AB is having a very hard time. His weight gain is not just slow, it is non-existent. His birth weight on 6/27 was 7 lbs, 9 oz. His discharge weight on 6/30 was 7 lbs, 2 oz, and he dropped to 7 lbs even a few days after that. This past Tuesday, he was still 7 lbs even. His pediatrician said we had until Friday to turn his weight around and then we were going to have to start talking about supplementing. We were sent to the lactation consultant immediately to create a plan for getting back on track.
My theory is that AB isn't getting enough of my hindmilk when he nurses. His stools have been more brown than yellow, with very few seeds. The LC suggested pumping for 5 minutes before each feeding to make sure AB gets the hindmilk sooner.
At Friday's ped. appointment, AB had only gained 1 oz. And the pediatrician said his jaundice looked worse. He sent us to the hospital to get another bilirubin check. He said if the level was 16 or above, he was going to seriously consider re-admitting AB to the NICU. It came back 17.1. I guess the ped. took pity on me, because he is giving us a chance over the weekend to treat AB at home with a bili blanket. It was delivered yesterday evening and we've been using it ever since (except for a couple of night-time feedings, which were too difficult to maneuver with the blanket).
We're also supplementing -- luckily, I had been pumping since the day after my milk came in, so I have a little stash in the freezer. I didn't want to start bottles for another couple of weeks, but I guess we will have to work on re-learning breastfeeding once AB gains weight and gets rid of his jaundice.
We go in tomorrow for another bilirubin check and I hope I'll be able to send out another update soon. It's hard for me to get online with everything going on. It is hard for KB to understand why Mommy and Daddy are so stressed out and why we are spending so much time with AB. We're trying to give both boys the attention they need but...it's tough.
I hope we don't have to keep up the bili blanket more than a couple of days.
All good thoughts are appreciated as we work on getting AB healthy.
I am hoping that, with weight gain and increasing strength, AB will get better at nursing and I can stop the pumping and supplementing. Somebody please tell me that's not wishful thinking.
2 comments:
It's not wishful thinking. You can do this. Rather than bottles, see if you can get a hold of an SNS. That way you're still getting nipple stimulation and your supply stays good. Also try block feeding to make sure he gets the hindmilk. Only nurse from one side for a two hour period.
Wishing you the best. If you need anything, you can call me.
Oh, bless your heart. I wish I had good advice for you. Maryam's advice sounds like good advice. Do you have the book by the La Leche League, "The Motherly Art of Breastfeeding"? It answers a ton of questions.
I did block feeding, too, with my kids. I would feed them almost non-stop for 2 hours every night before bed to help them sleep through the night. It helps them get the hind milk they need.
When the docs and nurses were trying to get me to supplement with Carter, my friend who was a LLL leader suggested a tube to use while nursing him, so that he still nurses, but gets extra supplementation. We didn't have to go down that route as I nursed Carter every hour or so while in the hospital. He peed all the time. That's what they were going for. He nursed so much that my milk came in while we were still in the hospital. I was amazed.
How often are you feeding him?
You can do this. He will get better.
I'm sending happy positive thoughts your way.
Hugs,
Karen
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