5 day old hardly eats?

[lyssie28]

Hi, my little newborn is 5 days old and although after she was born had no problem latching and would stay on the breast for up to half an hour she will now only go on for 5 minutes or less (total feed time not per breast) and I was worried she wasn't getting enough so I started to pump the milk and try a bottle.  She will take maybe 1oz and this will be every 4 hours or so and even then I have to wake her for it.  Is this normal for her age? She weighs just under 7Ib (weighed today) and was 7Ib 8oz at birth. Thanks.

[weaver]

Congratulations on your lovely baby!

Have you spoken to a medical professional about this? I mean, a midwife, a breastfeeding counsellor or lactation consultant? It sounds unusual to me, tbh, at that age mine would be feeding for aaaaages.

Is she very sleepy? Has she any other unusual symptoms? I really would recommend talking to someone IRL as soon as you can. I don't want to alarm you. The only other time I have heard of similar behaviour, baby simply didn't have the energy to feed as she had a heart problem. It was fixable, as it was caught in time, but it was quite serious. Again, I don't want to alarm you but I would get her checked.

Her problem caused poor circulation, another symptom was purple feet.

[*Ali*]

I'd definitely speak with your midwife and don't let them discharge you until you have the feeding sorted. They can visit every day if you want them to. I'd also check out breastfeeding support groups you can drop into where there is a lactation consultant on hand. Your midwife should have details of those in your area.

What happens after 5 minutes? Is she falling asleep or does she just stop feeding? If she is falling asleep I would wake her up, maybe change her nappy mid-feed, sit her up, strip some layers off her if she is warm etc. You can also stroke her jaw or blow in her eyelids to help wake her while feeding.

If she is only taking a small amount then I would offer the breast at least every 2hrs. Newborns should be feeding at least 8-12 times in 24hrs according to La Leche Legue and the World Health Organisation. Sometimes in the early days a baby can be very sleepy and so it seems they are satisfied between feeds and go 3-4hrs but really that sleepiness is a sign that they have no energy because they are not feeding enough. So they need waking and putting to the breast frequently.

I'd definitely want to keep an eye on that weight loss as 6.7% (based on going from 7lb8 to 7lb)) in 5 days is top end of normal and if she keeps losing weight and it goes over 10% by the end of week one that could be cause for concern.

Hugs, it can be so worrying in those early days. Try not to worry but do be proactive in seeking support and professional help.

[lyssie28]

Thanks for the advice ladies.  She is a little better today and has taken a 4 oz bottle of breast milk.  She is a very sleepy baby it's very hard to wake her but I've been waking every 2-3 hours. She is staying awake for a bit longer at a time now.  I'll be seeing the midwife again on Saturday do you think 3 days is too long too wait? Maybe if she doesn't improve much for the rest of the day I'll ring them tomorrow morning. She has had plenty of wet nappies still and dirty nappies.

[*Ali*]

As long as she is feeding and having enough wet nappies I think you could wait until Saturday if you are happy to.  You can always call if anything changes.

Glad to hear you have been having more success getting more frequent feeds in. Let us know how she gets on. And enjoy the newborn snuggles! ☺

[lyssie28]

Hi again just thought I'd update. We managed to get her to eat more during feeds (took awhile to keep her awake!) and now she takes feeds every 2-3 hrs and has put her weight back on.  Slowly but still getting there😀 the hv couldn't believe that the midwives ignored her 10% loss on weight and has been helping me.  Thanks for your advise :-)

[*Ali*]

Sounds good. Many thanks for the update