Not drinking

i would go get it checked out, just because hes sleeping and not wanting to eat, or you could try a teat size up but my baby was born 3.6kg and shes now 4 months at 6kg. and she is in the 50-75th percentile. Your little one seems to gain normal weight 5.46kg. But it is worrying that he is not taking for feeds or while nappy is being changed i would say just have a doctor check him to be sure.

Personally if it was my little one, I'd push and be persistent with the doctor for help, advice, check ups. Maybe keep going back until they help? With my little one I also do nappy change and then skin to skin to wake him for feeds if needed, but it sounds like that's not working for you. It sounds like you are doing everything you can, even coming to peanut for advice. You shouldn't have to wait until he loses weight :( I hope it all works out for you x

I wonder if your little one has been checked for Jaundice? If very sleepy, this could well be the case. Even if not 'yellow' ask for them to be checked. My little one had jaundice and was doing all the things your baby is doing.

Secondly, the things you can try to encourage more feeding... forget the 5 min rule. Put baby on breast, do breast compressions to encourage more milk flow (you can google how to do this). If feeding slows down, put straight onto other breast. Weight gain is about quantity of milk they receive not getting hind milk(being on the breast for longer). Each time you switch breasts, you'll get a new let down and they will encourage drinking and get the quantity in.

I would also speak to a lactation consultant as they can advise on pumping to support increasing your supply (if needed).

I hope this helps.xx

Hi! I'm a breastfeeding counsellor. I'm more than happy to go over everything with you but will need more details.
Firstly , what your HV has said is not correct. A 5 minute feed *can* be a full feed, other babies feed for longer, but the fact that baby isn't putting on weight, is sleepy and isn't asking for milk are all red flags.
What was his early weight gain like?
What is nappy output like?
Feel free to message me!

Thank you all for your advice. Appreciate it so much and apologies for the delay in coming back to you.

I didn’t go a&e as I didn’t think it was an emergency case. He did feed at 4am so it wasn’t like he wasn’t having anything at all and there wasn’t any change in him later on. But thank you for suggesting

thank you. I will continue to get him weighed weekly but what other help can they give. All they tell me is to keep at it and everything is normal. I asked for prescribed formula but they said it’s for very premature babies not gaining weight and I can buy the formula anyway. Which I did. It didn’t make a difference.

he had jaundice when he was born but hasn’t been checked since. Didn’t realise it could have an impact so thank you for suggesting. Apart from that one night I messaged he has been waking up at night and feeding. Seems like it was a one off. I didn’t know about the breast compression and switching breasts. I have been trying that with

success so thank you. I’ve come to the conclusion I need to be more patient during feeds. When he lets go I should keep offering it to him or just burp him and try again. I’ve spoken to a lactation consultant and they did mention expressing. I express every now and again. I haven’t been consistent

thank you so much I may take you up on your offer. My baby is generally a very chill content baby hence why he doesn’t ask for milk often. He was born on the 9th percentile and dropped to the 2nd. He’s now in between the two. He’s going to be 5 months next week. Developmentally he’s fine. It’s just his weight that is low. He poops every day and he has wet nappies. Sometimes they are heavy sometimes they aren’t.

Update - I weighed him at home on Sunday and he was 5.6 approximately (we weighed him with clothes) so he gained weight. I went in today for the weekly weigh in and he was 5.58. So from Sunday till now he hasn’t gained weight. The HV said they will have ups and downs

and he’s still following his percentile so it’s ok. But surely he should gain weight every day. I remember when he was born they said 30g a day is average!! I’m conscious the first year is where they gain the most weight so there’s alot of pressure I feel on making sure I help him alot but I just don’t know whether I can. I’ve tried giving him a bottle of formula but he just won’t take it

I hear you're worried that he isn't gaining enough weight each day, but it's important not to weigh too often and look at the longer picture. It's advised to only weigh once a month in the first 6 months, fortnightly if there are concerns. From the chart. He appears to be following his centiles quite nicely. Lower centile babies will gain smaller amounts, the 30g a day is for a 50th centile baby. As long as he is steadily gaining and meeting all other milestones then you needn't worry.
As mentioned by Rhiannon too, breast compressions during feeds can help to get more milk into them in the same time, so definitely keep that up.
You're doing a great job. Just keep putting that baby to the boob. ❤️