Yesterday was Jack's 5 month check-up (a little late) and there was good news and bad news. The good news was that a) everyone there thought he was ridiculously cute because he was all smiles, b) he took his one shot very well and c) he grew an inch in length.
The bad news is that he not only did not gain weight, but he lost weight. :-( This is not good. And it made me very sad. I am pretty sure the entire problem is my dwindling milk supply. I never had an overabundance but in the past few weeks I can tell it's been declining. And the poor little guy isn't getting enough. So, what to do? The doctor wants me to start him on rice cereal (and then eventually vegetables and fruits) right away. If this doesn't help him gain weight in the next two weeks, I have to start supplementing with formula. Which I know will be the beginning of the end of breastfeeding. This is all a real bummer to me but I just want him to be healthy. I had all these grand ideas of skipping rice cereal because of all the articles I had read about how pointless it is but I've decided to just follow the doctor's orders. Though I'm not sure he'll be able to swallow it yet and therefore not sure how much weight it'll put on him.
The most ridiculous part of this that makes me laugh? That my problem is that my son is underweight. Underweight. Are you kidding me? I have to diet and count calories and deal with jeans that are too tight for the past two decades but I have a son who is too skinny? What the hell! Life is funny.
Well, I guess to keep a record of it, here are his current stats:
Weight: 13 pounds, 3 ounces (10th percentile)
Height: 26 inches (70th percentile)
Good luck, Lisa, and great job! The anxiety about baby weight-gain is crazy - I can definitely empathize. Do you think you'll also consult a lactation consultant about your supply? That might be another option to consider if you want to continue nursing a little longer. However, five months of breastfeeding is awesome!
ReplyDeleteSorry Jack has lost weight. I hope the additional food helps! I swear by lactation tea for supply. I just drink one cup a night and it boosts my supply by the next morning. And don't beat yourself up if you have to supplement or even switch to formula. You've done great to make it to 5 months!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad he's healthy, Lisa. He'll gain weight soon and supplementing doesn't mean the end for you necessarily.
ReplyDeleteThe tea Lindsay mentioned is a good thing to try. Traditional Medicinal's Mother's Milk Tea is what someone bought me (which I never used except once since it made my breast almost explode with milk). Taking fenugreek supposedly can help too.
1) Congrats on getting to 5 months of breastfeeding! That's amazing! Previous generations of mothers stopped way earlier.
ReplyDelete2) It's not necessarily about your milk. My friend Courtney's first baby was overweight with the doctor telling her to skip feedings. Her second baby is underweight with her having to supplement. Same milk, different baby and temperament. It's not always about the mother.
i'm the last person who should be offering advice about baby weight gain (or lack thereof), but try not to worry. he's meeting milestones and obviously happy and healthy. a mom i know at daycare got pressured by her ped to give up breastfeeding entirely with her low weight daughter at 7 mos, but 100% formula didn't change anything - the baby still was below the charts at a year. she's now 3 years old and perfectly healthy.
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