Oh, no! Weight Issues in 3 month old. Advice, please?

[@llli*texaslady22]

My Hannah Ruth just turned 3 months old.

When she was born (C-section) she had to stay in the hospital an extra 2 days because she wasn't gaining weight (duh! My milk wasn't in) and became dehydrated. We had to supplement with formula for the first 2 weeks only and she's been exclusively breastfed since.

She was born 7lb 10oz. She's gained slowly but steadily until 2 weeks ago. 2 weeks ago she was 10lb 15.5oz. Last week she was 10lb 15oz. Today she is 10lb 14.5oz.

She eats until satisfied; she never cries. I nurse on demand whenever she starts acting remotely hungry. We always finish one side before moving on to the next. I have over 100oz. of EBM in the freezer so I know it's not a supply issue (well, I don't THINK it is, anyway).

There's no way we could get her to drink more to supplement after she nurses; she already spits up AT LEAST 6x after a feeding. She constantly smells like yogurt she spits up so much. Today she napped for 2.5 hours after eating and then spit up 3x as soon as she woke up. What? Shouldn't that have been digested?

She's been sleeping through the night since she was 4 weeks old.

She also started crawling about 2 weeks ago and she's ALL OVER the place! Could she just be burning too many calories?

I don't know if I should call the pediatrician or not. She's not due for a well visit until late September (4 month visit). I know he'll just suggest formula What do I do to actually SOLVE this problem?

[@llli*melissawoods]

I wonder if there is not some reflux going on and the spitting up is affecting her weight? Another consideration is an allergy to something in your diet such as dairy. You could try an elim diet.
Just in doing some quick math in my head she has been gaining on the low side since birth. A pound a month comes out to a little less than 4 oz per week.

[@llli*melissawoods]

Wait I'm confused. How old is she? I thought you said 3 months, but then later it says 4 and she is crawling???

[@llli*auderey]

she's 3 months now, 4 month appt is late sept, right? but really - crawling at 3 months?? that's highly unusual, but weight does often level off with new physical milestones. it's just that doesn't usually happen till 8-9 months.

[@llli*texaslady22]

I REALLY appreciate you guys responding to my question. I truly do!

She was born May 21 so she'll be 4 months on Sept 21. She's not creeping on all 4s but she is belly crawling across the floor all over the place. She's extremely active! I've always wondered about reflux, too--our 2nd had reflux but he would cry and arch his back. Hannah Ruth is happy, smiling, sleeping well....she isn't bothered when she spits up, but she spits up nasty curdled-looking stuff very often.

Should I call the pediatrician? If I do, I know he'll just suggest formula. It's what he had us do in the hospital! I'm fairly sure she's getting enough milk, she's just spitting it up and burning off all the calories. I could try supplementing with express breast milk but when she's already spitting up so much filling her up MORE doesn't seem to make sense...

[@llli*auderey]

were all the weighs done on the same scale, naked? you're asking whether you should call the ped, which implies that these weights were not done at the ped's office ... what prompted you to take them, and where were they taken?

losing weight is not a good thing. is she thriving and meeting milestones otherwise?

how often is she nursing? tell us about the pattern there. how many times in 24 hours?

[@llli*rakoonz]

I was crawling (hands and knees not just army crawling) by my 4 mo appt, so though unusual, it's not impossible....
You say she's nursing on demand, but what if you just try to offer more often anyway, maybe getting in more short feeds would help with the spitting up, too ? Or try dreamfeeding at night (maybe right before you go to bed yourself, depending on your routine) if she's sleeping through.

[@llli*krysbe]

She sounds like a very very active baby. Although DD was older when she started army crawling, it did make her reflux worse and more noticeable because she spit up a lot more and since she was taking in more there was more to spit up. This may sound backwards, but your oversupply may actually be part of the problem. Often with over supply (100 EXTRA oz in 3 months, wow!!!) there is an overactive letdown. At 3 months, DD had some problems with this that caused really bad gas, which caused a lot of the spit up when combined with the acid reflux. I agree with the suggestion of offering more frequently (at worst she refuses until she's hungry), which will hopefully make sure that more stays overall. Good luck!

[@llli*still.here]

My daughter was also very active and was crawling by 4 months (walking by 8 so watch out! ) She's also been below 5th%ile since she was a month old (born at 25%ile). There's not a thing wrong with her, she is just very active and naturally petite.

Are you weighing her at home? Honestly, I wouldn't worry about calling the doc. She's sitting right at 5%ile, which is well within normal.

[@llli*texaslady22]

Thanks, all.

I've been weighing her at home--we bought a good quality scale when she was born and the doctor was worried about weight issues before my milk came in. It's always been accurate; I know she's not gaining too much because she STILL fits in most of her newborn clothes. I'm ready for her to grow just so I can see her in some new outfits!

The spitting up really is a problem--she will literally SOAK a blanket when she's on the floor. She'll spit up 8 times MINIMUM after a feed

Okay, would this work: I pump for a few minutes before I nurse her each time so she gets the thicker, higher-calorie stuff?

If not, what about this: I set an alarm and wake her up in the middle of the night to eat. She'll sleep 8pm - 5am most nights.

I'm just trying to fix this without formula!