Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

So the good news is Alexa GAINED weight this week. She put on 2 ounces. It's not much but she did GAIN and not loose. The Dr. isn't so much concerned with her numbers of HOS much she gained, just that she is gaining weight and not loosing or staying the same.

We have a new feeding plan. I'm a little nervous to try it. The Dr. thinks that because we are constantly trying to feed her (previous advice from the lactation specialist) that she is burning more calories from the effort breastfeeding than she is consuming and she is not taking in enough because she is never really hungry.

So for the next 2 weeks the Dr. wants me to offer 15 minutes on each breast and then top her off with a bottle of expressed BM if she wants it and then don't feed her again for AT LEAST another 3 hours......


I'm not sure how I feel about this..... basically no comfort nursing..... Does this make sense to anyone or does it seem off??

I use to be so sure of myself and what I agreed with but I'm just so burnt out and have SOOOOOOO much conflicting advice from different providers and books that I don't know what is right or wrong anymore??

What do my BFing mammas think about this???

Does this seem like a reasonable Breast feeding plan for a 10 week old???

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

During the day Logan only BF about every 3 hours anyhow. Though he did comfort nurse (cluster feeding ) in the early evenings until I got him on the pacifier. That could be an option if you are willing to use a paci if the nursing is comfort related occasionally.

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

So glad to hear your DD gained weight!!!! That must be a big relief for you! As far as your question goes, at 10 weeks my DS ate every 2.5-3 hours during the day (he also still pretty much got up every 3 hours at night as well, but he was used to being woken up in the nicu for the first month of his life)---so to me every 3 hours seems reasonable, but every child is different. How often are you feeding her now?

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I think it sounds pretty reasonable, can you give her something else for comfort? A pacifier, or maybe a transitional object. Noah has always had an old Tshirt of mine to sleep with, and even now at 3 years old, he carries it around with him and its a huge comfort for him. Try something like that.

Great news about the weight gain though!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by racheeeee

I think it sounds pretty reasonable, can you give her something else for comfort? A pacifier, or maybe a transitional object. Noah has always had an old Tshirt of mine to sleep with, and even now at 3 years old, he carries it around with him and its a huge comfort for him. Try something like that.

Great news about the weight gain though!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by Blissful
Is it to early for a blakie or lovie?? I feel like she's just discovered her hands I don't know how she would take comfort from a blanket yet...

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by racheeeee

Posted by Blissful
Is it to early for a blakie or lovie?? I feel like she's just discovered her hands I don't know how she would take comfort from a blanket yet...

I think its never too early to introduce a comfort item, even if they aren't actively using it, its being there can just comfort them. The shirt that I used to give to Noah was unwashed (at the beginning) just so it smelled like me. Its worth a try imo.

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I think it sounds reasonable. At 10 weeks, DS usually ate every 3 hours, sometimes more frequently at night. The only time he was constantly nursing was when he was going through a growth spurt. He rejected the breast when he wasn't hungry, but he'd take the pacifier b/c the sucking calmed him. When he was hungry, he'd reject the pacifier if I offered it to him. Good luck! I know this has been really tough on you.

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by MrsS2005

I think it sounds reasonable. At 10 weeks, DS usually ate every 3 hours, sometimes more frequently at night. The only time he was constantly nursing was when he was going through a growth spurt. He rejected the breast when he wasn't hungry, but he'd take the pacifier b/c the sucking calmed him. When he was hungry, he'd reject the pacifier if I offered it to him. Good luck! I know this has been really tough on you.

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I am a big "feed on demand" person. So if my baby was hungry I would feed him/her. I would never 'wait" till a specific time on a clock.
What kind of pump do you have?

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by nickipa

Posted by Blissful

Posted by nickipa

So glad to hear your DD gained weight!!!! That must be a big relief for you! As far as your question goes, at 10 weeks my DS ate every 2.5-3 hours during the day (he also still pretty much got up every 3 hours at night as well, but he was used to being woken up in the nicu for the first month of his life)---so to me every 3 hours seems reasonable, but every child is different. How often are you feeding her now?

The Lactation consultant has made us try and make her eat constantly while she was awake because they were son concerned she wasn't taking enough in. I honestly don't know how long she would go naturally if I didn't try and feed her every waking moment. Maybe every 3- 4 hours??

Wow---that must be so tough, you must be drained!!!!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

anyone else??

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

It can't hurt trying it! See how it goes and then you can decide what you want to do.
I do think it is hard to put a baby on a schedule. Sometimes my DS is hungry after 2 hours and sometimes 3 hours. Also, he hardly ever takes a pacifier, especially if he is hungry.
Feeding all the time is also a pain and I think the doctor is right about your DD never getting hungry enough. I have had days like that, and DS seems hungry more often because he is not getting enough food at a feeding.

This BF thing is tuff!!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I would try it. Personally I wish that I had tried to put my son on a little bit more of a schedule while breastfeeding but I was so worried about his weight gain that I would try to feed him whenever he cried.

Once he was on a bottle I as able to see how much he was taking and eventually stretch him out to every three hours but even at 10 or 11 months he was still drinking 5 or 6 bottles a day. The frequent on demand nursing allowed him to become a "snacker" and it drove me nuts. Honestly, it depends what kind of person you are but I am VERY type A and I need my baby on a strict schedule. Maybe nursing was god's way of trying to get me to lighten up but it didn't work.

Don't worry though - your baby will not starve if you move to the every 3 hour schedule. in a couple of days she will adjust and learn that she is only going to be fed at those intervals and she will start taking enough at each feeding. The nice thing about babies is they actually adjust to things like this very easily!

Good luck!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

give it a try, what harm can it do? i mean its not like youre gonna sit there and make her starve! if you see she's hungry earlier, then feed her. side note- are you really offering her the breast every 15 min?? you are a warrior!!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

Posted by bonitachyc

give it a try, what harm can it do? i mean its not like youre gonna sit there and make her starve! if you see she's hungry earlier, then feed her. side note- are you really offering her the breast every 15 min?? you are a warrior!!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I say it can't hurt to try what your Dr. recommended. See how she does with it. Also try introducing the paci again and see how she does with that. My DD is ADDICTED to the paci, and I know we're going to have a rough time when it comes time to get rid of it, but it may really help you since she likes to comfort nurse.

BUT, keep an eye on her and see how she's doing on this new plan. If she's getting hungry before the 3 hours, she'll need to eat.

I really hope this works for you and you can start to get some rest for yourself!

Re: Back from the Dr. with weight check and question for BFing mammas

I am sorry to say I don't think I have read "the whole story" and I usually try to make an effort to look out for BFing related posts.

But, anyway. I don't think the dctor's plan is all that absurd. Personally, I always comfort nursed. Even in the beginning. Ryan was born 9.3 and took to BFing pretty well. However, he still became jaundice in the hospital where they demanded I offered formula. Half oz at the end of each nursing session. I really only did it twice because I saw nipple confusion right away. So I lied and told the nurses I gave him formula even though I didn't.

Anyway, by the time we got to his first ped appt at 6 days old he had dropped a pound. The ped flipped out and said I not only needed to continue to supplement I needed to offer a whole 2oz at the end of each nursing session.

Again, I ignored and continued to do what I was doing. Which was every 2 hours and 45 minutes I would wake him up (if needed) and nurse each side 15 minutes. Then back to sleep. A lactation consultant told me nursing him ahead of his hunger which actually provide Ryan with patience to latch correctly and therefore nurse more efficiently.

By 2 weeks old he was back to his birth weight.

So, I can relate (in one way or another) why you have succumb to second guess your natural mothering instinct. But I say go for it. I was never a fan of a binky and refused to offer it to Ryan. Instead I allowed him to comfort nurse and I felt not only did it make our bond strong, it made him MUCH more effective at nursing.

Honestly, trying to stick to a 3 hour feeding schedule is not the worse thing in the world. But I personally would not give up comfort feeding.

Please feel free to FM for anything! You are doing an amazing job!!!!!!