What It’s Like To Learn Your Baby Has “Failure To Thrive”

Learning that my daughter was considered to have “failure to thrive” was absolutely horrible and brought on mummy guilt like nothing else.

I felt that I was the failure as my breast milk wasn’t enough to sustain my little girl and give her what she needed to grow. What I learned, though, is that the condition isn’t always as dire as it sounds, and there are things that can be done to rectify it.

My daughter went from being an eight-pound baby at birth to being in the fifth lowest percentile for height and weight by the time she was three months old. She had been slowly slipping down the charts, raising the eyebrow of our maternal and child health nurse.

What Does “Failure to Thrive” Mean?

The term “failure to thrive” to me sounded absolutely terrifying. The words actually sounded fatal! It is, however, a catch-all term used by medical professionals to describe infants who aren’t growing as quickly as expected. In fact, even though it has been recognised for more than a century, it doesn’t even have a clear definition. It’s just a sign that a child or baby may be undernourished.

Its Causes

Sometimes the cause is because the baby isn’t feeding properly or enough or getting the nutrients it needs from breast milk. Other times it can indicate there is a medical condition or illness.

Most babies will double their birth weight by the time they are four months old and then triple it by their first birthday. When these milestones aren’t met, health practitioners will want to examine why.

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