> suggests that normal breastfeeding produces recovery of weight
> loss by about
> the end of the first week. I agree with Laurie Wheeler that the downward
> trend of weight loss is troubling.
I guess I shouldn't have left out the baby was a sleepy baby, and upon
returning from the ped and calling it was found that baby was
sleeping/nursing 3-5 hours at a stretch since birth. Everytime the baby
nursed, though (prior to introducing bottle), there were all of the signs of
milk transfer (bm's, wet diaper, good suck/swallow) and the baby's latch was
fine. From everything she said, it indicated that all she really needed to
do was sit down and do nothing but wake baby to nurse much more frequently.
>
> With regard to 'nipple confusion'. The medical definition (Neifert,
> Lawrence, Seacat, J Peds, 1996) suggests that you can't call it
> confusion if
> it is, in reality, a baby with a feeding dysfunction who can't
> make bfg work
> in the first place. Nipple confusion refers to a baby who was feeding and
> gaining normally who loses ability AFTER bottles are introduced.
> This baby
> doesn't sound like he was ever feeding well or the weight loss
> wouldn't be a
> problem.
As I mentioned above, and I apologize for leaving it out of my original post
(I had a nursing baby demanding my attention and so was trying to hurry), is
that the baby just wasn't nursing frequently enough. However, after the
bottle, the baby would not latch on, period. All he would do was scream and
bop around on the nipple.
I do agree wholeheartedly that the most important thing is that baby eat.
There are clear indications for supplemental feeds (though I do *not* agree
that supplemental feeds = bottle), however the indication to me was baby not
being nursed frequently enough. I was frustrated because rather than
simply, perhaps, give a syringe or cup of formula and then giving orders to
nurse more and bring baby back tomorrow to check status, the ped simply said
"supplement and he doesn't need to nurse more than every 2-3 hours." I do
know this ped and she does give lip service to bf'ing, but her
"advice/orders" are always contra-bf'ing. I see more women fail bf'ing
under this ped than with any other. Her office will not post any free
bf'ing materials in the office (when I do leave some they get tossed out),
yet the formula ads abound.
I didn't see much extremely alarming in the baby's weight pattern by itself
because the baby had not been weighed since that two day discharge. Who is
to say that the baby, in the following days, didn't lose 4 or 5 more ounces
before beginning an upward trend to 7 lbs.? Perhaps because I'm not a
medical professional I don't understand these things, but I would have seen
this as possibly needing to be monitored daily (have her bring baby in
tomorrow after increasing nursing) to see if there was indeed any weight
gain or weight loss, before issuing orders to supplemental feed 2 oz. of
formula after every nursing. Perhaps I'm way off base, but I do feel it
harmful to dictate supplemental feeds (let alone the other instructions
about nursing the ped gave) simply with one weigh in and no other
indications of dehydration. Am I way off base in my thinking?????
Carrie, LLLL
--
Carrie Otterson
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Wired Contemporary Jewelry
- Original, handcrafted artisan jewelry
"Creating one-of-a-kind jewelry as unique as you are."
http://www.wiredjewelry.com
"If we are to attain real peace in this world, we will have to begin with
the children."
- Gandhi
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