Last week I went in to see a newborn baby boy, several hours old who was nursing perfectly and already very frequently.  Checked position and congratulated mom and came back later in the day to say hello.  Baby had nursed several more times.  Mom was fine.  Baby was happy.  By the next morning baby had nursed all night, and the nurses had told mom countless times that he was just using her for a pacifier. In fact one nurse had brought in a pacifier and encouraged her to use it.  Mom was tired and said she felt like she might use it.  I encouraged her that baby really needed her milk to come in quickly, for some reason known only to him and God.  So we made a note for the crib saying NO PACIFIERS, and she decided to believe me and her baby.  The next morning I met with them before going home,and baby had indeed nursed again all night, but her milk was now beginning to come in.  Baby had lost 6 ounces since birth.  Called her the next day and baby was eating well, beginning to wet and stool frequently.  She called me  two days later. Baby was now 6 days old.  Had gone to checkup and baby had gained 15 ounces, was 9 ounces over birth weight!  I truly believe that babies who are ravenous at birth have begun to dehydrate a little and know they need the milk quickly.  It is difficult to explain this to nurses who want to protect mom from this demanding child.

I learned this from personal experience.  My homebirthed second child latched on at birth and didn't come up for air until she was 3 days old.  At five days of age she was a pound over birth weight. She was 16 days late, and I believe she had begun to lose weight in utero and came into the world ready to grow.  I am concerned that babies who come into the world heavily medicated and need to nurse well from birth are sometimes unable to do so. Therefore we begin to see babies who lose only a few ounces and begin to appear dehydrated,yet they don't seem to be able to summon up the energy to frequently nurse as it seems nature would tell them to do.  

Ann Calandro,RNC,IBCLC
Piedmont Medical Center
Rock Hill, SC

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