They tried to push solids but I said no way!

 

[noon_child]

Ok thought I'd update as I'm still not sure what to think..

He was re-weighed last Friday so 4 weeks on and is now 6.75kg? Surely that's not a huge difference from the 6.2kg he was 4 weeks ago? Even the health visitor said yes it's not much but he hadn't dropped below where he is. She also said I should bring him in again 4 weeks later and if his dropped or hasn't gained much then we can discuss formula top ups.

I've been giving him gavisxon since the first weighing and two weeks into it I had to do half a sachet as he was getting bit constipated. HV said I should start giving one sachet again and see if that helps with the weight before considering top ups

I've put in bold what I think is important. If he's maintaining a growth curve then it shouldn't be anything to worry about, especially as you are still trying to figure out the right Gaviscon dose.

Sometimes babies with reflux cause oversupply in their mum, because they need to replace what they threw up. So mums body produces excess milk more quickly as it thinks baby has a big appetite or that there are twins or something. Most people assume oversupply will never cause issues with weight gain but it can. This is why I caution against increasing supply unless you are absolutely sure it is low (or have reason to suspect it will be low e.g Tongue Tie, baby rejecting breast etc.). Frequent feeding from soft breasts can be a way to ensure fatty milk gets drunk by LO rather than when milk hangs around in the breast for too long and the fat content starts to get stuck in the breast. This is good advice for low supply too though. (which sounds counter productive - how can it be good for both? but it is!). How frequently does he nurse?

 

[Jencocoa]

This is a common fear and almost always untrue. With my second I was convinced so I saw a lactation consultant. Turns out I had too much milk lol. My let down was too fast and strong so he would pull off not because no milk but because too much. Expressing some first or certain positions helped. What's making you think you don't have enough milk?