My daughter is starving herself, and we're going crazy

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1

I don’t know what to do anymore. We’ve seen countless doctors, had a hospital stay, and consulted with speech therapists, gastroenterologists, and nutritionists. Yet, she still refuses to eat.

She only takes in about 13-16 oz a day, which is far from enough for a 3-month-old. Despite all the advice, she just won’t eat more.

During her hospital stay, she started gaining weight and feeding well, but once we left, even with fortified formula, she regressed and has been getting worse. The hospital found no physical issues other than failure to thrive.

I suspect it’s a bottle aversion, but overcoming that requires trusting your baby, which is incredibly difficult. I’m following Rowena’s book, but it’s just a book, not a doctor. Some feeds have improved, but today she’s only had about 13 oz, which isn’t enough for a healthy baby.

The doctors are monitoring her and said we weren’t in panic mode yet, but that was before this recent drop in feeds. Watching her seemingly starve while trying to address a possible bottle aversion (or maybe reflux) is heartbreaking. I had a major breakdown tonight. I don’t know if I should stick with this program or increase her sleep feeds to ensure she gets enough calories.

I never imagined feeding a baby could be this hard. Watching her struggle to eat is the worst experience, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. It feels endless, and every day is filled with worry and attempts to create the perfect feeding environment.

I guess this is just a rant. I’m struggling to keep my 12-week-old alive, and it’s tearing me apart.

2

My LO stopped eating entirely. She drank 5 oz each day unless she was resting or I rocked her while feeding. It was heartbreaking. It was a severe bottle aversion caused by parental pressure and reflux. She started taking reflux medications, and I followed Rowena’s instructions exactly, and it changed her life. She started eating a lot more and became really chubby. I wish you luck, but I wouldn’t give up on the book in my opinion. It works (if it is an aversion).

3

Have you tried changing bottles or nipples if you are not breastfeeding? My three-month-old struggled to eat and failed to thrive. We haven’t totally corrected it because of other concerns, but the bottle and nipple adjustment helped her get back on track, and she now eats quickly. I hope for the best.

4

I agree. Maybe if she only eats x oz at a time, make the nipple size larger so she can get more oz during those times?

5

Is the formula giving her pain? My friend’s baby was not gaining weight and was practically plummeting down the growth charts. When they transferred him to the hypoallergic formula, he gained weight and returned to the 25th percentile. They suspect that dairy is the culprit.

6

That is what we thought and are trying with. She’s currently on alimentum, but we may go full breakdown next. However, it does not taste really delicious, and if we have a bottle aversion, it may exacerbate the problem, so we are cautious to try it.

It’s so strange; some days we’re sure it’s a physical issue, like a milk protein allergy, and other days we’re certain it’s developmental. She was feeding cheerfully around three days ago, but not too much. Today she was fussing and acting as if we were feeding her lava. So we don’t know if she’s in pain or just frustrated/stressed/angry, because why would she be in pain during some feeds but not others?

7

My friend’s baby refused the alimentum from the can (because to flavor), but he would accept the ready-to-feed alimentum! Perhaps try that? Also, I’ve heard some people add non-alcoholic vanilla to necote to improve the taste.