Need help, skinny baby!

[MrsBone]

I posted a post similar to this before, but new things have come about. My little girl is 6 months old. She used to nurse every 3-4 hours, took 2 naps a day and slept through the night(12 hours!). Now I can usually get her down for her first nap, but by the afternoon, she's cranky, tired, and tries to nurse before a nap, but never seems satisfied with the amount she gets. I took her to the doc and her percentiles have steadily declined, 50%, 25% and now 5%. He suggested I supplement with either formula or raw goats milk, She tends to sort of give up instead of wait for another let down, and can be a bit cranky when I hold her, but if I sit her down, she's easily distracted, and just doesn't eat again until the next feeding. By 7 or 7:30 pm, doesn't seem to matter how much milk shehas gotten, she passes out and is out for at least 12 hours. I feel like if she was truly hungry and not getting enough milk during the day, she'd probably be up all night. I've given her a bit of raw goats milk here and there when she seemed desperate, but she just sucks it down and acts like she wants more. It never seems like enough. At her 6 month check up she weighed 13 lb 2 oz and was in the 5% for weight. Today I pumped after two of her feeds and one of the times I got one oz, but the other feed I got maybe a 1/4 oz. I pump every night at 10pm and usually get 2 1/2 to 3 oz. I talked to a lactation consultant and she said the first thing she would try is pumping after each session for a few days to build up my supply, and if that desn't work, mayobe try domperidone. she sort of poo pooed fenugreek saying that you have to take so much of it, it's almost better just to take domperidone. I don't want to take drugs, and if she wasn't so skinny, I would just think she probably is getting enough milk, but she's skinny. What should I do!? If I just pump a couple times a day, how long will it take to up my supply enough that baby will be satisfied at the breast? This is the complete opposite problem than what I had with my son. I had over supply with him, constantly. I'm just overwhelmed.

[TiredX2]

Do you sleep with her?  It sounds like she isn't getting enough to eat--- if she is sleeping 12 hours a night and then only eating every 3-4 hours, that is a maximum of 5 times a day!  Have you tired offering more frequently?  She may not be hungry enough to wake herself in the night, but if it was right there she might show a bit more interest.  I would be extreamly concerned with a young infant only eating 4-5 times a day (but that is just my experience).

[MrsBone]

I offer her the breast all day long. She doesn't sleep with me, we never really meshed well with cosleeping, I wasn't opposed to it, she just didn't like it. It kept her awake and fussy. She used to eat 3-4 hours now, it's more like 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours, and she'll nurse through one let down and then get impatient. I've even tried to take her in another room without distractions, and it doesn't seem to help. Last night she woke after 4 hours of sleep, and I brought her in our room, I nursed her every time she woke, which was a lot, It was about every hour or so until 8 am. I don't think she was hungry, she was gassy, and I'm pretty sure it's from the m&ms I ate last night(she can't handle dairy) but I'm sure the extra calories were good for her. I have no problem nursing her if she wakes to eat, but I don't really feel like I should go in there and wake her to nurse. She's very comfortable in her own bed and sleeps better that way. I don't know. I think I'm going to continue with my pumping session at night and just stay home for a few days and pump after each feed in an attempt to build up my supply. I have a toddler too, which makes the laying in bed all day and nursing a bit unrealistic, but maybe I can get my mom to watch him for me for a couple hours a day so I can focus on the baby. Never thought that having a mellow, chill baby who sleeps all night would be problematic! ha ha.

[TiredX2]

That is really hard.

I tried to remember, when my kids were little, that having a baby that sleeps 12 hours straight isn't necessarily the healthiest thing and it looks like you're really living it :(  If she is good tempered the next day (after a night of not sleeping through) I would really consider that un-restful time with lots of food to be what she needs.

DD was a very distracted nurser starting around 5 months, so even though she nibbled constantly during the day, I'm sure she got the vast majority of her calories at night.

Good luck.

[eabbmom]

Declining percentiles are kind of scary. Have you thought about trying a lactation aid? This will keep your baby at the breast to stimulate more milk production and keep her interested in sticking around for another letdown. Dr. Newman sells lactation aids but also has instructions for making your own. I felt like such a failure when I had to supplement and again when my LC told me that I needed a nipple shield. After a month of using a SNS I threw it out and at five months old my baby just learned to latch without the shield. I have used domperidone and am still on a strong regimen of fenugreek. Go to Dr. Newman's website and check out his info.

[MrsBone]

How much fenugreek do you use? I am almost thinking that since she's 6 1/2 months old, giving her solids once or twice a day wouldn't be a awful. She is nursing quite a bit. She nursed probably 6 or 7 times today, each time getting 2 or 3 let downs, so it's definitely improving,..maybe mixing food with breastmilk? I am supposed to take her back in about 2 weeks for a  weigh in. I may weigh her before then and possibly postpone the appointment if she isn't gaining yet to see if I can up her weight with other methods. I got online and ordered fenugreek, blessed thistle and nettle to make infusions with. It's supposed to be a great combination of galactogogues.Oh, and I only supplemented 2 oz of my own breastmilk today, yesterday I supplemented 4 oz, so I think it may be getting better.

[Asiago]

It sounds like you are seeing improvement already with her feeding more.

I was going to suggest babywearing, the more accessible your breast, the more likely she is to latch on and feed. Plus you can keep up with your toddler! With soft structure carrier like an Ergo, or Beco (there are so many), you could nurse while on-the-go.

Photos:

http://www.ergobabycarrier.com/gallery/nursing-in-carrier

http://tinyurl.com/c7svw4u

[MaryMarg]

I am currently experiencing the same problems you are having.  I posted a about a month ago when my daughter was 6 mos old and decreased in percentiles.  I think stress decreased my supply although I had hyperlactation with my first two.  First, I want you to know you are not alone!  This is a very hard situation and I have given myself lots of grief over it but gotten great support from others and realize that this IS the situation I am in, now how can I work to change it!  I started with pumping after every feed and "power pumping" (pumping for 5-10 minutes then stopping for 10 minutes, them pumping for 10 minutes etc. for an hour).  Also tried fenugreek and lots of it!  Did not see a dramatic difference here, even with the pumping.  This link was GREAT info that helped me lots:

http://kellymom.com/bf/supply/low-supply.html

We were about to consider formula, which was very hard for me, when I convinced my OB to prescribe the domperidone.  After 5 days, my supply went up dramatically.  I no longer have to supplement with bottles of pumped breastmilk, which I was doing during the day and my daughter seems content.  I haven't had her weighed in 4 weeks, but will go soon (she, too, weighed only 13 lbs+ at 6 mos).  Consider discussing the domperidone with others and researching it to see if it's right for you.  I am also still pumping in the morning and at night and trying to freeze some extra milk just in case and keep my body thinking it needs to make lots!  I stopped the all day pumping to give myself a break as I also have a 2yo and 5yo. 

Regarding baby food, I did start baby food just past 6 months with my DD.  I usually don't start until much later, but wanted to add some fat to her diet, so gave her real, mashed banana and then avocado and banana so she could get the fat benefit (for brain development too!) from the avocado.  Baby food is generally very low in calories and has no fat, so it's not a great way to increase weight unless you can get high-fat food that is age-appropriate into her, like avocado.  Again, I am not a fan of early feeding but have found it helpful in my daughter's case.

You are doing so great by looking for ways to help your little one and please remember you are not alone!  I support you 100% and hope you see a change from one or some of the ideas on the kellymom site soon.  Best wishes!  Keep your thoughts positive!

[eabbmom]

Congratulations on the milk supply improvement! It's a hard road sometimes but support is key. The thistle tastes horrible- my LC said I should be taking atleast three thousand mgs a day and Dr. Newman says that with the fenugreek you are at the proper dosage when your sweat starts to smell like maple syrup (I haven't worn deodorant in forever- good side effect).