Visit with the GI doc. Ugh.

So today we took Parker to see a pediatric GI specialist.  I was so relieved they were able to get in so quickly, and had such high hopes that this doctor would be able tell us what was wrong so we could end this struggle!

I was totally let down.  I jokingly said when Parker was staring down the doctor that Parker was saying, "Can you tell them to stop feeding me?  I don't like it."  The doctor replied, "I just might."  I knew exactly what he was going to say.  So he started asking us about our family members heights, they weighed Parker (which according to their scale he had lost a couple of ounces) and measured his length.  Then he sat down with his laptop and plugged in some numbers.  He told us Parker's height to weight ratio was considered 50th percentile.  He then proceeded to tell us that babies do not always trend upwards in the amount of food they eat.  He said they will only take in the calories they need.  Because we are concentrating his formula (as we were when sent home from the NICU, and started up again when the feeding trouble started) he said he is probably getting TOO MUCH to eat.  How is 11-14 ounces a DAY too much for an 11lb baby?  I understand he is getting much more calories in those 11-14 ounces because of the rice and concentrated formula, but come on.  According to my calculations (I know I sound like a nerd) there is almost exactly 1 calorie in each mL of milk.  So his averaging of 330-440 mL's a day is that many calories.  The pediatrician has a formula for weight and how many calories the baby needs.  That came out to 429 calories a day.  That is what he needs to sustain.  So if he was taking his maximum end of the average, that is OK, right???  Well, I told the GI doctor that he chugs the first ounce, then we force an additional 1-2 ounces down him.  He told me to stop feeding him when he starts to resist.  "So it's OK if he only takes 4oz in a day?"  I asked.  He said that is fine.  I gave the doctor this go to hell look.  I am sure with time he will realize he needs more.  I just can't grasp the thought of my son deciding he only wants 4oz of food a day, what if he gets dehydrated, what if he catches some kind of bug and gets really sick because his body is weakened?  I sure hope this guy is right.

So we came home, and I thought to myself that I would not feed him until he really acted hungry.  He's barely taken 2oz since we've been home, a total of just under 6oz for the day.  Again, this doctor BETTER be right!