Dream feed is the only 'proper' feed each day now. What to do?!

[VickyB20]

I've been quite worried today. My 7 month old DD had only 4 ozs ebm this morning then absolutely NO MILK AT ALL until bedtime when she bobbed on and off the breast for about twenty minutes, grumbling pretty much the whole time. I would guess she didn't have more than 3 or 4 ozs. Thankfully I still do a dream-feed, which normally goes down quite well, but I'm really worried now that she's not getting her pint a day and she's only 7 months old!! Should I cut down her food quantities? It's so hard to know what to do! Most of the advice just says, "Increase portion size to satisfy baby's appetite" but then also says to "ensure that baby gets at least a pint a day of milk" - well, that's easier said than done when breastfeeding! I gather a pint is about 15 ozs so she'll have to have a huge dream feed today to make it up to that.

Should I worry? She's very alert in herself, reaching all her milestones and has a little bit of a belly (not like the ff babes, of course!) and I'll get her weighed this week to check (she's generally hovered around the 30th percentile). Just feeling a little worried! I found bf so much easier before solids came into the equation! Also, if she does self-wean before age 1, I really don't want to give her formula but gather that cow's milk shouldn't be introduced till 1. Oh what to do!!

Thanks again for any help and advice.

Vicky
xx

[LucyA]

She may have just had one of those days, so don't worry too much yet!!
Do you do solids before bf? How much solids is she eating? Are you using milk in any of her solids (eg. making up cereal) because that counts too.
My ds is 7 months, and at the moment I bf and give solids about an hour later - although now we're on 3 meals a day I feel like I spend all day feeding him!! I'm not planning to switch to solids first for at least another month or so.

[daisymelan]

I too wonder what your feeding schedule looks like.  If you are concerned, make sure you offer milk first, then solids.  I too do solids near an hour after the milk. 

Let us know so we can see if we can help.

[VickyB20]

Great!  Thanks for your offers of help.  Before we started on solids (at 5 months), Ella was on a 4-hour EASY routine starting between 7 & 8 am.  I slotted in meals first at around 1pm, then at 9am and then around 5pm.  We are now on, approx:-

7:30   Milk
8:30   Breakfast (quinoa with fruits)
12:00 Lunch (rice w/ veg or chicken or salmon followed by yoghurt w/ fruit)

(Once she was having breakfast, she dropped the 11am feed, so I started offering milk after her lunch.  I got bitten in return for that offer!!)

2:30  Milk - this is the one she's started to refuse, which is worrying me!
4:00  Tea (much like lunch but rarely with dessert unless there's some left-overs from earlier in the day!)
6:30  Milk
10:30  Milk (dream feed)

In terms of quantities, I'm really not sure how I should measure it.  We mostly work in ice cubes, which are about 1/3 oz each (they're 3 abreast in my ice cube trays) and she probably has 25 cubes in a day plus about 100g fruity yoghurt.  So I guess that's about 8ozs plus the yog.  Most days she eats it all and I'm even wondering if I should feed her more food to satisfy her appetite but then my concerns about the milk always hold me back from doing that in case she has even less milk if I do that!

The one thing I'm sure of is that she's getting good quality food from all the food groups (my mum's a nutritionist so that helps!)

Thanks again!

I hope you've all enjoyed the Easter break.

Vicky
x

[daisymelan]

Hi Vicky,

Until 12 months, milk should be their #1 source of nutrition, so I think it's important you make sure she doesn't drop that feeding yet.  At that age, my son was getting 4 solid feedings of milk a day.  I think it should stay at 4 until closer to 9 or 10 months.  I really don't have any experience with what you are dealing with.  My son has never had troubles taking what I offered.  Some days his feeds would be shorter at different times, other days they would all be long. 

I am not sure exactly what to suggest, it doesn't seem to make sense to cut down her solid intake as babies need what they take by what I have been told and by intuition.  But I think you may have to try something to ensure she is getting all her milk. 

For some reason I keep concentrating on your df.  I just keep thinking that you are soon going to be dropping that one and your lo will then only be having 2 good feeds a day.  That is worrisome.

I wish I had more to add.  I really do.  Maybe try to introduce a nursing after her 1st nap just to see what happens and then you can always offer her lunch directly afterwards.  That will up it to 5 feeds for now, but you will see if anything changes.

Let me know what you are thinking.

{{{hugs}}}

We'll figure something out.

[RachelC]

Vicky,
I must say that I am right there with you.  Our day looks like this:

7 am bf
8:15 solids
11 am bf (a struggle, but every drop counts, right?)
12:15 solids (usually A LOT!)
3/3:30 bf (can be a struggle too)
5/5:30 solids
6:30/7 bf (sometimes not much)
9:30 df (we have been moving this out in order to phase it out, but since it's a really good feed I've been hesitant to let it go, but I don't know that dd would miss it at all)

It's so hard to know what they are getting with bfing.  I haven't had much luck pumping this time, so dd gets water with her cereals and I can't "see" what she gets in a bottle of EBM.  Good luck and if you figure anything out, let me know!

~Rachel

[LucyA]

Vicky,
Can you move lunch a little earlier? Will she have milk with her meals from a sippy or something? Can you put milk in any of her food - the rice or quinoa?
Is she teething? My ds doesn't like to bf so much when he's teething, but will take a bottle.
That's all I can think of for now...

[Shdef]

and has a little bit of a belly (not like the ff babes, of course!)

 


That hurt a bit

[VickyB20]

I'm so sorry Scott's Maw.  I REALLY didn't mean to hurt anyone's feeling.  It was meant as a silly joke but I guess a bad one.  Doh!  Please accept my apologies.

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions.  In terms of adding a milk feed after the morning nap, and/or moving lunch earlier, both would be tricky 'cos she tends to sleep from 10:30 till 12.  (And they give lunch at 12 at nursery so I'm a bit reluctant to mess around with that.)

I like the teething suggestion!  She definitely has been teething recently - drool is just dripping out of her mouth most of the time! - so perhaps that explains the recent boob phobia.

And I'll start expressing again when I feel the feed wasn't a 'big' one so that I can put milk in her quinoa and/or rice.  That's a great suggestion.

It's interesting to hear Rachel that you're having a similar issue with your dd.  They're pretty much the same age too.  Are you worrying about it?  Or is it just me? 

I like to feel that I'm trusting Ella's instincts and that she'll tell me if she needs more but I find it hard to stay in touch with that sometimes.

Thanks again everyone.

Vicky
xx

[Shdef]

Ach, it's alright I just wanted to breastfeed so badly after I had to stop due to the meds I had to take

And I really like the breastfeeding forum, I just don't like to hear and read all the time how much better breastfeeding is because I regret that I couldn't do it as long as I wanted...

[VickyB20]

Panic over!!!  She took 5 ozs of EBM from a bottle at nursery yesterday mid-afternoon and she had a good bf today mid-afternoon.  So I guess she was just having an odd few days!  Silly me to panic.  Thanks anyway for all your help.
Vicky
xx