Breastfeeding for preemie

[Dani]

Hello everyone.
We just had a lovely little boy on January 7th. He was 29 weeks and is
currently residing at the NICU at our hospital. He's doing very well so
far and I am trying my best to give him as much breast milk as
possible. He is currently getting food through a tube and I am pumping
every three hours or so at . With any luck he will be able to start
breast feeding in a few weeks. I have a few questions though.
How much milk supply should I have right now? Currently I seem to be
producing about 1/2 to 1oz per breast at each try. Should I have more
than that or when should I see it increase?

How long should I pump at each try? I've been pumping for 15 minutes
every 3 hours or so. The nurses at the NICU said to pump until just a
few drops of breast milk are coming out but it doesn't seem like I ever
have a steady stream. It doesn't seem like I'm out after 15 minutes
but I do need to sleep and do other things than pump.

Are there things I could be doing to increase my milk supply? It isn't
really a huge issue right now because he's only getting a few cc's at
every feed but the goal is to be way ahead of him so that when he comes
home we're at the same level. I know that I need to eat well and get
rest but this is a little difficult right now as we are running back
and forth from the hospital. My husband is trying to be there for
mornign feeds 9am and noon and I am coming in for the 3pm and 6pm
feeds. It seems like I should have a lot of time to rest but we're a
half hour from the hospital and I'm trying to wake up and pump every 3
hours at night

I've talked to several people at the hospital about this and they all
say that I'm doing fine. I'm just getting frustrated and it seems to
me like this is one of the few things that I can do to help my baby and
I want to do the best that I can.
Thanks for the help
Dani

[Anne Rogers]

the one thing that strikes me is are you getting a let down? when I pump, if
I get a let down my milk shoots out and I pump until it slows down, but if I
try pumping and don't get a let down that's when I get half an ounce.

Sorry to say this, but pumping for half an hour every 2 hrs is a more
realistic timetable. Where do you pump? is there a room off the nicu? even
if you could spend half an hour at it a couple of times a day it would make
a difference from always being just 15 minutes.

Also, how long are you going overnight? if you are still doing every 3hrs,
you might consider stretching one of those spaces to 4hrs, could make a
signigicant difference, that extra hour of uninteruppted sleep. Or, if you
are sleeping though, you need to get up at least once.

You don't say what pump you are using, you really need to be using a
hospital grade double electric breast pump if you aren't already.

Hope this helps

Anne

[Workingmom]

Dani skrev:
> Hello everyone.
> We just had a lovely little boy on January 7th. He was 29 weeks and is
> currently residing at the NICU at our hospital. He's doing very well so
> far and I am trying my best to give him as much breast milk as
> possible. He is currently getting food through a tube and I am pumping
> every three hours or so at . With any luck he will be able to start
> breast feeding in a few weeks. I have a few questions though.
> How much milk supply should I have right now? Currently I seem to be
> producing about 1/2 to 1oz per breast at each try. Should I have more
> than that or when should I see it increase?
>
> How long should I pump at each try? I've been pumping for 15 minutes
> every 3 hours or so. The nurses at the NICU said to pump until just a
> few drops of breast milk are coming out but it doesn't seem like I ever
> have a steady stream. It doesn't seem like I'm out after 15 minutes
> but I do need to sleep and do other things than pump.
>
> Are there things I could be doing to increase my milk supply? It isn't
> really a huge issue right now because he's only getting a few cc's at
> every feed but the goal is to be way ahead of him so that when he comes
> home we're at the same level. I know that I need to eat well and get
> rest but this is a little difficult right now as we are running back
> and forth from the hospital. My husband is trying to be there for
> mornign feeds 9am and noon and I am coming in for the 3pm and 6pm
> feeds. It seems like I should have a lot of time to rest but we're a
> half hour from the hospital and I'm trying to wake up and pump every 3
> hours at night
>
> I've talked to several people at the hospital about this and they all
> say that I'm doing fine. I'm just getting frustrated and it seems to
> me like this is one of the few things that I can do to help my baby and
> I want to do the best that I can.
> Thanks for the help
> Dani
>

Maybe your milk hasn't come in yet. Have you had the cannon ball feeling
in your breasts? When it does it may be easier to pump larger amounts of BM.

Tine, Denmark

[[email protected]]

Dani > writes:

: Are there things I could be doing to increase my milk supply? It isn't
: really a huge issue right now because he's only getting a few cc's at
: every feed but the goal is to be way ahead of him so that when he comes
: home we're at the same level. I know that I need to eat well and get
: rest but this is a little difficult right now as we are running back
: and forth from the hospital. My husband is trying to be there for
: mornign feeds 9am and noon and I am coming in for the 3pm and 6pm
: feeds. It seems like I should have a lot of time to rest but we're a
: half hour from the hospital and I'm trying to wake up and pump every 3
: hours at night

You don't say how old he is. If it is less than 5 days, you milk may
not have come in yet. I can't remember if it takes longer to come in
for a preemie. Also, I posted some things to increase your supply in
m.k.p. I won't repeat it here. Since you have to spend so much time
going back and forth to and from the hospital, you should be sleeping
when you are not travelling or pumping (easy for me to say!)

Good luck,
Larry

[PattyMomVA]

"Dani" wrote:
> Hello everyone.
> We just had a lovely little boy on January 7th. He was 29 weeks and is
> currently residing at the NICU at our hospital. He's doing very well so
> far and I am trying my best to give him as much breast milk as
> possible. He is currently getting food through a tube and I am pumping
> every three hours or so at . With any luck he will be able to start
> breast feeding in a few weeks. I have a few questions though.
> How much milk supply should I have right now? Currently I seem to be
> producing about 1/2 to 1oz per breast at each try. Should I have more
> than that or when should I see it increase?
>
> How long should I pump at each try? I've been pumping for 15 minutes
> every 3 hours or so. The nurses at the NICU said to pump until just a
> few drops of breast milk are coming out but it doesn't seem like I ever
> have a steady stream. It doesn't seem like I'm out after 15 minutes
> but I do need to sleep and do other things than pump.
>
> Are there things I could be doing to increase my milk supply? It isn't
> really a huge issue right now because he's only getting a few cc's at
> every feed but the goal is to be way ahead of him so that when he comes
> home we're at the same level. I know that I need to eat well and get
> rest but this is a little difficult right now as we are running back
> and forth from the hospital. My husband is trying to be there for
> mornign feeds 9am and noon and I am coming in for the 3pm and 6pm
> feeds. It seems like I should have a lot of time to rest but we're a
> half hour from the hospital and I'm trying to wake up and pump every 3
> hours at night
>
> I've talked to several people at the hospital about this and they all
> say that I'm doing fine. I'm just getting frustrated and it seems to
> me like this is one of the few things that I can do to help my baby and
> I want to do the best that I can.
> Thanks for the help
> Dani

Congratulations on your baby! Sounds like you're doing well.

Kellymom.com always has great information:

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/maintainsupply-pump.html

HTH,
-Patty, mom of 1+2

[Anne Rogers]

> You don't say how old he is. If it is less than 5 days, you milk may
> not have come in yet. I can't remember if it takes longer to come in
> for a preemie. Also, I posted some things to increase your supply in
> m.k.p. I won't repeat it here. Since you have to spend so much time
> going back and forth to and from the hospital, you should be sleeping
> when you are not travelling or pumping (easy for me to say!)

born 7th January, so 6 days, I do recall though from Donna Metler that even
with a not so preemie baby her milk only came in gradually.

Cheers

Anne

[Donna Metler]

First of all, are you actually working with a Lactation consultant, or just
the nurses? It makes a big difference. And, if you're working with an LC,
are they experienced with pumping and with preemie issues?

Second, you're probably getting exactly the amount and type of milk you
should be getting now. I got colostrum or really yellow milk until my
daughter was about 2 months old-and she was only 5-6 weeks premature (but
had other issues which precluded nursing). And, until my milk fully came in,
it was little drips at a time, which was extremely frustrating. Your son is
even younger, so you probably won't get much at a time, and you may not get
a full, hard letdown for awhile.

Third, what pump are you using? You should have a double, hospital grade
pump. I'd suggest getting at least two sets of pump parts-tubes, valves,
bottles, or more so you never get to the hospital without them or leave them
at the hospital when you need them at home. You should have a pump at home
as well as know where you can pump in the hospital as well. Most insurance
companies will pay for rental for a baby in NICU.

My LC suggested 10-15 minutes of double pumping every 2 hours, with one 4
hour sleep period-and not to look at what I'd produced or whether I was
still dripping, because at first, you do get little drips all the time (and
hopefully, when your baby is able to do kangaroo care, he'll eat pretty much
all of the time, too), and then increase time as your nipples and body are
used to it and as you space out pumping cycles. She also suggested the
lowest pressure setting, but highest speed initially. Once I got to the
point of getting a true letdown, I could lower the pumping speed and still
get a good output, then sometimes get a second letdown by dialing up. I was
also able to increase the pump pressure as I got more experienced.

Good luck!


--
Donna DeVore Metler
Orff Music Specialist/Kindermusik
Mother to Angel Brian Anthony 1/1/2002, 22 weeks, severe PE/HELLP
And Allison Joy, 11/25/04 (35 weeks, PIH, Pre-term labor)

[Dani]

I'm not sure if I'm really getting a letdown. It just seems like I
drip at the same rate the whole time.
Also, I have a medela lactina at home and an ameda purely yours that
someone lent me. I have been primarily using the lactina. At the
hospital, I am using the medela classic. They are all doubles.

[Dani]

He's six days old. He's so perfect. But I don't know when my milk is
supposed to come in, I don't know how to tell the difference between
colostrom and milk.

[Dani]

Thank you so much for all the information. I have been working mostly
with the nurses but I am meeting with an LC on Monday. I did meet wiht
one initially when I was still in the hospital but I had only pumped
once or so. I think that I need to give it more time and just keep at
it. Today especially, I was just so frustrated. It seems like it's the
only thing that I can concretely do for him and I just want to do it
well. We started doing some kangaroo care yesterday although he had to
go back under the bili lights today so they limited it. Hopefully that
will help out. Thanks again.
Dani

[Dani]

Thanks so much. That website seems to have a lot of useful
information!

Dani

[[email protected]]

Donna Metler wrote:

>
> My LC suggested 10-15 minutes of double pumping every 2 hours, with one 4
> hour sleep period-and not to look at what I'd produced or whether I was
> still dripping, because at first, you do get little drips all the time (and
> hopefully, when your baby is able to do kangaroo care, he'll eat pretty much
> all of the time, too), and then increase time as your nipples and body are
> used to it and as you space out pumping cycles. She also suggested the
> lowest pressure setting, but highest speed initially. Once I got to the
> point of getting a true letdown, I could lower the pumping speed and still
> get a good output, then sometimes get a second letdown by dialing up. I was
> also able to increase the pump pressure as I got more experienced.

My IBCLC suggested half an hour every three hours, and I didn't let
down at all until I was maxed on pump pressure, so the OP should play
with the settings.

I should also note that I *never* got good at letting down for the pump
whereas you did, so my advice on pumping should be taken with a large
helping of salt!

--
C, mama to three year old nursling

[Anne Rogers]

> I'm not sure if I'm really getting a letdown. It just seems like I
> drip at the same rate the whole time.
> Also, I have a medela lactina at home and an ameda purely yours that
> someone lent me. I have been primarily using the lactina. At the
> hospital, I am using the medela classic. They are all doubles.

those are excellent pumps, it does sound like you are not getting a true let
down, but then I suspect that may well be related to the prematurity of your
baby and gradually as you continue to pump and tell your body you need milk
it will happen.

When you are pumping, do you have a picture of your baby and relax and think
about her?

Anne

[Anne Rogers]

> He's six days old. He's so perfect. But I don't know when my milk is
> supposed to come in, I don't know how to tell the difference between
> colostrom and milk.

breast milk looks like any other milk when it is freshly pumped, colostrum
is semi see through, more yellow and is thick and sticky

Anne

[Me Myself and I]

Pumping is like breastfeeding in that it takes practice. As long as you get
some milk out each time you will slowly get better as your milk comes in.
With my DD1 I pumped very very little and didn't get to BF her till she was
6 days old but I managed to get back to fully breastfeeding her but it took
me a long time because I hadn't been pumping regularly enough.

With DD2 I was more experienced with the pump and my milk supply was much
much better even though she was earlier that DD1. One thing I will mention
is that at the hospital I was at we were encouraged to pump every 2 or 3
hours (choose which interval you want and stick to it) and also to pump
until you get a certain amount don't just pump for a certain amount of time.
We were advised that in the first week to get 25ml each side each time for a
total of 50ml a pumping session, and from the third week to get 50ml from
each side each time for a total of 100ml a pumping session. What I found
good about doing it this way is that you can guarantee that you will get
this amount each time because your body gets used to producing that amount
of milk ready. When you need to increase your supply then during the second
week you pump 30ml each side per session for a day then the next day 35ml
etc. I know it sounds complicated but it isn't and you really know where
you are with your supply. Also because you know how many ml you baby is on
per hour or bolus feed (depending on feeding method) then at least you will
know if you are ahead of her whilst getting your supply established.

FWIW I never had much luck with hospital grade pumps and did better with my
isis hand pump. Every women is different and some pumps just work better
with some then others. Have a chat to some of the others Mum's in the
pumping room at the NICU and see who gets on better with what.

One last tip :) is have a big bottle of water with you while travelling to
the hospital and drink out of it continually on your journey. This is great
because you need to keep fluid intake up but it's hard to find the time to
drink lots when you are rushing around. Babies in NICU take a lot out of
you and any way you can save time leaving you more time with baby is good :)

Take care


--
Pip

My girls :
DD2 Abby - 8 weeks early now 11 months and cruising the furniture.
DD1 Jasmine - 5 weeks early now 3.75 yrs favourite saying "I'm a big girl
cause I go to school Kindy"

"Inside me is a skinny women screaming to get out........but I can normally
keep the b*tch quiet with cookies"

--
"Dani" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Hello everyone.
> We just had a lovely little boy on January 7th. He was 29 weeks and is
> currently residing at the NICU at our hospital. He's doing very well so
> far and I am trying my best to give him as much breast milk as
> possible. He is currently getting food through a tube and I am pumping
> every three hours or so at . With any luck he will be able to start
> breast feeding in a few weeks. I have a few questions though.
> How much milk supply should I have right now? Currently I seem to be
> producing about 1/2 to 1oz per breast at each try. Should I have more
> than that or when should I see it increase?
>
> How long should I pump at each try? I've been pumping for 15 minutes
> every 3 hours or so. The nurses at the NICU said to pump until just a
> few drops of breast milk are coming out but it doesn't seem like I ever
> have a steady stream. It doesn't seem like I'm out after 15 minutes
> but I do need to sleep and do other things than pump.
>
> Are there things I could be doing to increase my milk supply? It isn't
> really a huge issue right now because he's only getting a few cc's at
> every feed but the goal is to be way ahead of him so that when he comes
> home we're at the same level. I know that I need to eat well and get
> rest but this is a little difficult right now as we are running back
> and forth from the hospital. My husband is trying to be there for
> mornign feeds 9am and noon and I am coming in for the 3pm and 6pm
> feeds. It seems like I should have a lot of time to rest but we're a
> half hour from the hospital and I'm trying to wake up and pump every 3
> hours at night
>
> I've talked to several people at the hospital about this and they all
> say that I'm doing fine. I'm just getting frustrated and it seems to
> me like this is one of the few things that I can do to help my baby and
> I want to do the best that I can.
> Thanks for the help
> Dani
>

[[email protected]]

Me Myself and I wrote:

> We were advised that in the first week to get 25ml each side each time for a
> total of 50ml a pumping session, and from the third week to get 50ml from
> each side each time for a total of 100ml a pumping session. What I found
> good about doing it this way is that you can guarantee that you will get
> this amount each time because your body gets used to producing that amount
> of milk ready.

Except for there's pump resistance. I maxed out at 40 ml combined and
then dropped steadily for a few weeks straight to 25 ml combined, and
that was every three hours around the clock with a Medela Lactina for
the first week and a half, at which point I started taking a longer
break at night. I tried pumping longer, playing with the settings,
pumping while nursing on the other side, changing pumps, etc etc etc ad
nauseum...

--
C, mama to three year old nursling

[Dani]

Thanks. I think I may try that or at least pay more attention to it. I
seem to be getting between 1oz to 11/2 oz on each side when I pump and
I try to do it every 2-3 hrs. I've been trying not to stretch it out
except at night ( and even then I'm only going 4 hrs) but I've been
having trouble coordinating it with driving into the hospital and then
when I'm there I just hate to leave him. I don't mean that I haven't
been, but it's hard to leave him for a half hour to pump when I know we
have to leave in 40 minutes. Anyway thanks for the advice and I will
try everything I can to help out our little guy
Dani

[Me Myself and I]

Oh I know what you mean, I hated having to leave DD2 to pump because I knew
it would take me 45 mins and I had to leave in an hour to get DD1. Even
though I was in the milking room (as we premmie Mothers called it :) ) next
door to the NICU I hated being away from her. But you will have to look at
what feeding schedule they have your daughter on and figure out a routine
around that schedule. Then you will know when you should be doing what :)
and drink when you are pumping so that's one less thing to worry about too.

I found that being tired and lack of sleep was more detrimental to my milk
supply than having a bigger gap between pumping. And before anyone jumps on
this, yes I know if baby was at home you would be getting up feed more times
in the night, but a premmie in hospital is very tiring because of all the
travelling and rushing around, not to mention the last thing you need is to
have a car accident because you are too tired to drive. Even if you just
have a 4 hour break through the night it's better than no break at all.

I have just had a look back and I am pasting below the schedule that I had
with Abby (DD2)

5am Get up and express milk
7am Get take DD1 to my Mum's, I go to hospital (30 min drive)
8am Do Abby's cares and then express milk
9am Go home (sometimes I stayed and didn't go home till after 12 midday
feed)
12 Back at hospital for cares and express milk
1pm Go home and pick up DD1 on way
4pm Back to hospital do cares and express meanwhile DH has finished work and
picks up DD1
5pm DH comes to hospital bringing DD1 for a visit
6pm Go home with DD1 leaving DH to visit on his own with DD2.
8pm Express milk
11pm Express milk

This schedule then changed to me BF her during the day and being topped up
with a tube feed, until when she was 3 weeks old she was able to have 3, 4
hourly day feeds from me without having to be topped up. Then I was allowed
to take her home.

Well I think that's more than enough for me. If you are still reading go
and put your feet up for 10 mins before you do anything else :)

Take care

--
Pip

My girls :
DD2 Abby - 8 weeks early now 11 months and cruising the furniture.
DD1 Jasmine - 5 weeks early now 3.75 yrs favourite saying "I'm a big girl
cause I go to school Kindy"

"Inside me is a skinny women screaming to get out........but I can normally
keep the b*tch quiet with cookies"

--
"Dani" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Thanks. I think I may try that or at least pay more attention to it. I
> seem to be getting between 1oz to 11/2 oz on each side when I pump and
> I try to do it every 2-3 hrs. I've been trying not to stretch it out
> except at night ( and even then I'm only going 4 hrs) but I've been
> having trouble coordinating it with driving into the hospital and then
> when I'm there I just hate to leave him. I don't mean that I haven't
> been, but it's hard to leave him for a half hour to pump when I know we
> have to leave in 40 minutes. Anyway thanks for the advice and I will
> try everything I can to help out our little guy
> Dani
>

[Anne Rogers]

possibly a silly question, but is there any reason you can't express in the
NICU? I understand the modesty issue, but if that is the only one, then a
huge shirt (borrow one from your DH) can solve a lot of problems, or
consider a whisperwear. I'd have thought there was a good chance, that if
you had some time of kangeroo care, then stayed with the baby to express it
might work rather better.

Cheers

Anne

[Me Myself and I]

At the hospital I was at you could pump sitting next to your baby if you had
a hand pump (which I had) but all the other women there used the hospital
pumps so have to use the "milk room" In terms of privacy each incubator has
a curtain that you can pull around yourself which I did a couple of times :)

--
Pip

My girls :
DD2 Abby - 8 weeks early now 11 months and cruising the furniture.
DD1 Jasmine - 5 weeks early now 3.75 yrs favourite saying "I'm a big girl
cause I go to school Kindy"

"Inside me is a skinny women screaming to get out........but I can normally
keep the b*tch quiet with cookies"

--
"Anne Rogers" > wrote in message
...
> possibly a silly question, but is there any reason you can't express in
> the NICU? I understand the modesty issue, but if that is the only one,
> then a huge shirt (borrow one from your DH) can solve a lot of problems,
> or consider a whisperwear. I'd have thought there was a good chance, that
> if you had some time of kangeroo care, then stayed with the baby to
> express it might work rather better.
>
> Cheers
>
> Anne
>

[Donna Metler]

"Dani" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Thanks. I think I may try that or at least pay more attention to it. I
> seem to be getting between 1oz to 11/2 oz on each side when I pump and
> I try to do it every 2-3 hrs. I've been trying not to stretch it out
> except at night ( and even then I'm only going 4 hrs) but I've been
> having trouble coordinating it with driving into the hospital and then
> when I'm there I just hate to leave him. I don't mean that I haven't
> been, but it's hard to leave him for a half hour to pump when I know we
> have to leave in 40 minutes. Anyway thanks for the advice and I will
> try everything I can to help out our little guy
> Dani
>
Honestly, that's probably all he needs right now. My little one only took
about 1 oz at a feeding (every 2 hours) at 1 week old, and she was a young
35 weeker.

As far as missing seeing him in order to pump, is the layout such that you
could take the pump in with you, and at least spend time in the room with
your baby? Nurses will have seen it before, and actually being with him
would probably help your letdown.

[[email protected]]

Anne Rogers wrote:
> possibly a silly question, but is there any reason you can't express in the
> NICU? I understand the modesty issue, but if that is the only one, then a
> huge shirt (borrow one from your DH) can solve a lot of problems, or
> consider a whisperwear. I'd have thought there was a good chance, that if
> you had some time of kangeroo care, then stayed with the baby to express it
> might work rather better.

My NICU issued the Medela Lactina. You could do manual pumping with
the manual pump the Lactina turns into, or you could bring your own
manual pump, but the "milking room" was down the hall from the pods.
Still in the NICU, but a ways down the hall.

--
C, mama to three year old nursling

[Jess]

> wrote in message
oups.com...
> My NICU issued the Medela Lactina. You could do manual pumping with
> the manual pump the Lactina turns into, or you could bring your own
> manual pump, but the "milking room" was down the hall from the pods.
> Still in the NICU, but a ways down the hall.

The hospital down the road either had the private areas in the back, or
there were actual rooms across the hall. I used the areas in the back when
we were working with the LC.

Jess

[Donna Metler]

> wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> Anne Rogers wrote:
> > possibly a silly question, but is there any reason you can't express in
the
> > NICU? I understand the modesty issue, but if that is the only one, then
a
> > huge shirt (borrow one from your DH) can solve a lot of problems, or
> > consider a whisperwear. I'd have thought there was a good chance, that
if
> > you had some time of kangeroo care, then stayed with the baby to express
it
> > might work rather better.
>
> My NICU issued the Medela Lactina. You could do manual pumping with
> the manual pump the Lactina turns into, or you could bring your own
> manual pump, but the "milking room" was down the hall from the pods.
> Still in the NICU, but a ways down the hall.
Couldn't you plug in a Lactina somewhere? I think that if I had to go down
the hall and be separated from my baby, I'd either plug the thing in or get
the power pack. Requiring moms to separate from their babies more than
absolutely required, or to use a hand pump when you're having to pump every
2 hours seems like an active way to discourage pumping and breastmilk
feeding.

[[email protected]]

Donna Metler wrote:
> > wrote in message
> oups.com...
> >
> > My NICU issued the Medela Lactina. You could do manual pumping with
> > the manual pump the Lactina turns into, or you could bring your own
> > manual pump, but the "milking room" was down the hall from the pods.
> > Still in the NICU, but a ways down the hall.
>
> Couldn't you plug in a Lactina somewhere? I think that if I had to go down
> the hall and be separated from my baby, I'd either plug the thing in or get
> the power pack. Requiring moms to separate from their babies more than
> absolutely required, or to use a hand pump when you're having to pump every
> 2 hours seems like an active way to discourage pumping and breastmilk
> feeding.

I suppose you might have been able to. I was still in the hospital
myself for virtually the entire time DS was in NICU, and I was on mag
for most of it as well, so I wasn't around to see him much for the
first several days. So I had the pump in my room, which was bolted on
to a rolling stand which brought it up to the level of a hospital bed,
and then I'd grab the pump parts and put them in a plastic bag and get
in the wheelchair/ get my walker and hobble off to the NICU and use
their pumps, which were also bolted to stands in the "milking room."
Since I was already holding the IV stand with my mag in it, it never
occured to me to roll the pump too.

For the last two days he was in NICU I was discharged, but they put me
up in one of the NICU's "nesting rooms" so I was always right down the
hall from him and across the hall from the pumping rooms as well.
(They told me that if they hadn't been able to get one of the nesting
rooms for me they wouldn't have been willing to discharge me and that
they would prefer that I stay under fairly close observation -- I
hadn't started diuresing yet and still had really high bps and they
were worried about postpartum seizures.) Although I couldn't do much
in the way of kangaroo care because he was too jaundiced, and they kept
telling me to go back to my room and sleep since the lights weren't the
best thing for my eyes, I *was* able to feed him every three hours and
see an IBCLC a couple of times a day and I didn't have to commute to
the hospital. At the time I was having to start a letdown manually
before latching DS on; he was alll about the milk and easily
frustrated.

And after he was discharged was when I rented a hospital-grade pump and
for the first time had access to one that wasn't bolted to a 3' pipe!

--
C, mama to three year old nursling

[Joybelle]

> wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> Anne Rogers wrote:
> > possibly a silly question, but is there any reason you can't express in
the
> > NICU? I understand the modesty issue, but if that is the only one, then
a
> > huge shirt (borrow one from your DH) can solve a lot of problems, or
> > consider a whisperwear. I'd have thought there was a good chance, that
if
> > you had some time of kangeroo care, then stayed with the baby to express
it
> > might work rather better.
>
> My NICU issued the Medela Lactina. You could do manual pumping with
> the manual pump the Lactina turns into, or you could bring your own
> manual pump, but the "milking room" was down the hall from the pods.
> Still in the NICU, but a ways down the hall.

Sounds JUST like the hospital I had my son at. He was in the NICU, and the
actual "room" he was in wasn't very conducive to pumping. The milking room
was just down the hall, and we were issued the the Medela Lactina. I have
two now, since I forgot, or should I say didn't even think to, to bring my
pump when he was having surgery and wasn't able to nurse for quite a few
hours while in the PICU. Can I say, OUCH?? I finally found someone to get
me a pump, and I had to pump on the NICU floor. Since, I didn't know he was
going to have surgery that very day, I guess I'm not too stupid, but from
now on I will leave a manual pump in the car.


--
Joy

Rose 1-99
Iris 2-01
Spencer 3-03
Grant 9-05

[Joybelle]

"Donna Metler" > wrote in message
. ..

> Couldn't you plug in a Lactina somewhere? I think that if I had to go down
> the hall and be separated from my baby, I'd either plug the thing in or
get
> the power pack. Requiring moms to separate from their babies more than
> absolutely required, or to use a hand pump when you're having to pump
every
> 2 hours seems like an active way to discourage pumping and breastmilk
> feeding.

The NICU my son was in wasn't conducive to that at all. It may seem like
being separated would make things tough, but the pumping room was set up to
be comfy. The NICU was rows of babies and beeping monitors and quite a bit
of staff on hand. A curtain could be pulled around for privacy, but there
wasn't room. I was able to nurse my baby, so I didn't end up pumping much,
but they were very, very encouraging and helpful for pumping. It seemed
like quite a few mommies were utilizing the pump room, which I was very
happy to see.


--
Joy

Rose 1-99
Iris 2-01
Spencer 3-03
Grant 9-05

[[email protected]]

you suck

[Amy]

wrote:
> you suck

No, the BABY sucks. That part is really important. If the mother
sucks, it's just going to confuse and frustrate them both.

Stick around, you might learn something.

Amy

[Dani]

The NICU really isn't conducive to bringing in a pump with me. There
are six babies in each pod and it's pretty tight quarters with all the
equipment and nurses around. Also they don't have curtains for each
pod, they just bring in screens when we are doing kangaroo care or when
someone needs privacy. Currently I am trying the following schedule. My
husband is going in for the 9am and noon feedings and I am going in for
the 3pm and 6pm feedings. So I am pumping at about 8am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm
~8pm, 11pm, 2am and then I try to sleep until about 6am. I do have to
admit though that I am taking tonight off. Today was a particularly
hard day as we seem to have hit a down patch on the rollercoaster of
the NICU and I was told very specifically by the nursing staff to go
home and sleep tonight. I think that exhaustion is probably a larger
factor than anything else right now.
The "milk room" is only a hallway away and it is still in the NICU so
that you don't have to scrub out. I have been utilizing it during the 2
and 5 and sometimes 8pm schedule. I was supposed to talk to the LC from
the NICU today but with all the excitement we were unable to keep the
appointment
Thanks everyone for all the help.
Dani

[Me Myself and I]

Yep the NICU really is a place for 2 steps forward 1 step back. I actually
wrote a journal for the 3 weeks Abby was in the NICU and I am really glad I
did. During the quiet times when I was sitting next to her incubator I
would write about all the days happenings. If you find the time you might
like to try it. It's very therapeutic.

Take care

--
Pip
My girls :
DD1 Jasmine - 5 weeks early - 21 March 02 - "I'm a big girl cause I go to
school kindy"
DD2 Abby - 8 weeks early - 3 Feb 05 - and cruising the furniture.

"Inside me is a skinny women screaming to get out........but I can normally
keep the b*tch quiet with cookies"


--
"Dani" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> The NICU really isn't conducive to bringing in a pump with me. There
> are six babies in each pod and it's pretty tight quarters with all the
> equipment and nurses around. Also they don't have curtains for each
> pod, they just bring in screens when we are doing kangaroo care or when
> someone needs privacy. Currently I am trying the following schedule. My
> husband is going in for the 9am and noon feedings and I am going in for
> the 3pm and 6pm feedings. So I am pumping at about 8am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm
> ~8pm, 11pm, 2am and then I try to sleep until about 6am. I do have to
> admit though that I am taking tonight off. Today was a particularly
> hard day as we seem to have hit a down patch on the rollercoaster of
> the NICU and I was told very specifically by the nursing staff to go
> home and sleep tonight. I think that exhaustion is probably a larger
> factor than anything else right now.
> The "milk room" is only a hallway away and it is still in the NICU so
> that you don't have to scrub out. I have been utilizing it during the 2
> and 5 and sometimes 8pm schedule. I was supposed to talk to the LC from
> the NICU today but with all the excitement we were unable to keep the
> appointment
> Thanks everyone for all the help.
> Dani
>

[Dani]

We've been keeping a blog online to keep everyone in the family
notified of events. I've found it to be very helpful for me and it's
easier than having to call everyone and go through what's been going
on. Especially when things aren't going well, I just don't want to
talk to everyone . This makes it a little easier. I think I might try
a journal just for me though, it might help to just write everything
out.
Thanks
Dani
http://babymeehan.blogspot.com