Is My 2Mo. Old Baby Getting Enough to Eat?

She will eat as she needs to. As my Ped. said... and this is one of the few things I actually agree with her on... there are enough fat babies in this world. Let her be!

Hi C.,

Congrats on your new baby girl! I'm a first time mommy to a little girl also. I also worried in the beginning that I was not producing enough milk. Some of my girlfriends who also had a baby at the same time as me were producing 6-8 oz each feeding and I was only producing 2 oz. I talked to my lactation consultant and her first piece of advice was: do not worry. Worry and stress will affect your milk supply. She told me to relax and to continue to nurse on demand. The body will respond and produce enough milk. Also, if your baby has pee or poo diapers on a regular basis, then she is getting enough. The other piece of advice I received was to try Mother's Milk tea. You can find this at Safeway, Mollie Stones, Whole Foods. This tea worked for me and did help me produce more milk. Lastly, just enjoy this special time. Breastfeeding is the one thing that only mothers can provide for their babies. It's a special bond between mom and child. So relax and cherish this time you have with your little girl. Take care!

C.

I started Micronor BC with both my girls at my 6 week check up and immediatley noticed that my milk supply decreased. I stuck it out for a week and couldn't handle my little ones being hungry after nursing so I stopped. My supply was back to normal within 3 days...I also started fenugreek supplements to ensure that it returned completely. My suggestion would be to stop the BC and use condoms instead. Once you wean, restart your pills. Breastfeeding lasts for such a short time....enjoy it while you can! Best Wishes!

I bet your milk is probably not disappearing, things are just probably just evening out. I don't know that medication you are referring to, but if you are truly concerned about supply you could try taking some More Milk Plus capsules which worked really well for me. If your baby is not fussy and seems content she is probably gaining just fine. I know that some people don't understand the weight gain obsession with infants. If you are concerned, the doctor will most likely tell you to just supplement with formula, which will then affect your supply, so keep that in mind. Unless your doc is very knowledgeable about breastfeeding. Try going to kellymom.com for research and information on breastfeeding. Good luck!

One thing to remember is worry and stress can affect your supply. Take it easy and monitor wet diapers. If there are plenty your lil' one is getting what she needs. Also your supply will naturally decrease if you stop pumping to match her demand only. It is so nerve wracking to wonder if they are getting what they need. If she appears hungry you can always add a feeding session to your day could be a growth spurt. Your worry is normal take a breath and know you are doing an amazing job!

Is she fussy? Babies are good at letting you know if they are hungry :)

E.

You're fine, Macie's fine. Don't worry! Dont stop breastfeeding (& no need to supplement either). Congrats on NOT having a fat baby! My kiddo was and is a very little guy (he's just 30 lbs and in 1st grade) and I have done a lot of worrying - which has been wasted energy. AS LONG AS she doesn't lose unexplained weight (meaning - if she got sick and lost a little weight- that's explainable, and she'll gain it back) and AS LONG AS she is alert and growing (mentally, developmentally, not JUST physically) and still eats, even if only a little, SHE IS FINE.

I have yet to see a roll of fat on my son's body, but he is such a bright fun little guy, and ahead in his class. And having them little is nice when you have to carry them! Enjoy, and rejoice, in your little Macie. Believe me, you dont want her fat like the others. SOMEbody's got to balance out the weight scales. I know, all too well, that it certainly seems like 9 out of 10 (yours being that 10th child) are chunky and well fed, but really, it isn't that way! My boy *is* the littlest one in his class, but there are a few others close to his size, while the rest are bigger and a few are "too big" but they've got tall parents so it's normal for them. We're not tall or very big ourselves, so why should we expect our son to be?

Watch, enjoy and rejoice in your daughter's growth and developmental gains, and only if she suddenly regresses or stops, then be concerned. Growth normally does come quickly for a little while then seems to stop, then another growth/eating spurt will happen. I remember when my son would eat and be hungry and I'd think yeah, this is more like it! then that'd stop and he'd be back to eating so little (or what I thought was too little). When a growth spurt stops, that is not a concern. It is just leveling out. Oftentimes it seems that mental development and physical growth spurts alternate. I dont have a baby in my "lab" anymore ;-) but that's what I remember my son doing and my sister's baby seems to be doing the same. Only if there is a LOSS or DECREASE do you need to worry.

Your daughter is still too young for this but remember this for when she's older - One thing I've had to learn, that seems a little contrary to what I want to do, is to not let him eat all day long. If he snacked all morning, he would not eat a good lunch. If he had food in the afternoon, he would not eat more than a few bites of dinner. So I had to make sure to feed him a good snack (crackers, fruit, cheese, etc) in the mid-afternoon then NO snacking the next hour or two until dinner, and he would actually eat a few bites of every item, instead of just 2 bites and be done with dinner. Just something to remember for when she's eating real food later on! Took me a while to learn this.

C.,

I am a Lactation Consultant and have worked with many women who have had their supplies CRASH after starting the pill. If your pill contains ANY estrogen get off it NOW. It WILL crash your supply. Estrogen suppresses Prolactin - the hormone that makes milk. If this is the mini pill and you are having a drop in your supply get off it NOW. Too many women have a drop in their supply even on the progesterone only pills. Once you go off the pill, your supply should bounce back just fine. If it does not then there are other ways to increase that supply again (herbs like More Milk Plus are wonderful to jump start a supply) - call me and I can help you with that too.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to call me anytime. This is a serious issue and you need to trust your gut on this one. If your baby seems to not be full like she used to be before you started the pill then you need to trust that. You know what is happening - something doesn't feel quite right, changes are happening...trust yourself to know if something is wrong - even if you aren't sure what it is.

The concern over fat babies really bothers me - some breastfed babies are fat and some aren't. Being a fat breastfed baby is perfectly healthy and fine. It seems there is way too much concern about this. Babies should be gaining about 5-7 ounces per week until age 4 months then it starts to slow down a bit. It is true that around 6 weeks, the supply adjusts and the breasts feel softer - but as long as the baby still is satiated after feeds and is peeing fine (pooping can change after 6 wks) and is gaining weight well, then all if fine.

However, you have the added issue of introducing the birth control pill, and as I mentioned above, it can and does in many cases have an effect on the milk supply. Some women do just fine with the mini-pill (progesterone only) others absolutely do not. This is where you NEED to listen to your mommy heart. If something feels wrong, you need to check it out.

Again, please feel free to call me - I don't charge for phone consults... :) You can reach me at ###-###-#### (best way to reach me) or via e-mail (slower way to reach me) @ ____@____.com

Good luck on this one: TRUST yourself!

Warmly,
J. Simpson, IBCLC, CIIM
www.breastfeedingnetwork.net

The reason that you are not leaking all the time any more is that your body has figured out when to trigger the "let-down" of milk. This does not mean you have less milk. It means your breasts have now adjusted to full-time nursing.

In other words, the "faucet" isn't turned on full blast any more. It is only turned on to nurse.

If you are truly concerned about your daughters' weight, just drop by her doctors' office and ask them to quickly weigh her. You don't need an appointment in most cases.

Good Luck,
K.

Hi C.,

I think your daughter is getting plenty to eat. My son gained just about the same amount in that amount of time. I, of course, thought that was a lot, because I weighed 12 pounds at a year. Try not to worry!

E.

C.,

Congratulations on your baby! As far as her getting enough to eat, she will regulate how much milk you need to produce. If she is satisfied after feeding and not wanting more, she has gotten enough. You probably experienced some engorgement with the leaking that caused you to feel like you were producing more-- your baby will let you know if she needs more. I took Micronor for BC too, and it didn't affect my milk supply- but its a possibility. I would just continue to feed her on demand and if you feel like she's not gaining enough, just try to pump after every feeding or pick a feeding to pump after and then offer her the milk or you could just feed her longer if you don't want to give a bottle. Her weight gain sounds normal to me, all babies are different with how much they gain-- as long as she is not losing weight, she should be just fine. Hope this helps~

Molly

Listen to all the other posts and stop worrying! You're doing fine. Your baby is doing fine. Breastfed babies normally gain 5-7 oz/wk so yours is right on schedule. Just worry if she starts LOSING weight. Also - don't get obsessive and start weighing her all the time. My little one will go 1-2 weeks of no weight gain and then suddenly put on 3 weeks worth of weight in one week! So - don't worry. As long as you feed on cue and let her nurse all she wants, she'll be fine. Just enjoy being a momma! : )

Hi. My peditrician told me not to worry to much about weight gain as long as my son was healthly and was gaining. My son was always just barely on the charts when it came to his weight. but my peditrcian assured me he was okay because he was growing even though his weight gain was small. He told me to worry only if he was loosing weight. I breast fed as well and was often worried about that. But my son was fine. I wasn't able to pump much after 6 month's but I was assured that my milk supply was still there when my son would pop off and milk would drizzle down his chin. I also read alot about breast feeding and read that eating extra during the day will keep your supply going also. Right now, I don't think I would worry too much. Gaining 2 lbs at eight weeks was considered normal for my son. I think your daughter will be just fine.