Lauren’s breastfeeding story.
My daughter Elvira was born by monitored delivery weighing 3.556kg. I started breast-feeding straight away and the midwife helped me hand express however the colostrum did not seem to be flowing. Elvira was latching well and I was happy that she would be receiving the colostrum she needed.
Elvira was next weighed roughly 36 hours following birth and had dropped 9% of her birth weight. I had an IV drip for fluid during the birth, often this fluid is transferred to the baby resulting in an inflated birth weight. I discussed this with the midwife however she dismissed it.
Elvira was latching and feeding well but I was very concerned with the weight loss so started hand expressing and cup feeding to monitor the milk she was receiving. By day 5 she had dropped 13% of her birth weight, we were sent to A&E immediately. The paediatrician took blood samples and all tests came back ok, Elvira was not dehydrated and her fontanel was not sunken. We had been recording Elviras nappies, feeding and sleeping patterns. In every way she seemed like a perfectly healthy happy baby. The paediatrician felt she was not sleeping enough to store fat from the milk. We were advised to give 30ml formula top ups after every feed to aid weight gain and to wake Elvira to feed 3hrs following the start of the previous feed.
The next 24 hours I stayed in bed doing skin to skin and my husband did the formula top ups. In 24 hours Elvira gained 130g! At week 3 a midwife advised I should start combination feeding with formula as Elvira still hadn't regained her birth weight. I left crying, feeling that I was starving my baby and not giving her the best start in life. Before pregnancy my breasts were an A cup and I started doubting my supply due to the size of my breasts. What I didn't realise was the formula top ups were reducing my milk supply, preventing Elvira from encouraging more milk.
It took 3 1/2 weeks for Elvira to regain her birth weight. During this time I was obsessed with tracking her feeds and sleeps. I was constantly searching online for answers, changing my diet to include lactation increasing foods. I found myself looking at chubby babies wondering why my baby was not gaining and what I was doing wrong. Elvira had changed from our calm, content baby to being fussy and arching at the breast, crying during feeds and screaming uncontrollably from 6-10pm every evening (witching hour)
At week 5 I contacted the lactation specialist Carol Goddard. Carol confirmed that Elvira had a good latch and fed well. She calculated Elvira was gaining on average 25g per day since birth (not as bad as I thought) rather than 28g per day. She advised I start pumping to increase my supply and use breast compressions to encourage Elvira to take the hind milk (the fattier milk that comes later in the feed) before offering the other breast. I had to continue to wake Elvira every 3 hours to feed and not to let her sleep longer than 5 hours.
Very quickly Elvira stated gaining 30g per day however was still arching and crying. I cut out cows milk, only having goat and sheep milk. This improved Elviras wind and fussiness. At week 8 I cut out all dairy including goat and sheep milk and by week 10 I felt she was back to her happy self.
Elvira is now 15 weeks and gaining 200g per week. She is a very happy content baby and sleeping well. She is much stronger so her feeds don't take long for her to receive the milk she needs. I am so happy we persevered with breastfeeding as its so rewarding. My favourite feed is in the evenings when she likes to have a chat, smiley and giggly as she drinks.
What I would do differently next time and some advice to expecting mums.
1. Take a baby moon for the first 2 weeks. Stay at home and bond with your baby.
2. Hand express prior birth, storing colostrum in small syringes.
3. Trust your breasts will provide the right amount of milk for your baby.
4. Use a breast pump to increase supply if your baby is not gaining well.
5. Use a sling if your baby isn't sleeping well or has excessive wind.
Helpful Links and contacts:
Carol Goddard Lactation Specialist
www.henry.org.uk - Lactation Specialist Majorie from the Langthorn Clinic in Leyton
Breastfeeding Support UK - Facebook Group
