Need advice on supplementing

[Mel1895]

Hi, I am a first time mom of a two week old. He was born at 40+5 days at 5lbs 15oz so he has been little from the start. We had our two week dr appnt on thursday and he was only 5lbs 9oz which of course worries me. I have been breast feeding him from day one but it seems that the last few days I cannot get him to stop crying while I am feeding him. He will latch on and then pull away crying, then latch on, feed for a few minutes then pull away crying. I will check to see if any milk is coming out and there always is. I tried to pump for the first time last night and after about 15 minutes there was only a little bit of milk that didnt even cover the bottom of the container. I think if I have to fill up the whole bottle I would have to sit there for hours. So as you can imagine i feel like I am not giving my baby enough milk and the last thing I want is for him to go hungry, so I am thinking abot supplementing but my questions are:

Is it ok to just start off by giving him one bottle of formula a day and BF the rest of the time and to try pumping in between sessions to maybe increase flow?

is two weeks too early to start supplementing?

how much formula should I start off with, with each bottle?

I am sorry that this is so long but I would appreciate any advice... thank you in advance!

 

[austinsmom]

2 words. GROWTH SPURTTTTTTTTTTTT!
Formula is only going to hurt your supply. Especially since you can't pump enough to cover any ounces you'd be supplementing with. My LO wasn't at her birth weight till over 3 weeks old. I could pump a drop till my LO was around 6 weeks old.
Cluster feeding/fussiness is normal the first 6-8 weeks.

 

[mrs_park]

I agree with Austinsmom

I supplemented with formula due to a well meaning mw and it only set back my supply. If there is a medical need, that's one thing but if you can avoid it, it will only preserve your breastfeeding success.

In these early days your baby is building you supply so nurse, nurse nurse. Get some snacks, get comfy and forget about housework etc snd just enjoy your newborn and nurse, nurse nurse. This is normal and God's way of making sure mummy's get some post partum recovery time too.

Breastfeeding is all about supply and demand. If you start supplementing, you will only tell your body to make less milk.

Hang in there Hun, you're doing a great job

 

[lilyanne]

I agree with Austinsmom. It sounds like a growth spurt. Also, what you pump does not represent your true supply; babies are really good suckers and can get a lot more out of a boob than a pump. It will get easier!

 

[bubbles123]

Might be completely wrong but this is exactly what my son did and he turned out to have a tongue tie which meant he wasn't able to latch on properly or get the milk out properly. He would suck for a bit, get tired, turn away, then cry again for milk. Might be worth looking into as it's easily sorted.
If not, then as others have said it's probably just a growth spurt X

 

[lau86]

I agree with the others, if there's one thing I've learnt in my short time bfing it's that formula is a short term gain it will reduce your milk supply in the long run as baby isn't stimulating the flow. I've fallen into this trap myself, I don't want it to happen to you IF you want to exclusively bf. It may be worth getting your latch checked and as pp said for Tongue tie just to make sure there's nothing going on. Good luck

 

[Mel1895]

Thank you so much ladies. I just looked up all the signs for a growth spurt and it is exactly what he is going thru. I cant even tell you how relieved I feel. I felt like I was failing him in some way and I did not want to give up that bonding time with him. I am so happy that I can continue to bf and know that my body will start to keep up with him once it adjusts to his increase in apitite. Thank you again.

 

[austinsmom]

Try eatting some oatmeal (even the instant stuff)... really helped boost my supply

 

[eagermom]

Try some fenugreek... Though i dont have the fenugreek meds.. I have fenugreek seeds sauted with garlic. In a pinch of oil it really helped my supply... U can add salt and spices as per taste...

Do not supplement with formulas is what i will suggest... Coz nothing is as good as bfand alsoif lo starts on with abottle makes it very difficult to latch on..instead nurse frequently .... And more time...

 

[amygwen]

Formula will definitely hurt your supply, I would try not supplement if you can. If you do choose to supplement than you need to pump while someone gives your LO the bottle. Realistically though, I wouldn't introduce a bottle until 6 weeks at the minimum if you can wait!