Not Enough Milk

Shortly after Owen was born on a Wednesday morning, I snuggled him closely to my chest and offered him my breast. He took it immediately and eagerly. I remember we were connected that way for forty minutes... and I was so in awe and impressed. I so badly wanted to breastfeed and my little baby was on the same program. That night he cluster fed for hours and hours, and I sleepily obliged. It finally ceased maybe around 2am and we all slept until the doctors made rounds that morning. Aside from a bit of discomfort, breastfeeding went well in the hospital. I had lactation consultants see me, assess my holds, look at his latch, and give me loads of information. I got all positive feedback.

Five days after he was born, we had his first check up, and he was already 3oz above his birth-weight at 8lbs 7oz. They don't necessarily anticipate that happening until 2 weeks of age, but here we were at barely a week and he was soaring! We were breastfeeding superstars, and I loved it. Our next appointment was in one month.

In the days leading up to his appointment I grew nervous. I had this nagging feeling that he hadn't gained any weight. I remember distinctly a moment where I was feeding him, and while he was cradled in my arms I felt his tiny ribs. They seemed more prominent than before. His stools had also been watery, not seedy and yellow like I knew to expect.

At the pediatrician's office I undressed him and walked him to the scale. The weight that registered blew me away. Owen had actually lost weight. And not mere ounces... and entire pound. Owen was 7lbs 7oz. The nurse zeroed the scale and said, “No, put him back on.” I became tearful and felt the lump growing in my throat. I was so embarrassed  I know now that the nurse was only giving me and Owen the benefit of the doubt... but at the time I hated having to see that number twice. I was mortified.

In the examining room, in private, I swaddled him back up and tried to choke down the embarassment, shame, and guilt. I was blinking back tears. I remember thinking, “Devastated. That's how I feel. That's putting it lightly.” How could I let this happen to my baby?

The physician came in and spoke gently to me, and explained that she wanted me to supplement formula after my breastfeeding sessions. Owen was not getting enough milk from my breasts alone. As much as I didn't want to supplement, I accepted the recommendation without hesitation. My pride and my feelings about breastfeeding were far less important than the health of my son. I remember giving him that first bottle at home, and the vigor with which he took it. I cried the entire time. He was so hungry! How could I not know? I felt so unfit as a mother – so ashamed. 

In the weeks that came, I met with a lactation consultant. We developed a plan that would hopefully encourage my supply of breast milk. It involved taking six pills three times a day, and pumping after every single feeding, around the clock, for a week. I was so so dedicated, I promised I could do it, and I did. It was maybe my worst week postpartum – it was terribly hard. I think the worst part for me was pumping pumping pumping and never seeing more than a fraction of an ounce at the end of a pumping session. I equated the amount of milk I was pumping to my amount of self-worth. It was during that week I developed postpartum depression. 

I never felt an increase in my supply from the interventions I was prescribed, but I truly believe that my depression was a barrier to my supply increasing. Back at the lactation consultant's office, we developed a plan, the consultant, my husband and I. I was going to continue to breast and bottle feed until shortly before work when I would wean and we would exclusively formula feed.

On the ride home, I tearfully asked my husband if I'd disappointed him or let him down. After all – I wasn't just feeding my baby, this was our baby, and he'd wanted breastfeeding to be successful, too. He insisted that he wasn't – he knew I had done everything asked of me to try to get my supply back to where it should be. Moving forward we were making the best choice for us.

Only on FOX6: Is sharing a bed with your infant right or wrong?

Only on FOX6: Is sharing a bed with your infant right or wrong?

Can you and should you borrow or buy a used breast pump

The Expert answer From CNN Dr. Shu

Thanks for your question, and congratulations! Breast pumps are actually regulated by the FDA, and the party line is that personal pumps are designed for single users (kind of like a toothbrush), but hospital-grade ones may be used by multiple women.

Most breast pumps are made up of an "open system" where the breastmilk flows through the breast shields, tubing and collection containers, but milk particles may also come into contact with parts of the machine. Multi-user pumps are "closed systems," in which the milk cannot enter the machine itself, and the tubing and other pieces may simply be changed between users.

If you plan to rent a pump or buy or borrow a used one, it's best to be sure it is the closed-system kind. Although viruses such as HIV cannot survive on surfaces for more than a few hours, there are other germs that can live for several weeks or years, even on dry objects. While it is normal for a baby to be exposed to his own mother's germs, it's important to minimize any unnecessary contact with other viruses or bacteria.

For pricier items such as breast pumps, new parents may opt to put them on a gift registry or see if friends and family members can chip in donations toward the purchase. The pump may also be covered under certain insurance plans or if you have a health savings account or flexible spending account.

Your state health department or local WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) program may provide assistance as well; income eligibility requirements may apply. You could also consider a more affordable single or manual pump, although they are often less efficient than double electric ones.

Good luck!

Breastfeeding and Reduced Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

This is a very important  Study

Breastfeeding and Reduced Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: A Meta-analysis

1. Fern R. Hauck, MD, MS^a, 
2. John M. D. Thompson, PhD^b,
3. Kawai O. Tanabe, MPH^a, 
4. Rachel Y. Moon, MD^c,
5. Mechtild M. Vennemann, MD, PhD^d

+Author Affiliations

1. ^aDepartment of Family Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia;
2. ^bDepartment of Paediatrics; Child and Youth Health, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand;
3. ^cDivision of General Pediatrics and Community Health, Children's National Medical Center and George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC; and
4. ^dInstitute of Legal Medicine, University of Muenster, Muenster, Germany

ABSTRACT

Context: Benefits of breastfeeding include lower risk of postneonatal mortality. However, it is unclear whether breastfeeding specifically lowers sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) risk, because study results have been conflicting.

Objective: To perform a meta-analysis to measure the association between breastfeeding and SIDS.

Methods: We identified 288 studies with data on breastfeeding and SIDS through a Medline search (1966–2009), review articles, and meta-analyses. Twenty-four original case-control studies were identified that provided data on the relationship between breastfeeding and SIDS risk. Two teams of 2 reviewers evaluated study quality according to preset criteria; 6 studies were excluded, which resulted in 18 studies for analysis. Univariable and multivariable odds ratios were extracted. A summary odds ratio (SOR) was calculated for the odds ratios by using the fixed-effect and random-effect inverse-variance methods of meta-analysis. The Breslow-Day test for heterogeneity was performed.

Results: For infants who received any amount of breast milk for any duration, the univariable SOR was 0.40 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.35–0.44), and the multivariable SOR was 0.55 (95% CI: 0.44–0.69). For any breastfeeding at 2 months of age or older, the univariable SOR was 0.38 (95% CI: 0.27–0.54). The univariable SOR for exclusive breastfeeding of any duration was 0.27 (95% CI: 0.24–0.31).

Conclusions: Breastfeeding is protective against SIDS, and this effect is stronger when breastfeeding is exclusive. The recommendation to breastfeed infants should be included with other SIDS risk-reduction messages to both reduce the risk of SIDS and promote breastfeeding for its many other infant and maternal health benefits.

 Breastfeeding is protective against SIDS, and this effect is stronger when breastfeeding is exclusive. The recommendation to breastfeed infants should be included with other SIDS risk-reduction messages to both reduce the risk of SIDS and promote breastfeeding for its many other infant and maternal health benefits
.http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fpediatrics.aappublications.org%2Fcontent%2Fearly%2F2011%2F06%2F08%2Fpeds.2010-3000.abstract&h=8a8a5

THE EMOTION OF BREASTFEEDING

 When  breastfeeding is going well all is right with the world when its not  nothing feels right ask any breastfeeding mom.
How incredible is it to be the sole provider for  a  little ones full nutritional needs. WHAT RESPONSIBILITY What stress. What makes me think I can do this? I hear many moms say.  If your baby is skinny, its because you are breastfeeding, its fat its because your breastfeeding, if its a happy baby its because your breastfeeding, if its a crabby baby, well its because you are breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding Struggle to Triumph !

Sunday

Kelli Fifer

·                                 My Blissfulbabies Blog...

Hi Lavawn! Sorry this has taken me so long to finally get to you. Here is my story for your blogspot.


From Struggle to Triumph!

I gave birth to my third child, a little girl, on January 17, 2011 and that is when my REAL journey with breastfeeding begins. I chose to bottle feed my first born, a son. I THOUGHT that I would or should I say could nurse my second born, daughter. WRONG! Many nursing moms talk about how much easier breastfeeding is, how it is such a bonding experience and many more pluses. That’s why I was certain that I was going to give it a shot. I got ready for baby by buying all the baby things you need... including bottles- just in case. Then on September 14, 2007 Miley was born into this world. I had all the help with nursing while in the hospital... However, I feel I made my first mistake by allowing the nursery to supplement her with formula by bottle before Miley and I had even given nursing a full chance. When I went home 2 days later, like most, we had LOTS of visitors. This being my second child, I felt like I should have "just known" how to breastfeed my baby and not be shy about it. That was my second and probably my biggest mistake. Breastfeeding is a learning experience for BOTH mommy and baby. I was not feeding every 1-3 hours because I was too shy to excuse myself from a room full of company nor had I figured out how to manage a wiggly, screaming newborn while trying to throw a blanket over my shoulder AND get her to latch on now blinded by the blanket in that same room full of people...those bottles I had bought for those "just in case" times now were put to use. Within 2 weeks I decided that I should contact the Lactation Consultant at the hospital and hopefully she could help Miley and I get this whole breastfeeding thing down pact. 3 months later and numerous drives out to visit with her, herbal supplements, pumping and about 5 different methods of trying to get a now mostly bottle-fed baby to nurse ultimately had failed. I was sad about this. I felt I was robbed of the bonding experience, which I passed up on with my first-born, was now taken from me with my second-born because I was too shy and not determined to MAKE IT HAPPEN.

When I found out that I was pregnant with my 3rd, bottles were NOT an option... I didn't even buy them for a "just in case" moment... there weren’t going to be any of those. January 17, 2011 my third born, Kynlie, was welcomed into this world and she nursed like a pro IN A ROOM FULL of family and I could care less this time if anyone was offended. This was MY moment with MY baby and WE were BONDING!! Things I thought were going PERFECT in the hospital. Kynlie was teaching me what I thought I knew about breast-feeding. She was nursing every 1-2 hours and latched on for 15-30 min each side. She was having wet and dirty diapers. All was fine in my mind- or I thought. Two days later, her pediatrician came in and asked that I bring her back for a weight check in 5 days, she had went from 7#10 down to 7#4. We went home, she and I continued to figure out breastfeeding together, with or without people around. Day 5 came and we were going in for our weight check. She was now 6#14 and Dr. wasn’t happy about it at all. I was told that I HAD to give her formula. "Some moms just CANT breastfeed". I was devastated. Tears rolling down my face I looked at my husband and said "I'm a failure, I can’t give her the best... what’s wrong with me!?" That’s when instead of pulling into the store to buy formula and bottles... I decided that I WAS NOT giving up. My OB/GYN had mentioned that I needed to speak with Lavawn before I delivered after she heard what had happened with my first experience and I honestly just never got around to it. Well, I was going to meet her and I needed it to be ASAP. In fact, she got us in that day. I thought sore nipples and skin break down were normal for just starting to nurse- WRONG. Kynlie had been latching on wrong, my body wasn’t producing enough milk from the beginning and we needed to fix this. Lavawn had given us lots of information. Nursing, pumping, supplementation with formula- not from a bottle, herbal supplements.... and after about 1 month of meeting with her 1-2 a week, Kynlie was 1 pound heavier than her birth weight and all was going GREAT!!! I will say that I do need to take More Milk Plus capsules every now and again still, but I have a 14#12oz 4 month old strictly BREAST-FED baby and I can now say the bond between her and I is priceless. Knowing that I am still nourishing her, that I am giving her the best, the look on her face when she looks up at me and gives me a BIG MILKY smile is indescribable. It makes my heart melt each time. I have gotten over my fear of nursing in front of people... in fact, I nurse ANYWHRE! We have mastered the blanket over the shoulder, and baby latching on. Nursing Kynlie has been amazing. I don’t frown on bottle/formula fed babies... to each their own. I don’t regret choosing that for my first-born... I do regret not trying harder with my second-born... but the triumph from SUCCESSFULLY BREAST-FEEDING my third-born is breath taking. I owe this feeling to Lavawn, Kynlie and I would'nt be a success story without her help. If you’re determined, listen to Lavawn she will do all she can to help make YOU yet another success story. GOOD LUCK! 

Breastfeeding Its ok

I truly believe breastfeeding is one of the specialist parts of motherhood. I am very thankful to Lavawn for being such a blessing because she helped me overcome my fear and successfully breastfeed my son. I nursed my daughter, who is now almost years old. She seemed to take to it, but truly it was a rough start as I cried each time due to immense pain, cracked and bleeding nipples. I almost quit because I thought something must be wrong. I stumbled across an on-line community of breastfeeding mothers who encouraged me to stay the course and assured this was likely due to incorrect latch. Renewed with hope, I used ointment to help heal me and learned to correct my daughters latch. Within weeks, we were successfully nursing pain free and I cherish those sweet memories. By the way, as a newborn she had some tummy issues and our pediatrician told us to switch to formula. How unfortunate it is that even doctors remain uniformed about breastfeeding and offer little support in many cases. We switched pediatricians the next day!

Around 5 months old, I noticed a drop in my milk, possibly due to pumping and to a medication I had taken. I was advised to supplement. I trusted my pediatrician because I was so worried my daughter was not getting enough nutrition. I now know that was the kiss of death to our nursing. Over the course of the next fewer months, my supply continued to lessen and by 10 months, I had no milk left at all and she finished her first year on formula. I cried my eyes out, but Lavawn has helped me see that I should be proud of all that I did give her.

With my son, who is now 6 months old and still going strong, I had a fear of running out of milk. In fact, I was convinced that I did not have enough milk. When my son had nursing issues, I went to see Lavawn with my fears. Turns out, I had oversupply! See how our fears can really get to us? He was being choked for the downpour, hence the fussiness, and the abundance of foremilk caused gassy tummy aches, poor baby. I learned techniques and positions to help with this, and nursing become much easier for the two of us. Lavawn provided me with tips for pumping, tips to get my milk back up after a dip (such as when I was sick, or now before my menstrual cycle starts each month), so it has helped me not worry as much that I will lose my supply again. I pray that this baby gets nothing but breast milk, but if he doesn’t, I cherish this experience and am proud of what we accomplished together thus far.

It amazes me how many people in society do not support breastfeeding, who would have us hidden away in bathrooms to nurse if we must. That is why women like Lavawn are so important. She educates us and supports us; she helps us nourish our babies. To bond with my baby in such a natural way while providing such unmatched health benefits is incredible! I am forever grateful and will do my best to pay it forward.

P.S. I wrote this weeks ago, but of course lost the email to send it to, so I just got off the phone with Lavawn. I had a question, too, about changes ion my let down and in my sons nursing habits. Lavawn had lots of helpful, wonderful advice, but best of all, she told me “First of all, it’s ok.” My heart felt lighter immediately. I wonder if she knows how much those simple words mean to a mom just trying to do her best. It’s ok, mom, you and baby are ok. Sometimes, we all just need to hear this. 

Michelle's story of breastfeeding

My story of breast feeding begins with me being 38 and giving birth to my first child. When thinking of breast feeding I could not have imagined doing anything else. Why would you not use nature and God’s way of feeding your child? So in my mind I thought okay my pregnancy was bad, birth was worse so this has got to be easy right? WRONG! Breast feeding is not easy for everyone and therefore requires drive, stamina and heart. It started off where I had a hard time getting the colostrum out, but I chose to press it out and do the best I could and it ended up okay. Then I went home and thought things were going great. By about week three I could tell something was really wrong. My son wanted to eat every 20 minutes. I called Lavawn and went to see her she explained that he was not getting enough hind milk so I would need to do breast compressions. In the meantime I was expressing the extra milk I had so that my breasts would not be engorged and I was creating more problems. My baby had horrible stomach problems and reflux and he would only sleep for about 20 minutes at a time and was ALWAYS hungry. I had gone into excessive let down and my child’s colic and reflux got was because…I was OVER FEEDING him. (insert tons of tears and lack of confidence here) I went to see Lavawn again and I then had to start block feeding him every 4 hours. In the meantime before I went to see her I ended up with a blood blister on my nipple and it was VERY painful. I had to take antibiotics and then pump to get the milk out since I could not nurse him on that side for a couple of days. I kept pushing on though and ended up not giving up. After block feeding him I got to a point where he was getting the hindmilk, but not enough milk overall so now I had a different problem. I had to pump a little each time after I fed him to bring the milk supply back up and then of course it went back into excessive letdown. I am still breastfeeding and trying to tweak this so that my son gets what he needs. The moral of my story is nothing worth having is easy so I press on even though I still shed a tear here and there and know that I am doing what is best for my son. Remember when you want to give up there are others that understand and know that breastfeeding is NOT easy…at least for some of us. Get support and know that Lavawn will help you and she is the most caring person. She has a passion for breastfeeding and will give you confidence when you think you can no longer go on. I will not give up simply because everyone keeps telling me to and I know that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” 

I knew I wanted to breastfeed

My breastfeeding story begins the same way that (I think) a lot of peoples story begins. When I found out I was pregnant—I knew that I wanted to breastfeed. In fact, I couldn’t tell you why anyone wouldn’t breastfeed. I mean what kind of selfish mothers wouldn’t give their child the best food they could eat? Yes, I was that person—the judgmental person that judged (in their head) people that formula-fed their babies. I was judgmental because breastfeeding is easy, right?

Well, let me tell you right now—breastfeeding is NOT easy. And I will never judge anyone again. My little guy had a rough start, so the first 24 hours after he was born I had to pump and the nurses had to give him a bottle—this scared me (a lot), I didn’t know if he would be able to latch on correctly. When I was finally able to feed him—he latched on like a champ and I thought 2 things (1) my baby is a GENIUS and (2) I am so lucky. Things were able to go downhill from here (good news—they go uphill again).

First, I had sore nipples…like REALLY sore nipples (both of them had crazy scabs on them). It was extremely painful. Then, the Saturday after he was born, I found out that I had my FIRST breast infection. Breast infections are terrible—it feels like you have the flu (my fever spiked to 101 degrees in the middle of the night), and your breasts are on fire, AND they hurt horribly. Thankfully, I had an on-call midwife who got in touch with Lavawn and she was able to call in a prescription and tell me what to do to make it better. We also made an appointment for the following Monday to meet with Lavawn. The medication helped over the weekend, but my nipples were still in terrible pain. I felt like an awful mother, and I felt like a failure. Since this moment I have been able to talk to several other mothers who say the same thing (“I feel like I am failing my child”) and it’s nice to know that I’m not alone.

Monday brought me several important pieces of information. First, my son was a bit tongue-tied, which is what was causing the nipple pain. That meant, it wasn’t my fault—I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I also found out that I had oversupply, which meant that my little guy was jumping on and off the nipple all the time, further causing the sore nipples. He was getting too much milk, which caused him to gain an entire pound by his two week doctor’s appointment and a very gassy baby (it also caused me to have severely engorged breasts that REALLY hurt).

So, the infection was in my right breast, on Sunday my left breast started hurting terribly. This is the one where my little one had always had trouble on, there was also a lump in this one as well, which means another clogged duct. So, I called the Lavawn and made another appointment.

Lavawn and the nurse practitioner felt the lump, watched my little guy eat again and they decided that they thought it was an abscess. How do they treat an abscess? They have to do surgery and remove it. I was devastated, so I started crying in the room, like a crazy fool. Then, she said I needed to have an ultrasound, and I called and was able to go straight there. I had to get both a mammogram and an ultrasound. Thankfully, it wasn’t an abscess, which meant that it was another infection. I thought that things were getting better, but there is even more…because of the two infections that I had, my oversupply turned into UNDER-supply. My sweet little boy lost about 3.5 oz. This made me really sad and really upset., and even more like a failure.

On Lavawn’s suggestion I began taking two supplements (Blessed Thistle and Fenugreek) to increase my milk supply. That's right the milk supply that caused several clogged ducts, two infections, and the crazy day when they thought I had an abscess...that milk supply is now under-supply. I also began pumping during the day.

Honestly, I almost think that this was worse than the excruciating pain of the sore nipples and breast infections, because those didn't affect my little one—this does.

I went back to see Lavawn on Monday and (thank goodness) he had gain 4 ounces (PERFECT!). I am still continuing to struggle with breastfeeding, BUT it IS getting easier, MUCH, MUCH easier.

Without Lavawn’s help, I am 100% sure that I would have quit weeks ago. My advice to other mothers who are struggling would include two things (1) talk to someone who has breastfed (and SUCCEEDED!)—the first six weeks are supposed to be the most difficult, and the first three sometimes include pain, crying and fear. (2)GO TO A LACTATION CONSULTANT! Doctor’s are great, but a lactation consultant really understands and helps. A doctor told me to stop breastfeeding (followed that thought up by telling me that breastfed babies have a lower instance of cancer—that made me feel great); doctor’s told me a lot of wrong information—but Lavawn was there for me through everything—she never yelled at me when I called her on the weekends (yes, there was definitely more than one weekend), and was always patient and helpful. 

Lori's beautiful reasons to breastfeed !

Freezer Full Of Breast milk !

This is Lori's freezer with Erik

                                   Lori's freezer 10 1/2 yrs ago with Kayla (my 25.6 weeker preemie)

(a 14 cubic ft freezer jummed with BM)

Breastfeeding 4 kids, one preemie, two full terms and one with bilateral cleft lip and palate

My name is Lori and I am mother to 4 beautiful, breastfed babies. When I was pg with my oldest, we found out it was fraternal twins. My first thought was, I'll have to formula feed because I'm having twins. Thankfully my mother, who is an OB nurse, told me otherwise, & convinced me to breastfeed. Well, coincidentally, I lost one of the twins early on in the pregnancy. The remaining  twin was then born 14 weeks premature and spent 4.5 months in the NICU. I pumped for all those months, plus when she was 34 weeks gestation, I started nursing and was thankfully successful. I went in with this is the best thing for my preemie and once she started, OMG, the "bond, love, and other words that slip my mind right now" was so strong.  I pumped for a month after she came home(at night due to her being on an ng tube for 2 weeks at night to make sure she was getting enough). She nursed til she was 18 months old and stopped on her own. I cried the night my first born(my preemie) decided she didn't want to nurse any longer. My 2nd child, a son and full term nursed til he was 22 months when I had to stop him cold turkey because I found out I  was almost 3 months pregnant with #3. I was devastated that I was making him stop when he clearly didn’t want to, but because of me being considered high risk, I didn't want to take any chances in possibly causing a miscarriage that I had read could happen-causing premature labor.  My 3rd,a girl and also a Ft, nursed til she was 15 months old and quit on her own and I was heartbroken once again

My 4th baby is a different story. He was born with a bilateral cleft lip & palate. we did start out trying to breastfeed while he was in the NICU for 9 days (due to being a late "pretermer" as they called him and his bottom portion of his lungs were not fully developed) he did rather well, or so we all thought. He was latching on, he was sucking, but he wasn't getting enough, wasn't getting the hind milk and wasn't gaining weight. I was told he needed to be bottle fed. I was devastated-to say the least. I felt like a failure. Now understand, I produce lots of milk, my hubby refers to me as a dairy farm, but I wanted to breastfeed. I didn't want my son to be fed by a bottle even if it was my milk. I started into a depression, that was until I met Lavawn. She was determined to help us out. We came to the conclusion that my son was only getting fore milk before he'd get tired and quit nursing and that is why he wasn't gaining weight. We worked a plan where I would pump the fore milk, nurse him as long as he would nurse with the hind milk present and then finish with the bottle and then pump. It started working, except my son had realized that it was easier to take from the bottle, so his nursing started to dwindle. He will still nurse about 5-10 minutes depending on the time of day and the atmosphere around him. If it's calm and relaxing, he'll nurse more. I have come to the understanding that he may not nurse exclusively like the rest of my babies, but he still is getting the best milk possible, mine. And the times that he will lay and nurse, I cherish every single second, because he is our last. So no matter what your situation is, there is hope in your baby getting the best they can get from you, your milk! Don't give up, you're baby will thank you later in life for it.

Breastfeeding twins Nurse through it. From Wendy one of my heroes with twins

When you think of what your body can do, WOW, how awesome. I nursed my 6 year old for 6 weeks, and I nursed a set of twins for 6 months! The first 6 weeks was the roughest, I wish I would have stuck with it longer for my daughter. The best advise that I received, and I received it from Lavawn, was nurse throught it. I was nursing my son when I looked down and saw blood all over his new little face, as well as my entire breast. I had a cracked nipple that didn't have time to be cracked, but I had to nurse through it. I then had a blocked milk duct, very painful, I was ready to give up. Nurse through it, she says! I used a heating pad, massaged it, and nursed through the discomfort, but it went away without medication, I believe because I showed it the attention it needed. You have to remember to drink enough, eat enough, and get enough vitamins so the babies are taken care of, as well as yourself. I have a hard time listening to Mom's that use every excuse in the book why they don't or didn't nurse. Your body will let you do this. Your milk will come. When that baby starts looking up at you while you are feeding, goodness, it makes all of the extra time you put into this worth it. YOU are responsible for sustaining their life. YOU are nourishing this little person. YOU, right now, are their world. Your heart and mind know that this is the best thing  for these babies, don't let it go to waste!

Breastfeeding ! Strong bond between my son my mother and I

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Welcome": 

I was not only lucky enough to see a lactation consultant, but she was also my mom. My son took to it like a champ and her advice was there every step of the way. He has yet to get sick and is very healthy which I am sure is greatly in part to being a breast fed baby. There were trials to over come and with the help of my bw we worked through any problems that came our way. It has made a strong bond between my son, my mother, and I. 

Breastfeeding a baby with Downs Syndrome it can be done

......AND IT CAN BE DONE! 

The odds were stacked against me, but I was determined to make it happen.  When I was 18 weeks pregnant, I received the news that my baby was going to be born with Down Syndrome.  Like any other parent, I wanted to give him the best chance at life!  My daughter was a formula baby and she did great.  But, for some reason I found myself entertaining the idea of trying to breastfeed Colin.  So I attended one of Lavawn's breastfeeding classes - probably one of the best decisions I had EVER made.  When I left that evening, I felt like it was something I could tackle.  I knew that it would be a challenge (babies with DS often have "feeding" issues and BFing "issues.").  I also was concerned about my own health.  Having Rheumatoid Arthritis, I was warned by my doctors that after birth I could easily slip into a nasty flare that would cause me to need to go back onto my medications.

But knowledge is power!  And Lavawn provided me with enough knowledge that I knew I had the power to attempt this.

Colin was born on 9-21-10 and immediately latched on like a CHAMP!  The nurses in the hospital were great helping us, as were the LC's in the hopsital.  Colin and I made our first trip into Lavawn when he was a day shy of 1 week old.  She helped us work through a few issues and we seemed to be heading in a good direction.  The next few weeks were rough.  Colin wasn't gaining weight.  He would gain an ounce, then lose and ounce.  The pediatrician wasn't as supportive as I wanted her to be with my desire to BF Colin.  I felt like she wanted me to throw in the towel and formula feed, but I wasn't going to go there quite yet.  I would leave the ped's office feeling low and discouraged (and often in tears!), and Lavawn was always able to provide the perfect words and encouragement to make me feel like I could hang in there and keep it going.  I had read that many babies don't quite "get" how to breastfeed until they around 6 weeks old.  So, I told myself that I needed to hang in until he was AT LEAST 6 weeks old. 

Around 1.5 weeks, we had to introduce formula to supplement him.  I would breastfeed Colin, then using a foley cup give him another 1 oz of pumped breastmilk and formula.  The whole process took an hour and by the time I had pumped, I felt like it was time to start the whole process over again!  When he was 2.5 weeks old we finally introduced Colin to a bottle.  I remember sitting with Lavawn, feeding him that first bottle, and just crying.  I felt like such a failure!  I quickly realized I wasn't a failure - it was a matter of providing my baby with what he needed.  We introduced Colin to the nipple shield hoping that would help him transfer more milk.  Without the shield, he would lose too much of that precious milk that he needed!  The shield seemed to do the trick.  We got in a good pattern of breastfeeding with the shield, then taking a bottle of another 2-3 ounces after each feeding.  Finally, around 7 weeks old Colin FINALLY hit birthweight!  Eventually, the bi-weekly weight checks with Lavawn or the pediatrician slowly turned into every 2 weeks. 

So, Colin and I settled into our good pattern.....  Then the infection set in.  Mid-December I had a bacterial infection start that didn't want to clear up.  It took 3 rounds of 3 different antibiodics to FINALLY be gone by Mid-February.  I had a cracked nipple that wouldn't heal and led to bloody breastmilk.  I was put on a "pumping vacation" for 48 hours.  Everytime Colin would latch on the left side it was toe-curling pain.  But, again, we made it through (with Lavawn's support of course!!!).

I finally got to the point where I realized that Colin did better with bottles and I was able to monitor how much milk he was taking.  So the pump became my best friend....  But I was ok with that.

So where are we at today????  My 5 month old is still breastfeeding, and getting pumped breastmilk in a bottle.  I am back at work, so now he definately gets more bottles!  I aim to breastfeed him once a day, but that doesn't always happen.  I take advantage of the weekends to put him to breast more.  And I'm so proud of what he and I have both been through and where we're at today!  Babies with Down Syndrome CAN breastfeed and it's so beneficial for them!!  Colin is doing amazing, and I'm convinced that a large part of that is because he is breastfed. Throughout this whole process, I would never allow myself to quit on a bad day.  I set little goals.  Once I hit 6 weeks, I knew we could keep going!  My new goal was 2 months.  Right now, my goal is to continue until he is 6 months old, then re-evaluate.  But I know we will continue past that point.  I *hope* we continue past that point.  My long-term range is to continue pumping until he is 1 and continue breastfeed him as often as I can.  Stupid job, it gets in the way.

If Colin and I can make it work, anyone can make it work!!  And of course, none of this could have happened without Lavawn's love, support & help.  She's an amazing woman.  I tell her all the time that she's MY hero.  Colin and I wouldn't be where we are without her.

~Kelly

http://kelly-47piecestolove.blogspot.com/I Love this little man!