3 week old baby in intensive care. Need advice on expressing & continuing feeding when he's better

[girlsyearapart]

Hi my 3 week old son is in icu on a ventilator so is being tube fed ebm up his nose.
He had been a good feeder having breast feeds all day then a formula top up once a day around 9pm then bf in the night.

Since he was admitted on Wednesday he has only had ebm but I'm not- and never have been - a very successful expresser.

So need some tips on how to get things moving a bit better.

Using a medela symphony pump which is good and expressing off one side
then the other. Doing well (ish) on the left but paltry amounts on the right.

Also would like tips on keeping him feeding once he's better?

Have only hospital once since Wednesday to get to see the girls so havent had time to shop- they were all shut yesterday.

Doing a bit better now anyway- got 100ml this morning.

He's hopefully coming off the ventilator in next few hours which is a pretty major step forward

girls that's fantastic news. So glad to hear things are getting better x

Oh thats fantastic!! keep us posted .

That's absolutely fantastic news - am so pleased for you. Not long till that first cuddle now!

:D Thats great news, hopefully he will be home in a few days.

You may also feel completely overwhelmed when you finally get home....be gentle with yourself and spend a day in bed cuddled up with him if you can.

Thats's great news, I'm so glad. I've been thinking of you lots over the last few days but only just managed to get on MN just now. Hopefully he'll improve quickly and soon be home.

We are now home! They finally managed to get my wee boy off oxygen on friday evening and he manged to keep his sats more or less above 90 all night so we got home on saturday afternoon, just in time for New Year. He's doing grand but I found leaving the hospital quite difficult and emotional. Like Hatti says, it is quite overwhelming. I don't think it's actually hit us yet what we've been through. It's been quite traumatic for my older boys (aged 2 and 4) and although they are delighted to have Thomas home, they are quite out of sorts - the oldest in particular is very sensitive just now. Today has been better but the baby is quite unsettled and understandably wants a lot of cuddles and I'm finding it hard to give everyone enough attention.

Enjoy your first cuddle - it will be emotional, and possibly a bit scary. I was really scared to pick Thomas up and try to feed him for the first time - but it was ok.

I'll be thinking of you.

Off the ventilator & doing absolutely brilliant!!
He has had a little feed tho had a bit of trouble latching on & spat most of it out but I'll allow it.

Hopefully he ll be on a ward tomorro & home by the weekend.

I'm already feeling that the next days will b harder work than the past ones though hopefully less stressful.

Toomuchpizza that is great news- new year was surreal in hospital so I'm glad you were home

That's is amazing news.

It is weird leaving hospital, I never left DD3 (I don't drive so it would have meant leaving DD3 all alone while DH drove me home) so would spend up to a week at a time in the hospital looking after her. It always felt so strange going home and having to cook your own food rather than having 3 meals brought to you on a tray each day! Did miss my other two so much though.

Oh, phantastic news !! For you too, Toomuchpizza.

Whenever you are allowed, just keep him close to you - kangaroo care ideally, lots of skin-to-skin, whether he feeds or not.

Sounds like he may have found and turned his corner - fingers crossed it is all onwards and upwards from here x.

Oh im thrilled to bits for you!! he'll be demanding all those missed hugs in no time at all feeding wise, just little and often will be fine, it will take at least a day or so for him get his strength back, the working harder to breath and suck at the same time is hard going, but he'll soon get back to normal.

So please for you too toomuchpizza . I found it really emotional to be back home, a combination of the trauma that we had all been through finally hit home, that combined with the sheer exhaustion was awful for the first few days. I would wake in the night still hearing the bloody SATS monitor. In the end i spent all my christmas money on an Angel care monitor, as the thought of not having my DD wired up to something that alerted me if something was wrong was nerve racking!!. Now i know some people find these a little over the top, but when youve had such a young baby so poorly, the re assurance it bought me was invaluable.

Girls and Toomuch - brilliant news for both of you. I am so pleased.

Agree you should be very gentle on yourselves during these next few days. Being discharged onto a ward/home is wonderful as it means that the horribly traumatic ordeal you have just been through is ending and your son is well on the road to recovery, but don't be at all surprised if you feel emotionally and physically exhausted and very vulnerable at the beginning as the adrenalin that has been keeping you going starts to fade, the realisation of what you have been through starts to kick in, and the army of ICU nurses who have been on hand to help you 24/7 is withdrawn. It does get easier, but take it one step at a time and try to make sure you have some emotional and practical support in place to help you through the transition.

In ambulance now being transferred to Kingston hospital. He had no oxygen all night but still not doing great feeding will take time.

I'm so happy!

Oh wow thats amazing girls, DD was on oxygen for about 4/5 days after she came off the ventilator so he has done extremely well .

Yeah they are really happy with him. It's going to be 3/4 more days in hospital & he may need to go back on oxygen again later but doing great.

Congrats, great news

How is everything now? I hope he is doing well. My boy is more or less fine now - can't believe he was so ill.