I am getting so close! So close. I have started questioning if I have enough "stuff".....burp clothes, blankets, diapers, outfits.....I am most definitely going overboard at this point.
Last week my cervix was still thick and closed. No action down there. Tomorrow I have another appt. Babies are measuring nice and plump :)
I really really want to breastfeed these babies - but wow, it is tough to find successful accounts - if anyone knows of a blog or anything please let me know. I have found a FB friend who was successful and she is giving me some advice (or heads up how very hard it is). But I want details. What happens in the hospital - who do you feed first? When can you start trying tandem feeding.....I need HELP!!! Anyone want to chat about this??
I am trying not to complain, but wow, my body hurts. That's all I will say.
Today at target (yes, buying more "stuff" and stocking up on detergent and house stuff) as I was down an aisle I saw a woman walk by - stop - come back and stare at me. I was trying to ignore her, but then she said "Oh, God Bless You". I thought that was nice compared to the "You are busting at the seams" comment I got yesterday. The attention to my big huge belly is just hilarious!
Hope everyone is well!!!
Just a lurker, but i came across your site from another and wanted to share a few thoughts. My boys are 20 months now and I fed them breastmilk exclusively for the first year. It's definitely challenging but definitely do-able, especially if your little ones are full-term. My boys were born EARLY, 31 weeks, and it was really hard to get them to breastfeed after they came home from the NICU. After delivery, I insisted on a hospital grade pump and was able to get one a few hours after delivery. I pumped every hour for a day or two and then every 2 hours during the day, and every 3 at night while they were in the hospital. Once they got home, breastfeeding was a challenge because I had an oversupply and they were still so little, they got too much milk too fast. Long story short, I nursed and bottle fed them milk until they were 10 months and started losing interest in nursing, at which point I switched to exclusively bottle feeding them breastmilk until they turned one. After that, we transitioned with bottles that had increasing portions of cow's milk to breastmilk until they were on 100% cow's milk. A couple of specific suggestions that I think would apply regardless of whether babies are full term or premie:
ReplyDelete- I recommend either nursing or pumping regularly to build up supply. I had a baby or pump at my breast all the time it seemed for the first few weeks; and I continued to pump every 3 hours during the day and 4 at night to the end. I never developed mastitis and only experienced two episodes of uncomfortable lumps because I did it so consistently (you'll need lots of support for this - my mom helped a great deal for a few months and my husband was a big help throughout);
- I used moremilk supplements and drank milk tea and lots of water, I think it helped;
- I rented a hospital grade pump and I'd definitely recommend it;
- I rarely tandem fed, and I think if you have the time and want to, it's okay to nurse individually but great if you can tandem feed;
- If you pump frequently, you may go up in flange sizes quickly; i went from the smallest to the largest over my pumping life and you'll know if it starts to hurt and you see foam around the nipples when they suction;
- Use lansinohl (sp?) on your nipples in the beginning since they will be getting used to the pumping and nursing;
- If you nurse at all, consider it an achievement and don't let it take over your life, it's an overwhelming experience and exhausting so do your best and try to be happy with that;
- hire a lactation consultant to come to your home for a session if you can, they can actually weigh the babies pre and post feed to see if they are feeding and look at their latch/mouths to see if there are any issues.
Good luck! Hope my comments are helpful.