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to keep pumping or not?

Katie87 - 12:34am Dec 22, 2011 EST

Hello All- I have a 27 weeker and she had some of my milk at first but I would say after a month or two she began to not tolerate my milk due to reflux and I guess it being so thin. Now she is on Enfamil AR formula and does great with it. She still has reflux but not quite as bad as this is a thicker formula. My dilemma is should I just dry my milk up? I am renting a pump and only pumping just enough to keep my milk in because I ran out of freezer space. I think I have about six storage bags filled with bottles of milk. I figured I could use it later if it is still good to mix with cereal for her maybe. I have always heard breastfeeding is better for her and will keep her from getting sick so much. I feel guilty and a little scared to stop pumping but I do not see her tolerating anything but the thicker formulas for a while. Any advice is appreciated as I cannot get a straight answer from ANYONE in the NICU and it may be because they just do not know as every baby is different.

(older msg: 5)

Mary'sMommy - Mar 27, 2012 6:47 pm (#6 Total: 8)

Hello, I wanted to share my breastfeeding story with the hope that it may help another mom. My daughter, Mary, was born at 34 weeks with a heart defect. She would latch on ok, but she would almost always fall asleep. I too was told how important it was to keep trying, that breast milk was the best. So, that is what I did and after we got home and she wasn't maintaining her weight we discovered that it was just too much work for her to breastfeed. I started pumping and my husband and I would feed her my breast milk from a bottle. This worked so much better for Mary and she started to put on weight. I actually had a lactation consultant tell me that pumping and feeding from a bottle wasn't the best thing to do. She made me feel guilty, like I was doing Mary a big disservice. Yes, Mary and I didn't get the bonding that comes with breastfeeding, but she just couldn't do it. I wanted her to have breast milk, so I did what I had to do. I agree with the other moms in that it is a personal decision whether to breastfeed and/or pump or formula feed. Babies grow whether they get breast milk or formula. The best advice I can give is to decide what is best for you and your baby and don't let anyone make you feel guilty for it!
Jennifer

liz loschinskey - Mar 27, 2012 7:49 pm (#7 Total: 8)

I love my kids!

Mary's mommy, hi and welcome to SYS! Thanks for sharing!

I chuckled a little while reading this, remembering how awkward the lactation consultant and some of the nurses would make me feel after I would pump for 40 minutes and come back with 4-5 cc's. 3 months after birth, they were still telling me try longer, you can do it, drink water, stop stressing...blah blah blah. I even went as far as going on Reglan to help produce milk...still nothing.

My boobs just stopped working, I couldn't control it.

I agree with you, decide what is best for you and don't let anyone make you feel differently.

Love and Light,
Liz

Ally_Alex_Alivia's_mom - Mar 29, 2012 2:15 am (#8 Total: 8)

Mary's mommy - Welcome and thanks for sharing. I'm glad that you could find what worked for you and follow what you believed in. I had to pump with my first while she was in the NICU for a month. After that long, it just became routine and I continued it after she came home. Its definitely something that is different for everyone.
Hugs
Chris

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