I have always had a “motherly” instinct with Isla- I knew I was pregnant before I even missed my period. I knew I was having a girl. I knew she would come early. I knew she was sick. I have been spot on every time. So I should have listened to those same instincts after her GI appointment. I didn’t have a good feeling about this doctor from the moment he opened his mouth- I should have trusted my gut but I thought by not following his orders I would be risking my daughter’s health. So I formula fed Isla and stopped nursing all weekend- knowing that this was not what was best for her. I was a wreck all weekend- crying when she was hungry or ate, feeling guilty about breaking my “elimination breastfeeding diet”; I couldn’t even talk about it without tearing up. It felt so wrong- it was wrong. I just knew!
So I did some research online on different reputable website and reached out to a group I am a part of on a community board (Baby with Food Sensitivities/allergies) and I realized that I was right. So I made an appointment with Isla’s pediatrician- we had that appointment today.
This is what the pediatrician said: If I am willing to stay on this diet (which I totally don’t mind) then I can continue to breastfeed. They only sent me to the GI because they wanted him to see if there was anything else that was going on (we already knew about the food allergies and have been successfully dealing with it), not to re-diagnose and change the treatment plan. Also- the GI I saw in that particular practice is one that they do not recommend their patients to go see as he has had issues like this in the past. The pediatrician said Isla is gaining weight (albeit slowly) and she is obviously not malnourished and has great brain development and fine motor skills. They are more concerned with the fact that she is not getting any taller which could be a problem with her thyroid. They ordered a blood draw for 1- her thyroid and 2- an allergy screen. We did the thyroid one already today and will do the other on Thursday since it required too much blood to be drawn on a baby of her size in one day. We should get the results back in a couple days for the thyroid. The pediatrician also recommended that we start Isla on a daily probiotic mixed in a bottle to help her belly issues. She said that since Isla does not eat grains, meat or yogurt (due to her immature digestive system) that we should give her 2 ounces of formula in a “sippy cup” once a day as a snack. She also said that Isla nurses too often and not for long enough so she is only getting the high protein thinner foremilk- she is basically “snacking” and not emptying a breast hence not getting enough fatty hindmilk. So we will work on that. She reiterated that Isla should only have fruit and veggies (and possibly cheerios in month or two) until she is a year old.
Can I just say that I LOVE Isla’s pediatricians. They match my style of parenting to a T! They are so encouraging and helpful. I couldn’t be happier with them!
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