Breastfeeding - urgent advice needed

[newmum234]

I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl last Friday. Sadly the birth was a tough one and I’m still in hospital recovering while the baby is at home with her dad and grandparents.

Because I was so unwell after the birth I wasn’t able to breastfeed, and she’s been feeding on formula (plus a few syringes of colostrum) since birth.

I was worried my breasts would stop producing milk because of this, but have just tried hand-expressing in my hospital bed and I have lots of colostrum (or would it be breast milk by now?) coming out.

I’m hoping to be home in around five or six days’ time but would really like to give her the breast milk asap if I can. At the moment I’m expressing into those 1ml colostrum syringes but I only have five and think I could fill a lot more.

What is the best way to do this - would I need to store the syringes at the hospital until my husband can pick them up? Should they go in the fridge or freezer? Do I need a bigger container to express into and presumably it will need to be sterilized?

If anyone could help I’d be most grateful!

You don’t have to justify yourself to us newmum234, none of us know what’s going on with you or what circumstances you’re in. For what it’s worth it sounds like this is all outside of your control, you can’t help being unwell! Even if breastfeeding doesn’t work out, you gave her plenty of colostrum which will benefit her in so many ways so please don’t feel guilty, I’m sure you’re doing everything you can. Is there anyone in real life you can chat to?

You have absolutely not failed. If baby needs formula then that is ok. Even if it is for a while for you to recover. My first was mostly formula fed for the first few weeks because I was so unwell but we eventually established exclusive breastfeeding.

I hated the formula at first. I too felt like i had failed as a parent but a midwife helped me rewire my thinking. She told me to think of formula like a medicine to keep my baby strong while we both recovered in hospital.

Have you asked to speak to the breastfeeding support at hospital?

As much pumping as possible to get your supply up (1ml syringes is only useful for colustrum) and try and do lots of skin to skin time when baby is with you. If you can’t get the expressed milk home for your baby then dump it instead but keep pumping.

Does your hospital have a breastfeeding specialist midwife you can talk to?

It’s definitely possible to establish breastfeeding at this stage but pumping is key. Good luck!

Oh, and you want bottles for the expressed milk rather than syringes. Bottles don’t need to be sterlised for breast milk, just washed well in hot soapy water. The kellymom website is a good one to look at for storage guidelines.

OP this must be a really traumatic time for you and it is admirable that you have the energy to even consider breastfeeding when your body has taken such a pounding. I can totally understand why it means so much to you, and feel very sorry on your behalf that you are in this position. Are you in the Uk? I ask because I am staggered that you have not been given this guidance already, and it is shocking. What a state of affairs when a sick new mum has to ask the internet for advice on something that should have immediately been offered and explained by midwifery staff. I wonder if perhaps you are sufficiently unwell that you are not actually on a postnatal ward and instead on a bog standard surgical ward. In any case - the next time your nurse comes round, ask her to bleep the infant feed specialist / supervising midwife to request that she meets with you bedside. You should very routinely have been given a hospital grade pump and given guidance and support on using it / providing and storing milk for your baby. It really isn’t acceptable that they have just given you 10ml syringes and expected to get on with it. It is quite likely you lack the energy to deal with any of this and if your husband can ring the ward / nursing staff or maternity unit to advocate for you and crack the whip a bit then I think that would be helpful.

Best of luck and congratulations on the arrival of your little girl. Hope you make a full recovery soon.

If I don’t manage to express for the next couple of days will my milk supply permanently dry up?

@Pinkflipflop85 thanks, that gives me hope.

Not permanently no - relactation is always possible, but it can be hard work. If you can possibly prevent it getting to the stage of drying up it would be worth persevering now, although I appreciate that you are probably feeling really ill. Do you have any access to midwives at all? They really should be helping you

@newmum234 I remember feeling exactly like you x

How are you doing OP?

My daughter got ill at 5 days old and required emergency surgery and was fed by tube for 2 weeks. I expressed and they fed my milk into her tube, when she was able
To feed again, she was weak as a kitten but immediately patched on to the breast again and we continued breast feeding. Please start pumping though to keep up your supply, you can store the milk in the hospital for your baby.