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Sodding lines :x

Need reassurance and/or advice :\(

Lily was born on the 50th centile and followed it well until about 10 weeks, but since then she's been dropping below it and now at 15 weeks is almost on the one below. She feeds well (I'm bf) and there are no problems like being frustrated after a feed, or feeling I don't produce enough milk.

The HV said there's no need to worry as she's clearly thriving, but if she's not picking up in a fortnight then we can think about introducing the odd formula feed or weaning. I don't feel she's ready for weaning yet and I really, really don't want to give her formula. Please don't ffeeders be offended, but bf is enormously important to me and I hate the thought of even giving her one ffeed a day. Obv I will do it if it means she stays healthy but I won't be happy about it.

I know the bloody lines are just a guideline etc etc and people have been bringing up babies for years without them - I've been on here myself reassuring others not to worry about them - but now it's me in this position I know how you all felt and you can't help but worry. I look at her and KNOW she's healthy, but I still can't help but feel I'm failing her, even though the HV was so nice and unworried :cry:

Replies

  • your not failing her, your giving her the best start. my hv said the charts are based on ff babies and next year they'll be putting charts in for bf babies. bloody charts
  • Well Frankie is ffed and still jumps between lines!! She was on 25th for ages, then jumped up to 50th for a few weeks and is now falling back on to 25th. In the last two weeks she has only put on 4oz when every other fortnight she has put on about 1lb. My HVs arent really bothered though.

    If i were you unless she is consistently losing weight i wouldnt worry, as long as she is putting it on. They all have growth spurts and slow downs. When you start weaning they tend to slow down anyway so not sure why that was suggested.
  • Arghhh, those bloody lines!!!! Barney was born on the 91st centile and by 17 weeks had dropped to nearly the 25th. Fortunately my hv team are really good and ffing was never suggested. They did seek advice from a feeding expert who said that if he continued to gain slowly they would rather wean early than introduce formula. In the end we started weaning at 19 weeks as he was ready and ever since his weight has gradually gone back up, he's on about the 75th centile now. If she's putting on some weight, and is happy and healthy then don't worry at all. The lines in the red book are based on ffed babies, bfed babies gain weight in a very different way and it is tottaly normal for them to slow down around the 3 months mark.
    xxx
  • the charts are based on ff babies who tend to put weight on more than bf babies so please try not to worry!!

    Ollie dropped from the 91st to the 9th within the space of a couple of months and was technically classed as a failure to thrive because of it, yet to look at him anyone with a brain could tell he wasnt - he was perfectly healthy.
    you dont have to introduce a ff or start to wean, just have to get your Hv to understand that bf babies gain less weight than ff babies tend to. there are charts for bf babies if you want to print one of those off and use that.

    www.kellymom.com should have them.....

    xxx
  • Lily is gorgeous and healthy and so cute! (Oscar say's hiimage ) He was born on the 50th too and jumped about a bit, and then leapt up to the 98th in about a week - i was accused of overfeeding him, so you just can't win! Now he's dropping again but still gaining weight so i'm happy - you know in your heart of hearts these charts are all crap, yet we live our lives by them, just trying to do the best for our lo's so don't beat yourself up, just listen to your instincts xx
  • Firstly remember that the advice that the HV offers is just that, advice, you are not compelled to follow it.

    As long as she is still gaining weight I wouldn't worry.

    I'm just wondering if she has had a cold or anything, cuz my lo always looses weight when he is ill.

    One more thing just keep an eye on is what you eat, I am sure you eat healthily anyway - but maybe try to eat 5 small meals with some protein at each meal and loads of fruit and veg just to make sure your milk is best gold top!
  • i dont think they worry unless LO has dropped 2 centiles. Tyler has an is below average but at his 8 month check my HV said hes happy, healthy and bang on all his targets so she wasnt concerned ay all.

    I'm sure your LO is fine hunnie.

    Im sure those red books were designed to make mums worry! xx
  • Ladies, you have made me feel so much better I'm almost in grateful tears here :\)

    Bedhead - my HV also said we'd prob be looking at weaning rather than ffeeding, so it's reassuring to hear that from another reliable source. I trust the HVs at my surgery so I'll go with what they say, unless I have really strong feelings about it.

    Is my chart still based on ff babies even if it says "breast from birth" at the top?
  • To be honest dropping one line doesn't seem like much at all. Lily is a gorgeous, plump-looking (in a good way) baby and is healthy and happy.

    I was with my NCT group this afternoon and we all breastfeed. Out of 7 of us 4 babies lost a lot of weight after birth and 1 ended up in hospital at 2 weeks. Since then all babies have been gaining weight and are healthy, however 3 babies (including Abby) dropped down from the line they were born on and struggled to get back again. Abby is now back on her line but only because I expressed in order to increase my supply and feed her bottles of EBM. The other two babies are still well below their lines and their mothers are naturally worried. However there is absolutely nothing wrong with them - I watched them play today and they grabbed, lifted their heads in tummy time, kicked, sung and smiled. The lines are just so that professionals can see a general trend but are no use on their own. BF babies often take a while to gain weight but evidence shows that they are likely to catch up later.

    I wouldn't set any deadlines on Lily's weight gain. She might not be back on her line by 17 weeks but unless she is showing other signs for weaning then I would leave it. She is a healthy, happy baby and your BM has done wonders for her and will continue to do so - remember it provides a lot more for her than just calories.

    Please don't stress too much about it (I know it's hard I was in tears when Abby dropped 2 lines at 3 weeks),

    H xx
  • hey,

    Horrid stupid charts!!!! I used to worry that Louise was putting on too much weight as she was plotting at a 45 degree angle, the hv's kept saying it will even out eventually and they were right. I'm sure that everyone of us has worried about those stupid charts at some point.

    If you dont want to give her a formula feed then dont, she may not like it anyway! I agree with Tyger about looking at what you eat, drinking whole milk is suposed to help your milk be fattier.

    But - as long as she is gaining some weight, not loosing it and she is happy then you should be happy.

    I did find that weaning made Louise's weight slow down.

    Lisa
  • Thank you Helen and Lisa - again, that is so reassuring. I think I just assumed that Lily's weight gain wouldn't cause any issues as she didn't drop down from her birth weight at all and has always had a good appetite.

    I think I will look more closely at my diet as you suggest, Tyger & Lisa, as I'm probably not being as careful to eat and drink well as I was in the early days.

    The only other thing I can think is that Lily's not getting all the hind milk she used to because she seems to get distracted lately when she's feeding and spends a lot of time trying to stare round the room and talk to me, and seems to forget she was in the middle of something!

    Thanks again for the reassurance and advice.
  • I have nothing to add to the fab advice that everyone here has given - I am certain lily is doing fine and you are doing a fab job of feedxing her - yes make sure you are eating and drinking enough and try and chill about it all - it will be fine and she is obv a very happy healthy lady with a lovely mummy and daddy! All she could wish for! image
  • I have nothing to add to the fab advice that everyone here has given - I am certain lily is doing fine and you are doing a fab job of feedxing her - yes make sure you are eating and drinking enough and try and chill about it all - it will be fine and she is obv a very happy healthy lady with a lovely mummy and daddy! All she could wish for! image
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