Breast feeding and weight gain

I haven’t had osteopath or tongue tie but everything else you’ve said is exactly the same as me even down to the weights being EXACTLY the same, that’s so weird! I’ve hated feeling like I’m not doing everything I can because of the weight and having to go back to the clinic every 2 weeks for him not to have gained much again. It all feels very judgy! Feel free to send me a message if you need to chat to someone in the same boat!

I really feel for you. I’ve had pretty much the same experience. Problems latching, pain when feeding, undiagnosed tongue tie that I had to get a private lactation consultant to diagnose, cranial osteopathy. Now I feel like I’m in the worst of all worlds. My supply dropped as a result of the issues latching, countless appointments to check LO’s weight gain (she’s 11 weeks), and I’m in this cycle of breastfeeding, pumping constantly, bottle feeding expressed milk and formula. LO has recently gone through another leap and forgotten how to use her tongue to latch, so I’m back to square one. I know what you’re going through and it’s a nightmare. Are you topping up with expressed milk/formula? Have you been told to? Fed is best, so whatever you have to do, but it’s an awful situation. I’d also recommend a private consultation to diagnose tongue tie, as the NHS are extremely weird about it

I had the health visitor coming yesterday and I am exactly in the same boat

Honestly could have written a lot of this myself! We are yet to be assessed for lip/tongue tie but it has now been mentioned she may have one. I always feel so disheartened when the health visitor sees her and she's not 100% happy with her weight gain 😔

I also wanted to jump in to say you're not alone - my son has also only gained 1kg since birth (weighed 4kg at our 8 week check). We've also had issues with using his tongue to latch as his teeth have been ripping into the flesh and causing pain there. Some HVs have been a bit judgey but I had one at my last weight check who had three daughters of her own. She said that we could be introducing food in 2-4 months and you'll have new hurdles. She said honestly, your worries will change and you'll be surprised when you look back and remember how stressed out you were.

This makes me sad reading all these messages as it sounds like you’ve not had much support but just pressure with weight checks! To OP, have you had support from an infant feeding team/breastfeeding charity etc rather than just HV to check latch and give advice about supply and switching sides etc? Or is seeing a private lactation consultant an option?

If it helps to have someone to relate to, my LG is 11 weeks, born 4kg and still not 5kg. We had issues with tongue tie and losing weight and still don’t have the breastfeeding in a stable place, it’s one hell of a journey! She dropped from 90somwthing percentile to 19th. We are using nipple shields on some feeds and I’m having to express and top her up with breast milk and sometimes formula, due to her losing weight. Have the appointments and get all the advice but try not to worry too much. Get some more advice from a lactation specialist it could be something simple.

It’s refreshing to read others have the same journey!

So I've had the same issue, I now top up formula after every feed during the day and try to last him out 3 hours between each boob feed. This allows my breasts to fully refill between feeds so that when he feeds he isn't working too hard to get the milk and it has been working a treat. That plus pumping after each feed during the day plus taking fenugreek. He is 100% less fussy now. He is due to have his tongue tie cut which they originally said at 2 weeks he was a 6 on the tabby scale which meant he didn't meet criteria to have it cut reassessed this week at 10 weeks and it's now a 5 so now can get it cut. They have said his fussiness and lack of weight gain will be down to ineffective feeding. If nips are still hurting at this point I would say he's not feeding effectively. Definitely reach out to infant feeding team/breastfeeding support. But ideally topping up would be the first step and pumping to keep supply going

I really struggled with BF for the first 11 weeks. Trouble with latching and painful nipples made me dread every single feed. I think the baby could sense my stress and it was just a vicious cycle and he lost a lot of his birth weight. I had to feed and then give a top up feed of expressed milk for a couple of weeks. As for the nipple pain, I tried so many different things but then I found this boob balm from bubs&boobs, it honestly saved my breastfeeding journey as I was about to give up. The lansinoh cream did nothing for the pain, it made it worse because babe just licked it off before he latched which was painful in itself! We took him to an osteopath for a cranio sacral therapy and he said he had tension down his left side and to do some gentle stretches with his legs to help and that seemed to work. As the baby gets bigger it gets easier, just keep persevering, you’re doing a great job mama 🩷